Europe Trip 2.0: Winter is Coming

Iceland

Met up with the group at Luton Airport, the plane took off at 2.00pm local time for a 3-hour flight. Sharing the same time zone as England, the night has fallen upon our arrival. My friend booked a car through Reykjavik: Rent-A-Car for the 5-day trip. Exclusive of petrol, the car rental cost 67150 ISK which were shared by five of us. A shuttle bus was provided to bring us to the shop to retrieve the car. Loaded our luggage and we headed to nearby grocery store for a quick shopping for our meal for next few days. Checked in at The Base and we rested for the night.

Our ride for the five days

Around this time of the year, the sun rises around 10am to 11am in the morning and sets around 4pm. That translates to very minimal day time for us to explore the small island. With population of only three hundred thousands, there was barely any traffic when we were out of the city. The temperature was below ten degree but there was no any snow. It was cloudy too, and we only had one night with full of stars. Windy it was and it was such a killer to be out. Regardless, it didn't stop us from enjoying the magnificent scenery.

Our first stop was the Kerid Crater. It was the only site that we have to pay for the entrance fee which cost 400 koruna. The crater wasn't that visible when we arrived but as the sun started to make its way to the sky, the blue (or emerald) lake started to unfold. Lingered there for a while before heading to our first "foss" or waterfall for the day. When I thought the first waterfall was grand enough, I found myself to be more mesmerized for subsequent stops. As the night called, we checked in for our second stay at Horgsland Cottage.

Kerid Crater (Kerio)

Iceland flag in the distance, can't believe I was finally at the island

The view while we were on the road

Seljalandsfoss

Skogafoss

View of the fall from top

Serenity. Cloudy weather.

Glacier lagoon was the first place we visited for our day two. There weren't much berg during that time and I wonder if the impact of global warming was getting a little too real. Seeing an iceberg just quickly reminded me of Titanic which caused it to founder back in 1912. As we drove along the way, the mountains of ice appeared before our eyes and we couldn't help but to capture the memories. We came to a gorge and this hidden gem caught me by surprise as I didn't see it coming. I can't seem to be able to pronounce the name myself, Fjaðrárgljúfur. We concluded our day with a visit to black beach. The basalt stacks brought me back to Jusanggeoli Cliff in Jeju. The place that we stayed was nearby township of Selfoss. My friends cooked a very Asian dinner to fill our hunger.

Me at Glacier Lagoon. Look at how cloudy it was? 

White walkers incoming?

Fjaðrárgljúfur, my tongue was twisted...

Different perspective from the gorge

Reynisfjara or Black Beach

One of my favourite sights would be on this day. As we arrived early at the place, the low light condition due to the late sunset kind of hindering grandeur of this particular point of interest. We warmed ourselves at the nearby shop in which I had mocha (most mocha I had there cost 700 Krona) and we returned to the site. I find myself in awe at every angle of Gulfoss, which made me so eager to visit Niagara Fall one day. Not far from there is the Great Geysier. One of the geyser blows up for every six to eight minutes. Pingvellier National Park, on the other hand, features a number of rock formations which includes a number of mini waterfall and lakes within its vicinity. Listed as UNESCO World Heritage Site, this place is historically significant for being the founding place of Iceland Parliament.

The majestic Gullfoss. Now I want to go to Niagara

Literally waiting for six to eight minutes for this shot, with hand shivering holding the phone/camera

One of the falls at Pingvellier National Park

My friend mentioned that it would be a clear sky of the night, and subsequently, the chance of spotting Northern Light could be higher as usual. There we were, after enjoying our dinner, looking out among the starry sky, hoping to have a glimpse of the aurora. To our disappointment, after few hours of waiting, it just didn't come at all though some of us were disillusioned that she saw one. I guess it wasn't our luck. Oh well, for me it was just a bonus if was able to catch one for this trip.

A shot taken by my friend, looking into the night sky, hoping for aurora

For our very last road trip, we finally headed back to the capital. Along the way, we dropped by Kirjufell, one of the most famous landmarks, it might be familiar for the fans of Game of Thrones by HBO. Snaefellsbaer National Park was our last pitstop before checking in at Reykjavik. Had our dinner and a quick visit to the famous church. The wind was very strong that night and I thought I could be blown away, literally. We called it a day after strolling down the street and packed our stuff for our very last day.

Recall this mountain in Game of Thrones?

Twelve Apostles in Iceland?

Last check point before heading back to the city

The famous landmark in Reykjavik

My last night in Iceland

Two of my friends took early flight back to London and the three of us decided to take a dip at Blue Lagoon before checking out from Iceland. Booked our ticket online, we made our way to the location. The place provides luggage storage if you needed any. We still have our car for that. You would be provided with a bracelet and a towel upon entry. Locker is provided to store away your belongings. Fret not, it is not onsen so you can have under garment on though you still need to take a shower prior entering the pool. After dealing with cold weather for the past five days, finally we get to immerse ourselves into the warm blue water. The entry inclusive of one time free mask and drink. Dipping ourselves for around one hour or so before having our last meal at the restaurant. Returned our car and checked in our bag, it was our turn to bid goodbye to Iceland.

Overview of Blue Lagoon

Feel the warmth!

Lamb Fillet with Shoulder of Lamb. Not always a lamb eater but this was nyum!

There were not much city life in Iceland but the sites are totally out of the world for me. This was the most north part of the earth that I have been to so far. Now I wonder how's Greenland going to be like.