Now I know this is slightly unusual for me, but I thought I'd branch out a bit and use this blog for more than just beauty and fashion, and use it more as a space for me to share the things I love. If you follow me on Instagram (shameless plus) you will notice I love a lot of things, mainly makeup, travelling and varying pets. I hope you enjoy this post and that you find it interesting or helpful in some way, and if not don't fret- beauty posts won't stop!
So, in May I travelled from Toronto to Reykjavik, flying with Iceland Air. I went with my boyfriend, and we decided to go to Iceland because Iceland Air do this awesome stopover deal where you can buy a ticket to Europe and stay in Iceland for up to a week at no extra cost. We took this opportunity to explore a country we had never been to, and somewhere we has no expectations of. Here's what I thought!
We left Toronto at 9pm, and landed in Keflavik at 6am Icelandic time, but 2am our time. I didn't sleep on the plane, but it was worth it to watch leave the nighttime and fly into sunlight with some incredible views. When we landed, a shuttle took us to the Centrehotel Plaza stop in downtown Reykjavik, which was a few minutes walk away from the air bnb location we were staying at. Although exhausted, we got into our place and began the trip with a tour.
Our first stop was Geysir, and we saw some... well, geysers. The geyser 'Geysir' is no more, but there are many others, the biggest being Strokkur. It exploded every 5-10 minutes and was an incredible sight to see. It's overwhelming, beautiful and kind of scary- depending how close you stand.
Iceland was surprisingly barren (I had no idea what to expect so I may have just had no idea), but it was beautiful. We ventured up a mountain and here is Strokkur exploding from a distance. The scenery was incredible, and I can see why so many want to visit this amazing country.
The next stop was Gullfoss, a massive waterfall. I've seen a few waterfalls in my time (Niagara not being far from where I live), but this was breathtaking. To see a waterfall surrounded by scenery, rather than cheap tourist traps, chain restaurants and crappy haunted houses made a massive difference to how you perceive it. Now, Niagara is beautiful, but it's so distracting being surrounded by casinos and hotels, but to see Gullfoss was something entirely different.
Without a doubt, a highlight of my trip.
The final stop on the tour that day was at Þingvellir National Park. It was incredible, we essentially drove through two tectonic plates separating. Needless to say, cracks like this were all over the place. The park was huge and we were only there for about an hour, so basically only saw the visitors centre and the amazing panoramic view of the lake and mountains.
The next day we went to Blue Lagoon, a famous tourist destination when in Iceland. My opinion is to definitely check it out. It was stunning, the water was a pale, milky blue, and the temperature was a little warmer than a relaxing bath. We were under the impression two or so hours would be enough, but we were in the water for close to four. There were amazing steam baths, saunas, and the pool itself was soooo relaxing. Although pricey, it's a must see, and something I would certainly do again.
That night we walked around Reykjavik and scenes like this were at every corner. The people were so friendly, the atmosphere was welcoming and relaxed, and the country itself is beautiful.
To be completely honest, I had no idea what to expect of Iceland as a country. I was worried about a huge language barrier, not finding vegetarian food and it being freezing cold. I was pleasantly surprised. Most Icelanders speak fluent English, but they do appreciate an attempt at Icelandic. In fact, everyone I talked to spoke perfect English and were very lovely, polite and welcoming. The weather in May wasn't terrible, when we were there it was usually between 6 and 15 degrees depending on the time of day. The vegetarian food was the only thing I had a slight issue with, but veggie burgers are pretty standard wherever you are so it wasn't too much of a problem.
The country is very expensive, so keep that in mind. It takes some getting used to, but I think it's worth it to experience the culture of the country.
I would most definitely visit Iceland again. Reykjavik was beautiful, and there's so much more that I haven't seen. I would certainly visit again, and definitely for longer than three days.
I hope you liked this post, more travel diaries will come soon. Please let me know what you think!
Megan
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