Iceland: a perfect North Atlantic layover

North Shore, Reykjavik

Iceland was amazing and very beautiful! It was not quite what I expected. While I knew it was not all ice and snow as the country name suggests, it had barren wastelands which looked like a Luna terra firma, with lush green grasslands in adjacent valleys. Iceland has a lot of hot and cold water everywhere. It was common to see steam rising out of the ground and to feel streams which had glacial melt amalgamating with hot spring water.

Strokkur Geyser

A source of fresh water is glacier snow melt. I saw one of the large glaciers, which was amazing, as it rose up out of the hills or low lying mountains and seemed endless against a cloud filled sky. It was quite bizarre, as the glacier seemed to have a lot of volcano ash on it which is causing it to melt at an accelerated rate of nearly 6 metres per annum. I read the glaciers are the same size as during the 16th Century, which was when they began to grow again. Now the glaciers are melting super fast with one recorded as melting 100 metres a couple years back - the reason - black volcanic ash has settled on top which causes the ice and snow to heat up due to the abortive nature of the black (cf the reflective nature of the white snow). I also saw the world's largest geyser - the Great Geyser and her slightly smaller sister, Strokkur, in Haukadalur. Old Faithful in Yellowstone Nat'l Park, WY is the second largest geyser. The word “geyser” comes from Iceland and was incorporated into English after British scientists saw the natural phenomenon.

Mid-Atlantic Ridge, separating Eurasian from the N American Plate 

I also went to the Fantana Steam baths and pool for a little hot springs action. Afterwards I had rye bread, which was cooked using the natural boiling water from the ground, and smoked salmon. As I was walking back to my hostel I saw the Aurora Borealis above the city lights of Reykjavik - they were the most beautiful sea of green lights darting through the clouds and open night sky the surf on waves coming ashore. I felt I could touch the lights and was drawn to their magical trance. My photographs were feudal attempts to capture what my eyes were seeing.

The night before I left I had organized a mtg at a local pub - The Icelandic Bar - of a few folks I met while taking a day tour. We tried Whale, Shark, Puffin, Icelandic bier and chocolate. I cannot say I am a big fan of the Shark or Puffin, but the others were pretty good. The Icelanders love hotdogs and I had one at a hotdog stand made famous when US Pres Bill Clinton visited the island. They have an odd mix of dehydrated onions mixed with fresh onions and served with a brown sauce on the underside of the hotdog - it was really good and one of the few affordable items on the island. 

Reykjavik, Iceland

A major thrill was relaxing in the Blue Lagoon, which is a major resort where guests soak in sea water heated by a hot springs in the middle of a volcanic rock field. It is crazy, fun and calming. They also have steam rooms and saunas to help relax and release the toxins in the skin. Everyone was wearing the mud face packs, thus I tried it too and I think it helped my skin ;-) I boarded the plane the evening after my long 5 hr soak in the lagoon and it was the most relaxing flight I have ever had - I found a new way to travel. The flight was topped off with a glass of white wine, window seat, beautiful cloud views and a find selection of music and films. I watched a film - The Adjustment Bureau and read the book The Prophet.