Our Five Days in Iceland (2017)
Day 1
We've never experienced anything quite like Icelandic weather. We arrived in Iceland at 4:30am local time, in the middle of a storm. The wind howled and swayed the entire plane as we sat on the runway for nearly 20 minutes, waiting for the airline's staff to attach the jet bridge to the plane. When we finally made it outside, the snow was whipping - truly, whipping - my body and face as I attempted to walk against the wind. With effort, we arrived at the hotel beside the airport where we would be picking up our rental car. We signed the car out - studded tires, four-wheel drive and all - and we were given one piece of advice: be careful when you're opening the car door, the wind has been known to take the doors off.
With that advice - and so much adrenaline pumping through our veins - we got into our car and began the drive to our first destination: Vik and Skogafoss, a 4 hour drive from Keflavik International Airport. The blizzard had us in literal white-out conditions. We could see probably 3 feet in front of our car and the occasional blinking of the hazard lights on the car ahead of us. This wasn't the first time we would drive in white-out conditions, but it was the scariest. We were in a country we were unfamiliar with, on roads we had never been on before, and our ability to see had been taken from us by a roaring blizzard in the black of night. Daniel's knuckles were white on the wheel and I was sitting on the edge of my seat, trying my best to be his second pair of eyes.
Finally, the snow subsided; then, it was 10am and the sun began to rise. This moment of our drive was magical; we had had no idea that we were driving between rising, soaring, snow-covered cliffs and mountains. We had no idea that the terrain surrounding us was otherworldly, or that small cottages dotted the horizon only every few miles. In that first (merciful) break of dawn, we spotted this waterfall. That's when we knew we were in for a truly magical trip.
Four hours later, we had made it to Vik. Our first stop was going to be the black sand beaches; we pulled up into the parking lot with sunny skies - and I was overwhelmed by the beauty of what I was seeing before me. It would be so easy to pretend you were on another planet; the beach's sand was black as oil with small boulders protruding across the otherwise-flat horizon. The ocean waves were overwhelmed by the storm; they crashed and screamed menacingly against the column rock formations that jutted out along the cliffs.
We exited our car and made it perhaps 10 yards when it began to hail. And not just baby-hail - this hail was the size of marbles! At the same time, the wind whipped so hard that the black sand formed an almost tornado-like wall around Daniel and I. Above the roar, Daniel yelled at me to return to the car (I had gone into a deer-in-headlights reaction.) I finally did turn around to run back to the car - being whipped and beaten by hail and black sand in the process. I opened the car door, jumped in, and then found that I was literally unable to close the door behind me because of the strength of the wind. For nearly 10 seconds, I struggled with the car door - sand and hail were piling into our rental car all the while. Finally, either because of an adrenaline-spiked strength, or because of an almost imperceptible break in the wind (or both) I slammed it closed. We sat there like you see people on movies do when they finally make it to safety: our chests were heaving, shocked looks on our faces ... then we bursted out into laughter.
That day, we experienced rain, wind, thunderstorms and lightning, blizzard-conditions, frozen rain, hail and a sandstorm. If the forecast says "stormy" for your trip to Iceland, this is the kind of storm you can expect. Every kind. Luckily, it did clear up for the rest of our trip - we had sun, snow and rain during the next four days, but the wind, lightning and hail only stuck around to greet us on Day 1.
After that adrenaline-packed day - and after staying awake for over 24 hours - we arrived at our lodge in Skogofass. We were too tired to even walk out to see the waterfall. We decided to get food in the only restaurant for miles around, then fall into a deep sleep at 4pm local time.
Day 2
The next day we woke up at 5am, fully refreshed. We were starving by that time, but had to wait until 8am for the only restaurant within miles to open back up and begin serving breakfast. By 9am, we were back on the road and the skies were still pitch black. I actually enjoyed the winter hours; the rising of the sun around 10:30am was an event to look forward to every day, and I appreciated being awake for every sunrise. Though it is a little trippy to wake up at 5am and not see the sun until 5 1/2 hours later.
Nevertheless, we were back on the road. Much calmer roads, too. Daniel and I love road trips, so another 4 hours on the road was enjoyable. When the sun did rise, we had so much fun slowing down to take pictures and take in the views. The roads are so infrequently inhabited that there were large stretches where the roads and bridges had only one lane for two-way traffic. Occasionally, we would have to pull off to the side to allow an oncoming car to pass. Thankfully, the horizon was so expansive (and it's national law that all cars must have their headlights on at all times), that we could see cars coming even when they were still miles away.
Our destination on Day 2 was Jökulsárlón, the Glacier Lagoon. When we finally turned the corner toward Glacier Lagoon (and suddenly we were with people again!), I gasped. Even from a distance, it was one of the most beautiful things I had ever seen. The glaciers were all either a brilliant white, an icy gray, or a bright sky-blue. They were grouped together in the lagoon - large and colorful and silent. Even though it was the first crowd we had been in all day, the number of people still wasn't that large and Glacier Lagoon was overwhelmingly peaceful and quiet. The crunching of stones beneath people's boots and the pitter-patter of a misty rainfall were the only sounds I heard when Daniel and I found a quiet place to sit. The icebergs were still and silent in front of us, but still somehow strikingly beautiful. It's hard to describe the ambiance of the lagoon; it was a bit like an artist had begun sculptures he wasn't happy with, then dumped them all into this corner of the world. They somehow seemed melancholy and forgotten, but still overwhelmingly beautiful.
We stayed until the rain soaked through our winter clothes, then slogged back to the car. Directly across Glacier Lagoon is a black sand beach, which was equally as beautiful. Don't miss this site! On this side of the lagoon, the waves roared and large chunks of see-through ice littered the oil slick black. We spent time climbing the largest pieces of ice we could find, then called it a day and returned to the car, ready to begin the long drive back.
We were able to swing back around by the black sand beaches of Vik in calmer weather, take in the gorgeous scenery, and eat some Schnitzel for dinner before we finally made it to Reykjavik and got settled in our airbnb.
Day 3
Day 3 was our day to explore Reykjavik! We got an early start so that we could stop for brunch. Daniel took me to The Laundromat Cafe in downtown Reykjavik. I got the 'veggie basic' breakfast: "two friend eggs, grilled tomatoes with toasted white or rye bread." Daniel got the 'dirty brunch' - "sausages, hand-cut bacon, scrambled eggs, butter fried potatoes, and grilled tomato with Greek yogurt and muesli." The breakfast was, so far, the best food we'd had during our trip - though expensive, like everything in Iceland.
After our stomachs were full, we wandered the city. It was expansive yet quaint at the same time. We enjoyed shopping for a souvenir (we pick up a piece of local art in every destination we visit); our Icelandic piece is among our favorite in our collection so far. Aside from the art in the shop, there were stunning pieces of street art hidden throughout the winding roads. Stumbling across this art was one of our favorite parts about wandering Reykjavik.
We also managed to squeeze in a visit to famous Lutheran parish church, Hallgrimskirkja, and the Harpa Concert Hall, both of which were beautiful locations. When we got hungry again, we sampled the famous hot dogs from Baejarins Beztu Pylsur and the equally famous chocolate cake at Cafe Babalu.
(Side note: In both food-related instances, we were a bit disappointed and ended up just spending more money. Iceland brought a lot of beauty and majesty; but we'll admit it was a bit difficult to find good food, even after paying exorbitant prices. Being New Yorkers, when we hear that a location is expensive, we usually assume it matches New York prices. Iceland was not the case! Meals for two would average $50.)
At dusk, the biggest, fluffiest snowflakes began to fall peacefully from the sky. It was yet another magical moment that Iceland gave to us. If you find yourself in Reykjavik anytime soon, put aside an entire day to wander throughout downtown, look at the art and be entranced by the quaint streets.
That night, we made it back to our cozy airbnb in time to give our hosts' cats a few pats and then head off to bed.
Day 4
We woke up on New Year’s Eve with plans to drive The Golden Circle (also known as Þingvellir National Park.) The Golden Circle is an Icelandic ‘must see’-meets-tourist trap. (I only call it a tourist trap because, for the first time during the trip, we found ourselves in a “crowd” of people, and we also had to pay $2 to use the bathroom and $16 for a bowl of lamb soup.) Regardless, it was a gorgeous day full of natural wonders.
ALMANNAGJÁ CANYON
Stop #1 in The Golden Circle is (casually) the rift between the European and North American tectonic plates. It’s a bizarre thing to wrap your head around while you’re staring into (and walking through) the canyon, but it makes for some gorgeous, snow-covered pictures.
GEYSIR
The Geysir of all geysers (aka the geyser for which all other geysers are named.) Geysir eruptions are infrequent (they're actually been known to stop for years at a time in the past) but are capable of throwing boiling water 229 ft into the air. THere is a more active geyser, Strokkur, which erupts every 4-6 minutes - and we were able to see that baby blow!
GULLFOSS WATERFALL
This waterfall may perhaps be the most famous in the Land of Waterfalls! It’s a roaring beast that you can hike down to if you’re feeling daring. But, seeing as how it was the most frigid day of our December trip, we weren’t feeling very daring. Instead, we took some pictures while bracing ourselves against the Arctic cold, then ran back to our car. Between that run-in with Gullfoss, and our inability to do anything except sleep when we arrived at our hostel near Skógafoss, we didn’t have great luck with famous waterfalls! (But it’s okay. Iceland had plenty more to offer us.)
KERIÐ
This famous volcanic crater looks like the beautiful site of a UFO landing. Though it’s privately owned and, as such, an additional cover charge of pocket-change, it’s worth a visit!
But what we loved most were the unscheduled stops along The Golden Circle. From the acres and acres of snow-covered land, to the beautiful 4 hours of ‘golden hour’ sunset, to the huddles of friendly Icelandic ponies on the sides of the road - there was plenty to keep us busy!
When we did finish our time on the road, we returned to our Airbnb to get ready for the night: a New Year’s Eve party! We had been told by our hosts that locals celebrated the holiday by lighting, and they had given us the location of the most popular bonfire. They also explained to us that fireworks were banned in Iceland on every other day of the year; but on New Year’s Eve, that ban was lifted. Icelandic families would sometimes spend “thousands of dollars” on fireworks, and there were no restrictions regarding where - or how many - could be launched. “There will be smoke that will cover the whole city!” Sigga said, “just wait!”
When we arrived at the bonfire, I was already impressed. The inferno was the size of a truck; it was meant to symbolize a clean slate - burning that which held you down in the previous year so as to give you freedom in the following year. The fire burned brightly, adults spilled their beers, and children ran around with sparklers; all the while, fireworks were exploding in every direction - some dangerously close. The entire skyline was sparkling that night, and my heart was sparkling along with it. All of a sudden, a stillness took over the chaos and everyone looked up, one-by-one. Directly above us, the Northern Lights danced brilliantly, stretching from horizon to horizon. A band of snaking light, far surpassing the beauty of any firework or flame. We watched until the tears in my eyes dried. And when the lights faded again, the fireworks resumed. They didn’t stop until 4am that night; and Sigga was right - the entire city was shrouded in smoke for the entire day to come.
It was an anniversary to remember.
Day 5
Day 5 was, sadly, our last day in Iceland. We packed up and said goodbye to our wonderful Airbnb hosts, then made our way to the airport. But before getting on a plane, we had one last stop: The Blue Lagoon. We’re glad we saved this stop for last. The Blue Lagoon is a 40 minute drive from Reykjavik, and then only another 20 minute drive to the airport. It’s also an excellent way to relax before getting on a flight. You have to pre-book your reservations, so keep that in mind while planning a trip; but also, be thankful for that restriction - that allows them to ensure that the lagoon doesn’t get too crowded. During the booking, you can add on any extras like towels, bathrobes, spa treatments and face masks. We added both the towels and bathrobes because it was a chilly January day, but decided against the spa treatment and face masks … we’d heard that the silica in the lagoon makes an excellent face mask! The Blue Lagoon has lockers, and it requires a shower before you enter. The milky-blue water is around 98 degrees Fahrenheit (in fact, we started to overheat!) And there are ‘booths’ within the lagoon where you can go to pick up a concentrated version of the silica that coats the floor of the lagoon, rather than scraping it up yourself. There are also bars where you can pick up any sort of hard or soft drink (slushies included!) If you visit the Lagoon in the winter, arrive while it’s still dark, so that you can watch the sky slowly turn to the color of the water you’re soaking in. We ‘cheers-ed’ to our anniversary with a blue raspberry slushie while watching the sun rise. It was an incredible end to an incredible time spent in Iceland!
