Iceland – Fire and Ice

Hello everybody,

here I am with the post everybody was waiting for. It took me some time to get into it but finally here it is.

Waterfalls, waterfalls..

So last month I made one of the biggest trips in my life if not the biggest and went to Iceland together with my friend Albert. Iceland was always one of my dream destinations and my urge to go there became bigger after seeing The Secret Life of Walter Mitty a couple of years ago (watch it if you haven’t seen it yet). I must say that the movie or pictures of Iceland on instagram that I was checking out before the trip don’t lie. It is a beautiful island with breathtaking sceneries at every corner which you won’t find anywhere else and pictures can’t hardly capture all the mesmerizing beauty and power of the Mother Nature. Or if you believe in God, he was super generous with waterfalls while creating Iceland. I have never seen so many waterfalls in my whole life and I’m not talking only about the big and famous ones like Goddafoss, Skogafoss or Gullfoss, smaller and very small waterfalls, that don’t even have a name, come from every piece of mountain in Iceland. Simply they’re everywhere!

 

 

 

 

Driving in Iceland

Driving through Iceland, despite the long distances and sometimes very thrilling roads, was an amazing experience and we had to stop several times just to take some photos. The abundance of sheep, the idyllic farms, the hobbit-like turf houses, the Icelandic horses, the lava formations and ice glaciers, the 24-hour daylight in summer, the geothermal energy and its creative use..Add it all up it becomes apparent why there really is no place in the world like Iceland.

But to give you more details which you asked for, let me tell you how the trip went. July and August are the best months to go to Iceland if you wanna drive around the whole island or if you don’t plan to rent a car because later on the tourist buses don’t operate anymore. In July you can experience the 24-hour daylight but later on in the middle of August, when we were there, the sun sets around 9.30 pm and rises after 4 am. If you go in the second half of August like us you may see the first aurora borealis. We weren’t so lucky as the sky was mostly cloudy but we saw a bit of it from the plane on the way back. That brings me to the flight connection we made. We took an Emirates flight from Dubai to Frankfurt and then Icelandair to Keflavík airport in Iceland. Icelandair operates from many cities in Europe and North America so you just need to check which one is the best for you. We chose Frankfurt because all the other Emirates flights to Northern Europe were full or the timing wasn’t good. On the way back we flew via Paris. Other airlines that fly to Keflavik is SAS or WOW.

Keflavík is close to Grindavík where the famous Blue Lagoon is and it’s approx. 50 minutes from Iceland’s capital Reykjavík. We rented a car which was waiting for us at the airport. We rented a normal Hyundai and it survived a lot with us. The so-called Ring Road which goes around the whole island is mostly in good condition however there are some gravel roads, especially in the southeast which weren’t very pleasant in a small and rented car. Make sure your insurance includes damage from gravel. Some of the roads are also impassable during the winter. If you want to explore Iceland’s highlands or drive to the glaciers you will need a 4×4 car. Some roads are really nerve-wracking so if you have some extra money to spend, go for a bigger car. We also met people driving through Iceland on a motorcycle or people who were hitchhiking and taking the tour buses. But as I said the buses operate only in summer and you need at least 20 days to move around with them if you want to see the whole of Iceland. The most beautiful part as many people say is the Westfjords and you have to take a ferry to go there. Unfortunately, we didn’t have enough time to go there but we still drove around the whole Ring Road.

Accommodation 

We began our journey by visiting Þingvellir National Park, the majestic Gullfoss waterfall, and the famous Geysir in Haukadalur. These three attractions make up the Golden Circle, a popular day tour for tourists in Iceland. While many people typically head to Vík for the night, we chose to stay in Hella, which is located near the renowned Eyjafjallajökull volcano that erupted in 2010.

I highly recommend the Lax-á-Ranga wooden cottages for an authentic and romantic experience in Iceland. It was our favorite accommodation throughout the trip. When it comes to lodging in Iceland, guesthouses or Airbnb rentals are often the best options. They tend to be very nice and usually include a kitchen and either a shared or private bathroom.

Be prepared to spend a bit more for everything while in Iceland, as it is an expensive country. One positive aspect is that you can pay with your credit card almost everywhere—we didn’t even see the local currency since we didn’t need it. 

If you’re planning to visit Iceland in the summer, make sure to book your accommodation at least two to three weeks in advance to save some money. We waited too long and ended up with limited options. So, be smart and plan your trip carefully, especially during the summer months.

Gullfoss

 

Skogafoss

The second day of our journey was no doubt the busiest and the most tiring one as we managed to see the waterfalls Seljalandsfoss and Skogafoss, Eyjafjallajökull volcano, the deepest Icelandic canyon Fjaðrárgljúfur and the glaciers in the south of Vatnajökull national park with Jökulsárlón ice lagoon which was definitely the highlight of the day.

 

Jökulsárlón ice lagoon Fjaðrárgljúfur

Unpredictable weather

During our trip, we experienced several low points, primarily due to the unpredictable weather. There’s a saying in Iceland: “If you don’t like the weather in Iceland, wait five minutes!” This was true for us, as sunny moments were often followed by heavy rain and fog, and vice versa. Unfortunately, there were times when the rain and thick fog persisted for hours, which impacted our plans. For instance, we missed visiting Vik and its famous beach, and we couldn’t appreciate much of Seydisfjordur or the Snaefellsnes Peninsula because of the weather. Fortunately, when we reached the north of Iceland, the weather cleared up, allowing us to enjoy the natural geothermal baths in Mývatn. While these baths may not be as luxurious as the Blue Lagoon, they are still quite nice and cost half the price.

Back to the waterfalls, this time in the north, where one of the most spectacular waterfalls, Godafoss, is located. It played a key role in Icelandic history. The story goes that in the year 1000, the Lawspeaker Þorgeir Ljósvetningagoði made Christianity the official religion of Iceland after spending a night at this waterfall, which translates to “Waterfall of the Gods.” While this is a romantic tale, it is possible that, under pressure from Christianity’s “convert or die” methods, Þorgeir secretly discarded his Norse deities’ icons into the falls while still maintaining his allegiance to them. Regardless of the true account of events, one thing remains certain: this curling horseshoe waterfall with its stunning blue waters is truly breathtaking, and it has become my favorite.

 

 

 

Goddafoss

 

Crater Viti

Icelandic cities and towns

Iceland doesn’t have many large cities. The capital, Reykjavík, has about 180,000 inhabitants, while two other significant towns in the capital region have around 30,000 each. Akureyri, located in the north, is the largest city outside the capital region, boasting a population of only 18,000. Despite its small size, Akureyri has a charming and unique ambiance that makes it easy to fall in love with. The city is filled with art galleries, trendy bars, and restaurants, and it is beautifully situated along the longest fjord in Iceland, surrounded by mountains.

One of the most famous towns in Iceland is Húsavík, which has just 2,200 residents. Its fame comes from its exceptional whale-watching opportunities. Visitors can spot up to 11 different types of whales, including the magnificent blue whale. However, we couldn’t go on a whale-watching tour because the sea was too cold, which wouldn’t have been very pleasant. Aside from that, Húsavík is a delightful little town with colorful houses, and its harbor is stunning. Trust me, after driving through some villages consisting of just three houses (apparently, 10 inhabitants are enough to form a municipality in Iceland), a town with more than 1,000 residents feels huge! 🙂

Húsavík

 

Beautiful double rainbow on the way to Akureyri

 

Beautiful sunset on the way to Akureyri 

Akureyri’s fjords

 

Akureyri city center

Descending back to Reykjavík, we stopped at the Snæfellsnes Peninsula, the same location that Ben Stiller visits in the movie. It’s often referred to as “Iceland in miniature” because the peninsula showcases many of the stunning landscapes found throughout the country. If you don’t have time to drive around the entire island, a visit to the Snæfellsnes Peninsula will give you a good sense of what you would see otherwise—moss-covered lava rocks, craggy seaside cliffs, unique rock formations shaped by the sea, a giant glacier, majestic fjords, windswept beaches, quaint fishing villages, and rolling farmlands dotted with sheep and horses.

Fortunately, we had the time to drive around the entire island, as we didn’t get to see much beauty in Snæfellsnes. The weather was terrible and quite unpleasant; the majestic Snæfellsjökull glacier, typically visible from a distance, was shrouded in thick fog. At least we visited the charming town of Stykkishólmur, featured in Ben Stiller’s movie (that’s where he finishes his longboard journey), and saw one of Iceland’s most photographed sights, Mount Kirkjufell. Its name means “church mountain” in Icelandic, and it truly is breathtaking. It’s no wonder it attracts so many photographers, especially during the summer when the sun doesn’t fully set, allowing for hours of colorful sunsets in the background.

 

Mount Kirkjüfell

The last two days of our journey were spent in the Icelandic capital – Reykjavík. This quirky city has a very unique atmosphere and people here are fashionable, young, and proud to be one of the sexually most open cultures in the world. The Gay and Lesbian Organisation was founded here already in 1978 and today lesbians and gays in Iceland stand equal to heterosexual people in the eyes of the law and prejudice is on the retreat. There are many gay bars in Reykjavík and I think I had never seen so many rainbow flags before. In fact they have one full rainbow street in Reykjavík right in the city center.
And with a coffee in a hipster bookshop in the city center, our journey had come to an end. It was ten days of adventure, infinite exploring and so much beauty concentrated in one place that our eyes couldn’t believe it sometimes.

My only advice at the end of this post is: GO! Iceland is worth it and you will never find anything like that!

And don’t forget to be happy, bee on cloud 9! 🙂

Love
Beata

Reykjavík’s rainbow

This is a map of strategic points in our journey also the points we stayed in. You might want to cut the way from Hella to Djupivogur in half or if you find accommodation in Vik, stay there instead of the area of Golden Circle. We didn’t have other choice but the drive on the second day from Hella to Djúpivogur was too long.