We had the trip of a lifetime in the land of fire and Ice! Iceland was everything we were hoping for and more.... from the picturesque scenery of waterfalls, mountains, geysirs, blue lagoon to the amazing food and christmas brews!
The first day we slept in some and were getting into proper holiday mood :) It was gross day with a steady rain and gust of winds here and there. But we did make it out of the comfy apartment to take a wander around the town.
First thing on the list was to visit the town's church. Architecturally it was very different from anything in London. Very impressive on the outside however it was very simply on the inside.
And a beautiful organ
We went to the top of the clock and had a great view of the city.
This status represents the first viking settler's son.
It is out in front of the church.
After the church we did a little walking around and window shopping. We stopped to have a little afternoon snack that was amazing! We went for the Iceland Cheesecake that uses their famous yogurt and a pancake filled with sugar.
Given the weather, we opted for a quiet afternoon in the apartment. They were just beginning to decorate for Christmas. So someone stopped by to hang up a star in the window. It added an extra touch of a homey feeling and looked very nice from the street.
Later that evening we ventured out to a Danish Pub that was having a tasting for some micro-brew christmas beers. Jeffrey was a big fan... and I really enjoyed the cheese tasting that went along with it. After the tasting, there was a live band that was actually pretty good. They played some of the more popular songs... from Bob Marley, Men Down Under, Elton John... just to name a few. It was a great start to the holiday :)
The following day, we had a bus scheduled to pick us up in the morning and take us to the
Blue Lagoon. I am not even really sure where to begin with this one... it was amazing from beginning to end. Given it is winter time, the sun doesn't rise until 10ish and sets around 430ish. We arrived at the Blue Lagoon shortly after sun rise. The entrance was covered in lava rock along the sides of the pathway.
Once inside... it was breath taking! I could have taken a million photo's of this place but tried to limit myself and soak in every minute.
The water was so warm... and the air was so cold.
It felt amazing in the water!
The saying goes in Iceland... they go to the pool to warm up not cool off like in NC haha
After being in the water for a while it was nice to feel the cool air on your skin. Similar to London, the weather was also over the place... it rained, sleeted, and snowed while were were there. All felt great while you were in the pool.
W
e had lunch in the Lava Restaurant at the lagoon
and we definitely one of the best views around
After lunch we were in a great relaxation mood, so
there was no better place to head other than the relaxation lounge :)
We had the opportunity to try a volcano mask for a gentle scrub and then we did an algae mask. The water has healing powers from the nature of the pools. Life doesn't get much better than this! We were living the life of luxury for a day with robes, slippers, heated floors in the locker rooms and slushies pool side all in an amazing location. We a roof top visit before leaving...
I miss it already!
To top off the day, we treated ourselves to am unforgettable dinner. We tried it all from whale, puffins, black bird (similar to crow), lamb, fish, to lobster.... needless to say we were stuffed by the end!
Jeffrey and I were living the life of luxury... at least for one day :)
I didn't think it could get any better... but the next day we went on the Golden circle tour. We had a great guide (GeoIceland tours) who know more than I thought possible about geology and iceland itself. Here is a map that our tour guide provided of the places we visited along the tour. We went in reverse order starting with F to B.
Hveragerdi was the little town that was hit pretty hard in the earth quake in 2008. They had some neat exhibits that simulated an earthquake and had a view into a fisher. Per our tour guide, Javiar, these type of fishers are all over Iceland. They added in lights so that we could see it. Pretty interesting!
The next stop on the list were some of the Icelandic Horses. They are the only farm animal that is kept outside during the winter. I felt pretty bad for the poor ponies. They were so cute though!
After petting the ponies for a bit we made it to the first waterfall, Faxi. This was not as big as the the second, but we could get really close to it making it extra special. The views were breathtaking... simply beautiful!
Here is a view from the top....
A panoramic view of the fall from the side.... the snow and water are so pure. Iceland is know for having some of the cleanest water in the world!
Here are some fun pics at the bottom
Fishing is big business in Iceland. The rivers are owned privately, which has its benefits and consequences. Benefit the fish population be monitored and is healthy. Here is an example of the salmon/fish ladder that farmers use to count the population. Consequences... the farmers can charge whatever they want for fishing licenses. Per our bus driver, a good river (i.e high fish population) can be as high as 500 to 1000 euro for a day! Needless to say it is an expensive hobby....
The 2nd waterfall was much larger and just as impressive! It started to snow right when we arrived, so there are some blurry spots in the photos.. but it made the experience that much sweeter.
You can see the canon really well here. The waterfalls keep cutting away at the sides to create the sharp edges.
It was getting really chilly though! haha
The next stop was lunch time and the geysirs. Impressive to know that all the other geysirs in the world were named after this one. The pictures are not good since it was snowing and there is snow in the backgroud... everything looks white haha. But we were able to get some neat ones with steam rising from the earth.
Jeffrey finally got to see his puffin!!! haha
The puffin is actually a pretty cool bird that migrates to the sea in the winter months and
does not touch land again to thawing season.
After we thought it couldn't get any better... we stopped for our next location just in time to see the sun set. The lake in the picture is created by the shifting of the euro/asia plate and the america's plate.
To the right of this photo is the last known location of the viking parliament. The flag pole represents the specific location. The tour guide dropped us off at the bottom and then picked us up at the top.
On the way up to the flag, there is a popular scuba diving place because the water is so clear you can see to the bottom. People throw coins in to watch it fall to the bottom.
They were awesome views.. the pictures don't do it justice
(at least not with my iPhone haha)
Kind of scary to see this sign before we walk up the ridge to the top. But keep calm and carry on we did... and everything turned out just fine :)
After such an amazing day, we retired to the apartment for a relaxing evening. A few things we learned over the trip was that Iceland has 13 Santa's that come the 13 days before Christmas, bringing a small present each night. Orange soda is very popular. The same soda is often mixed with this non-alcoholic malt beverage during the holidays, so we thought we would give it a go. It was not bad, but we prefer to enjoy each drink separately :)
This trip is one I will never forget... it have been a trip of a life time!!! It was sad to leave such a great place..... but soooo very thankful to have had the opportunity to visit.
