ICELAND
Iceland, the country of the old viking tales, the sagas! Enormously beautiful and exciting! Tag along on a little trip and see my pictures from this spectacular island.
I was there in the summer, but it was still rather cold. It was snowing, hailing and raining some days. Other days, we had sunshine and almost 10ƒ C. On their National Day (Independence Day), the 17th of June, we had really nice weather although a bit windy. It seemed like all the inhabitants of Reykjavik were out celebrating. They had arranged shows with veteran cars, pop and rock concerts, strength competitions etc. There were people everywhere. The chilly winds didn't stop them from taking part in the celebrations. Under similar weather conditions in Sweden, I think most of the shows would have been cancelled!
Reykjavik i a pretty small town, but sitll you can find almost everything you need there. There are many good restaurants, pubs and cafes. Unfortunately, it's rather expensive, since almost everything has to be imported.
Click on the pictures to make them bigger!
We went on a couple of very interesting guided tours. The first day, we took a tour around Reykjavik. Among lots of interesting places, we visited a beautiful outdoor museum. There were both big and small houses, which they had moved from all over the island in order to show us how people used to live on Ieland in the old days. There was even a small church. In the church the women had to sit to the left and the men to the right. The first or pew to the left side was turned in the opposite direction, towards the congregation. That pew was for unmarried girls only, so that all the men from the area could take a good look at them during the service and perhaps pick out a future wife! (Look at the picture below!)
Another day we took a trip to Thingvellir, the place where the Allting (the old parliament) gathered over a thousand years ago. Nowadays, the Allting is in Reykjavik. Thingvellir is an incredibly beautiful area. Unfortunately, my camera wasn't working properly, so I've only got one picture from this place. Look at the waterfall, to the left below! (I will try to get some copies from fello travellers.)
We also went to the impressing waterfall of Gullfoss. Once they tried to build a dam here, but luckily it was all stopped by a young local girl. Look at Gullfoss below to the right!
One of the last days, we went riding on Icelandic horses. It was a nightmare! The horse I was supposed to ride on, had not been out for a fortnight and he was ever so happy to be out in the open air again. He was very rowdy and he started running around pushing the other horses, which I did not appreciate at all! Then he started gallopping (or whatever these creatures do?). After his third attempt to get away from the rest of the group, I decided this was it! I got off and walked back to the stables with him. Wate of time and waste of money. On top of everything it was hailing!
We also went to a volcanic area with geysers and boiling waterholes. Exciting! On of the geysers, Strokkur, could send the boiling water about 30 metres up in the air.
Iceland is a really fascinating country. The Icelanders I met were very nice and they were proud to show you their fantastic country. If you'll ever get the chance to go to Iceland, you must go! It will not be an ordinary holiday, I assure you, but it will be different and very exciting.
Do you want to know more about Icland? Here are some links.
The Icelandic Tourist Office - official information from the government
What's On? - an entertainment guide for Reykjavik and Iceland
Facts about Iceland - statistics and facts
The City of Reykjavik - the city of Reykjavik's official homepage in English
Lonely Planet about Iceland - Lonely Planet's page with information about Iceland
Icenews - Icelandic news
The Icelandic weather service - about the weather, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions etc
The weather in Reykjavik tight now! - the latest weather report for Reykjavik from Intellicast
Icelandair - Iceland's national airline
RUV - the Icelandic television and radio
Live Icelandic television - you must have RealPlayer installed
Iceland, the country of the old viking tales, the sagas! Enormously beautiful and exciting! Tag along on a little trip and see my pictures from this spectacular island.
