Possible Duplicates: W. H. Auden – Letter to Lord Byron [Fourth stanza] Revised text based on Longer Contemporary Poems W. H. Auden

IV

A ship again; this time the Dettifoss.
Grierson can buy it; all the sea I mean,
All this Atlantic that we’ve now to cross
Heading for England’s pleasant pastures green.
Pro tem I’ve done with the Icelandic scene;
I watch the hills receding in the distance,
I hear the thudding of an engine’s pistons.



I hope I’m better, wiser for the trip:
I’ve had the benefit of northern breezes,
The open road and good companionship,
I’ve seen some very pretty little pieces;
And though the luck was almost all MacNeice’s,
I’ve spent some jolly evenings playing rummy-
No one can talk at Bridge, unless it’s Dummy.

I’ve learnt to ride, at least to ride a pony,
Taken a lot of healthy exercise,
On barren mountains and in valleys stony,
I’ve tasted a hot spring (a taste was wise),
And foods a man remembers till he dies.
All things considered, I consider Iceland,
Apart from Reykjavik, a very nice land.