Photos - https://link.shutterfly.com/KYwDYL4NmAb
Iceland, the size of KY, known as the
Land of Fire and Ice, has 30 active volcanos and is comprised of 63% lava and
other raw terrain, 11% glaciers and ice caps. Population is a mere 375,00, with
the majority in their capital city of Reykjavik. With 21 hours of darkness in
the winter and 24 hours daylight in the summer plus the cold, dreary, windy
weather, they are one of the happiest countries. We experienced temps of 40 –
60 degrees, two rainy days, many cloudy days and several periods of sunshine. Electricity
and water is cheap due to geothermal heat from the volcanos and hydro-power
from the rivers.
G-Adventures toured the
14 of us from four countries for 7-days, keeping us active often until bedtime.
For four days we drove the Ring Road (830 miles) around the island, with
various side trips. The most memorable activity was a snorkel trip to view the
Silfra fissure (no fish). We were in the water for 30 minutes in 35-degree
water wearing a winter dry suit. Thankfully, I was not chilly other than my
hands and lips which got wet. Iceland
is the only place in the world you can swim between two continents. The North
American and Eurasian plates. The plates drift about 2 cm (0.79 in) farther apart
every year, building up tension between the plates and the earth mass above.
This tension is relieved through periodic major earthquakes at approximately
ten-year intervals, which have caused cracks and fissures to form. Silfra lies
at the rim of a lake and is one of the largest and deepest of these fissures.
Towards the end of the fissure, it opens to a shallow lagoon with the rocks
covered in green algae.
Glaciers carve canyons and spawn icebergs and leave behind lakes. I
happened to be standing on shore when a very large iceberg broke apart, sending
wave ripples which can flip a kayak. Further down the lake were the “ice
diamonds sitting on the black sand beach. The diamonds are the smaller remains
of icebergs, washed ashore to melt.
Hiking a glacier, we walked the crunchy ice in crampons and used our ax
as a cane when descending. This glacier looks quite dirty, covered in ash from
the volcano that blew in 2010, stopping European air travel for days. As it
melts, the ash re-arranges itself. The whale watching trip of three hours was
less eventful, seeing bits and pieces of a whale surface during a 20-minute
period. An evening visit to a lagoon to soak in various pools of geothermal
water was relaxing and a frequent ritual of the locals.
Their landscape is stunningly beautiful and
varied with volcanos, moss covered lava fields, glaciers, steep fjords,
geysers, mud cauldrons, steaming vents and pseudo craters. At times, reminding
me of a moon landscape. Waterfalls galore! I
lost count. Trees are minimal and lumber is rarely used for housing. One day I
saw a forest. In five minutes, we had driven through it.
Sheep
and horses roamed on the most beautiful green pastures. Baby lambs were so
adorable. Icelandic horses are pure, meaning that no other horses are allowed
to enter Iceland. If an Icelandic horse leaves the country, it is not allowed
to return. In the 1700's Norway
sent a herd of reindeer to Iceland. Now they number 8,000. I spotted three
different groupings of reindeer along the highway. The antlers were the
give-away. There is a population of 8,000 now with hunting permits of 1,000 -
1,500 per year. The taste is like venison.
An interesting visit was the tomato farm with 27
greenhouses which provides 50% of the tomatoes to Iceland. Some facts: 27,000
tomato plants, 4 varieties of tomatoes, 2 tons shipped per day, each plant
grows 30' in 9 months, they cut 3-4 branches per week, pollinated via boxes of
BUMBLE bees genetically breed from Netherlands, each box has one queen and 60
females (females work harder than the males), 6 boxes of bees for each
greenhouse, bees pollinate 2,000 flowers per day, the one bag of soil (moss and
turf) is from Finland for 5 -6 plants, the tubes in the bag of soil add the
water and nutrients, the geothermal water from volcanos heats the greenhouses.
Their restaurant has an eclectic menu of "all things tomatoes". I
don't like tomatoes so, I opted for the glass of prosecco with a scoop of
sorbet (lime, basil, cucumber), a pot of cheesecake with green tomato jelly and
a dish of three sorbets.
Our last day was a full-day tour of the Snaefellsnes Penisula with the
fascinating landscape as seen in the Jules Verne’s “Journey to the Center of
the Earth”. Or, as filmed in the Game of Thorns series.
Reykjavik, the world’s most northernly capital, was surprisingly
cosmopolitan loaded with art, cafes, restaurants, live music, and plentiful
bars. Their police do not carry guns and Iceland does not have a military. It
is a peaceful, safe country for traveling. Until 2006, you could not keep a dog
as a pet in the city. Dogs were farm dogs and not meant to be restricted to a
small house or apartment. The most interesting museum was the Phallological
Museum featuring “all things penis”. Whether it was actual penises specimens or
phallic art, it was quite educational. In addition to some of the largest
penises from a giraffe or horses, there was the smallest from tiny mice. Even some men donated their penises to the
museum, upon their death.
The strangest meal I ordered was sheepshead. Don’t! It’s literally a
sheep’s head, sawed in half then boiled in water. It was extremely tough, very
little meat and an unpleasant taste. I much preferred the reindeer meatballs
earlier in the week.
My last night I found a fabulous band staged in a bookstore bar playing favorite
American music. I was on my feet dancing for two hours. The crowd had great
energy. True to form, they played Country Roads which I have heard in many
other countries. Iceland is well worth a visit.
