…more than meets the ice!

I can’t believe I’m finally writing about my trip to Iceland, I have been so excited to write this piece. It was honestly one of the most astounding countries I have ever visited. I initially planned to spend 3 days but ended up extending to 5 days because there was just so much to see and do but even with the new plan, I still didn’t see all. If you want to have a great experience in Iceland, spend up to a week and please go when it’s almost the end of winter or beginning of spring. I would advise between March and April, that’s when I went. The cold wasn’t unbearable, coldest day was maybe about -2. Don’t get me wrong, it was freezing and I even had thermal wears underneath my jeans and jumper but to be honest, I see no point in going to Iceland during the summer. I’m all about the experience and besides there are some activities that you can’t do in the summer like exploring the ice caves etc. It’s Iceland for a reason bro…

All my activities were booked either with www.grayline.com, www.extremeiceland.is or Reykjavik Excursions on www.re.is . I strongly recommend these companies, they were so professional, it was unbelievable. All their buses were neat and had free Wi-Fi, they also pick you up from your hotel or the closest pickup location to you. I remember I missed my bus once with Gray Line, they sent another bus to get me. Very cool, right?

Anyway, before I go on, it’s important to tell you this. Always book your tours or activities before you get to Iceland especially for the blue lagoon. You must book ahead of time, it’s a tourist country and most packages are always sold out.

One more thing you must know before going to Iceland is that it is a very expensive country. Everything from food, to hotels and taxis etc. cost so much. That was the only thing I didn’t like about the trip. Also, do not bother taking a taxi from the airport, there are buses there that take you straight to the city. Just walk out of the airport building and do as your mates are doing, lol. The ride to the city is about 40 minutes and I used Reykjavik excursions.

Again free Wi-Fi! A typical tourist would know how much happiness this brings. *exhale

If you have family or if you just want to be independent on the trip, you can rent any kind of car you want from the airport and drive yourself but you must confirm parking arrangements with the hotel or apartment owner. Parking might be a real pain… but trust me, those buses are so convenient and you wouldn’t need to worry about logistics.

Iceland is not a Schengen Country but they allow you to visit if you already have a schengen visa and that’s what I used. I flew with Easy Jet, it was a 2-hour flight from Edinburgh and I stayed in an Airbnb apartment, the hotels were just too expensive for me at the time. I even regretted not staying in a hostel because I was out early every day and back very late.

My apartment was right in the middle of everything on a street called Laugavegur. It was a shopping street and everything including restaurants was just a walking distance. (make sure wherever you stay is close to Laugavegur).

After I was well rested from the journey, I took a walk with my family friend, Paul around the city centre, it was awesome. (He was visiting from the States and we both planned to be there at the same time)

On the second day, we did the golden circle tour which allows you to visit some of Iceland’s most stunning sights, starting with the Geysir geothermal area where the Strokkur geysir shoots a column of water up to 30 meters (98 ft.) into the air every 4-8 minutes in a thrilling display of nature’s forces after it gets to boiling point.

The visit continued with Gullfoss (Golden Falls) waterfall, created by the river Hvítá, which tumbles and plunges into a crevice some 32 m (105 ft.) deep.

We also saw Godafoss (waterfall of the Gods)…

…and the Kerid crater which is a volcanic crater lake and believed to be originally a cone volcano that erupted and emptied its magma reserve. Once the magma was depleted, the weight of the cone collapsed into an empty magma chamber and was later filled with water.

The Golden Circle tour also included the historical and geological wonder that is Thingvellir National Park, where the American and Eurasian tectonic plates are pulling apart at a rate of a few centimeters per year.

(because I’m a strong fan of Game of Thrones, its exciting to tell you that some scenes were shot at this park. Some with the wildlings, and a couple with Arya Stark and the hound)

Later that night we went to see the Northern Lights. We had to drive for over an hour away from the city and its bright lights, just in search for the northern lights. The Northern Lights refer to one of the most amazing natural wonders of the world, the aurora borealis. They are called the ‘northern lights’ because they are a glowing, flickering display of colors most commonly seen in the northern hemisphere. The best season to see the northern lights in Iceland is from September to mid- April, these are the months where there are full dark nights. You can google more about this, but it was breathtaking.

(Oh God see my face hahaha! Ignore this look please, it was cold and windy and so keeping my eyes wide open was a struggle plus I also had to stand still for 20 seconds so the photographer could capture the lights).

(haters will say its photoshop)

On our third day, we went to the blue lagoon. The lagoon is a man-made lagoon which is fed by the water output of the nearby geothermal power plant Syartsengi and is renewed every two days. Superheated water is vented from the ground near a lava flow and used to run turbines that generate electricity. After going through the turbines, the steam and hot water passes through a heat exchanger to provide heat for a municipal water heating system. Then the water is fed into the lagoon for recreational and medicinal users to bathe in.

The warm waters are rich in minerals like silica and sulfur and bathing in the Blue Lagoon is reputed to help some people suffering from skin diseases such as psoriasis. The water temperature in the bathing and swimming area of the lagoon averages 37–39 °C (99–102 °F). The Blue Lagoon also operates a research and development facility to help find cures for other skin ailments using the mineral-rich water. (don’t be angry, I got this explanation from Wikipedia).

They also give you silica mud from the bottom of the lagoon, and it helps exfoliate the skin. (at least that’s what they told me)

On my last day, I decided to visit the Jokulsarlon lagoon which is a large glacial lake. I did this tour with www.grayline.com  We left at 7am because the ride from Reykjavik was supposed to be about 4 hours. On our way, we saw the Seljalandsfoss and Skogafoss waterfalls. Breathtaking!

(Justin Bieber used these waterfalls as locations for the music video of his song ‘I’ll show you’)

After a very long, but very beautiful drive along the south coast of Iceland – we finally made it to Jokulsarlon and it was pissing down rain. I still needed my pictures though lol. Anyway, the Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon is one of the most amazing natural wonders of Iceland and one of the most popular attractions for travelers to visit. Errm how do I explain this? Okay… It’s a lagoon filled with huge icebergs that broke away from the much larger Vatnajokull Glacier. The ice is atleast 1000 years old and by nature, the icebergs don’t melt neither does the lagoon freeze over. This is because a natural river connecting Jokulsarlon to the Atlantic creates a mixture of salt and fresh water; cool enough to keep the ice mostly intact, but salty enough to prevent the water from freezing. It could take years for the ice to eventually melt. I was amazed by how beautiful it was! So many shapes and colors littering the lagoon – something new and beautiful at each turn of one’s head.

I was told that the visible ice makes up about 10% of the entire iceberg which means a greater percentage even lies underwater.. wow! #LookAtGod

If you watch that Justin Bieber’s music video I told you about earlier, you will see him swimming in this lagoon with no clothes on. If I try it, delivery men will just drop pneumonia at my door and say ‘Aunty, we have a package for you. Please sign’

There are so many other things I didn’t get to do because of time but I will do a separate post very soon about the top things to do in Iceland.

I hope you enjoyed reading about my trip and seeing the beautiful Iceland through my lens.

Thank you for reading till the end.

Love,
Ezinne