Iceland Trip Part  2              September 2022                           Shamla Shankar

            After having seen so much within our first few days itself we were wondering what other surprises Iceland could possibly have!  But we were surprised at the varied and wondrous sights yet to come.  On Day 3 we had to check out of our comfortable hotel as we were heading for southern parts of Iceland toward Vik.  We left after a hearty breakfast and drove for about 2 hours.   The bus ride was pleasant with varying scenery and greenery.

 A word here on the foliage of Iceland.  Trees were really sparse.  Bogs and marshes and moorlands was the description of many miles.  Most of the land in this part of the island was volcanic rocks that could be seen in small lumps all along the way.  However, they were covered in moss.  Our guide explained that moss was extremely important for the breaking down of the rocks into rich soil.  Often light fences were made along the road to prevent people treading on the moss and also to prevent sheep from wandering on to the roads.   The only cultivation we saw was of green grass to feed the sheep, cattle and horses.  We saw animals grazing here and there on the grass.  At the end of the season, bales of hay covered in plastic were ready to be stored as food for the winter for the domesticated animals.

The fun and games part of our trip started when we reached our first destination – a lovely waterfall known as Seljalandsfoss.  Besides its scenic value, it was of great importance to us because a Bollywood movie — Dilwale — was picturized beautifully here.  The Gerua song included three different waterfalls in Iceland it seems and we saw two of them.  It was also shot at the black sand beach, the glacier bay we were scheduled to visit and some other destinations we did not even see!  Everyone was in a joyful mood and a few couples did some dance moves in front of the waterfall (in the hopes that some Bollywood producer was watching?).  Someone was playing the Gerua song on their phone and bystanders were well entertained.   A suggestion was even made to Ashish that he publicize his Iceland tours in India as the Dilwale 3 group! (The 3 alludes to the Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol pairing in the first two movies which were hits).  The dance moves continued at the next waterfalls as well.   The sun was out, the water was sparkling and we stood mesmerized drinking in the amazing scenery.   The adventurous ones in our group did the quick trek behind the falls and braved the wet sprays while the rest of us were content to enjoy the views.

The next waterfall, a short drive along our route, was Skogafoss.  At a width of 82 feet and a stunning height of 200 feet there was water rushing down with  great force. Here there was a long climb to the top of the cliff close to the falls.  Over 400 steps are hewn into the side of the mountain and a grassy knoll on top.  Again, most of us opted to stay by the falls which ran off as a bubbling, babbling  brook of pure glacial waters. Our tour organizers allowed us a leisurely stroll to enjoy this rare sight.

All the beauty of nature on a pleasant sunny day made us hungry and we headed for our pre-arranged lunch at Hotel Dyrholaey.  We were also going to stay at the same hotel, but the eating arrangements supervised by a very talented Maharaj was in an attached annex of the hotel.  Our check-in was much later but right now we were focused on the delicious Indian food provided to us.  I could be wrong but the menu included missal paav, veggie burgers and other delicious items and gulab jamun as desert.  The variety we were given at these Indian buffets was mind boggling.  We did not miss a single meal though we were on the road. Hot cases were often full of delicious food and Ashish set up a tempting buffet in minutes.  We ate and enjoyed and were ready for the next part of our sight-seeing.

The charming village of Vik close to the ocean

As we drove in the bus, our guide told us that one of the volcanoes in Iceland had been the cause of many flights being grounded in 2010 and all flights taking those routes for hundreds of miles around due to poor visibility due to volcanic ash and smoke.  Many of us could recall that time.   Our  destination was Black Sand beach. The sand, though pretty was the least of it!  We could guess that lava rocks led to the fine powdering and color of this sand.  There were pretty lava pebbles too. For the record this beach is named Reynisfjara.   But most of us had never seen such fabulous rock formations and huge mountain caves on any beach.  The basalt rock columns can simply not be described in words.   They were piles of perfectly symmetrical vertical rectangles about 3 feet high in my estimation and packed together in a small area.  The agile people and kids could climb up to a certain point on them. They made for a great photo backdrop.  It appears that this formation is due to the fractures appearing in lava rocks of basaltic origin and the sudden cooling causes stones to contract from the edge in a geometric form of similar size and shape, piled on top of each other and packed close together. The caves themselves were very wide and quite close to the water with fairly low ceilings.   In the ocean water also, there were tall rocks sculpted by the wind and waves, reminiscent of the Ten Apostles off the eastern coast of Australia.   We strolled a bit and just could not stop taking pictures of this rare and wondrous beach.

The amazing rock formations on Black Sand beach, one of a kind

 Reluctantly we left and headed back to the hotel which had a unique layout.  Firstly, it had  two floors but ramps only in some places to pull the suitcases up.  The elevator was nowhere to be seen.  We had to walk yards of internal passageways to get to our own special Indian dining hall and the breakfast buffet hall in the opposite direction.  But when good food is to be had, “where there is a will there is a way!”  By the second day we had mastered the routes.  The Indian kitchen and hall had a lounge with old furniture and we made it our home after the day’s sight-seeing, especially the men who wanted to enjoy a beer or wine and chit chat.  The rooms were sparse but well planned with platforms to keep our luggage and a nice bathroom and shower.   It appeared to be newly constructed.  It was on an elevation and open all around.  A glacier could be viewed in the distance and Northern Lights were spotted here quite often on clear nights.

Actual photo of the explosive volcano and houses on fire from the museum

Bright and early the next morning we left for Vestmannaeyjar islands (often called Westman island by outsiders for simplicity).  These are a group of islands formed by underwater volcanic eruptions.  The largest one referred to as Heimaey was the one which had a very good population of about 4,300, significantly more than Vik,  and a fish cannimg/processing industry exporting mainly to Europe.  It also has two volcanoes and the huge eruption of the one named Eldfell led to the entire island being evacuated in 1973 and all but a few homes were destroyed.  Thankfully very few lives were lost it was stated. We learnt some facts and saw some special spots here thanks to our new driver, Gunnar, who was born and brought up in Heimaey.  He told us his grandmother’s house was one of the few left standing after the eruption that went on for months.

The bus from our hotel dropped us off after a long ride to the wharf from where we boarded the ferry.  This was a large boat with several levels and with indoor and outdoor seating.  It was a damp foggy day, so many opted to sit indoors.  I for one had two disappointments.  Firstly, I had been looking forward to seeing hundreds of puffins inhabiting the cliffs of the main island and learning how they nest and hatch babies.  They are one of the cutest birds being of a good size, black and white with a prominent yellow beak.  But they had migrated already to Greenland for the winter we were told.  We were also presumed after reading the itinerary that we would see Beluga whales in the ocean.  But we saw only a pair of white Beluga whales in captivity in a tank at a smallish sanctuary.  Here we also viewed about 4 puffins that were in need of care due to injuries.   So much for the animal viewing part of our visit.  Iceland in general seemed bereft of any wild animals.

From Westman Island: Another graphic photo of the volcano. Our girls try the rope endurance, some rustic abodes , an island nearby

The ferry ride was pleasant and as soon as we got off the boat, what hit us was a very strong smell of fish.  At first we thought it was due to them being caught but it was actually a processing plant that produced the smell.  Later we noticed it less or probably moved around to other parts of the island.  The fish processing plants, about 4 in number, provide fairly lucrative jobs to the residents of the island and the houses there were cute and colorful.  The residents led a satisfactory life according to Gunnar.

Gunnar took us to some special spots on the island, but as always, lunch took priority!  And what a change!  To the delight of the children (and many others) we had a variety lunch of pizza and pita wraps at a Mediterranean place.  It was freshly made and delicious.  The vegans had special ones made without cheese and everyone had their fill.  Right after, we viewed a wonderful museum dedicated to the big event of the island, the volcanic eruption.   It had beautifully illustrated exhibits and videos of the eruption as professional photographers had enough time to record the eruption event which was quite extended over months.  The unique part of it was that it was built around a house that was partially charred by the original lava flow.  We each got our headsets that explained things as we walked from room to room.  This was followed by Gunnar showing us an ancient fishing boat which was an anti-climax.   We still have these operating in many of our ports in India!

The drive through the island was green and scenic and we next came up to a rope firmly anchored to a mountainside.  This was some kind of rite of passage for young boys in training for climbing cliffs to harvest birds’ eggs.  They were taught to swing on it for strength and climb up to high ledges. Though the momentum could have bruised some legs, some of our youngsters were daring enough to try it.  Next, we saw a large stage and grassy slopes around it.  Here a music concert held in the summer where world caliber performers come and the whole town is out with their camping tents for overnight enjoyment.  How delightful!  After that we did a quick tour of other parts of the island and drove back to the jetty to board our boat.  We did view a few unusual  rock formations, one of which was shaped exactly like a large elephant, dipping into the sea.    On the return back we stopped by a supermarket and dabbled in small gifts and chocolates.  The Iceland chocolates for  discriminating tasters was pretty waxy and substandard compared to Swiss or Belgium chocolates.

Diamonds for the taking on Diamond Beach near Glacier Bay!

Our last day in the vicinity of Vik and southern Iceland was very exciting.  After our usual breakfast …. by the way, there was nothing usual about the hot Indian dish the Maharaj prepared for us to eat along with our toast and other Western buffet items daily.  The upuma, poha and vada- sambar on different days woke up our taste buds and in fact the rest of the tourists had to be turned away when they were attracted by the aroma!  We got Indian food, but not the run of the mill kind.  It was gourmet!  Yes, after our breakfast we headed for the Skaftafell National Park about two hours away.  Slowly the scenery changed from the moss-colored lava rocks to snow covered peaks in the distance and we spotted several glaciers too. We reached our destination and as always, our speedy lunch was set up while we watched a small documentary.  Amazing variety of food and delicious as always.  The real treats were yet to come, this time visual treats.  As we walked toward the bay, we could not believe our eyes. 

The breathtaking Jokusarlon Glacier Bay

The Jokusarlon `glacier lagoon was an amazing sight with huge blue ice chunks floating on the water, in an ever-changing arrangement of shapes and sizes.  It is approximately 18 square km we were told. The icebergs rotate in the water as they melt and sometimes black volcanic streaks are visible while at other times, they are pristine blue.  This has a  scientific explanation:  simply put, other colors of the spectrum except blue is absorbed by the icebergs.   We made our way up a small hill and viewed the entire bay, somewhat like a large lake with a big glacier flow visible at one edge.  We could not stop taking pictures with this wondrous backdrop. 

Amphibian boats

We were also taken on the lagoon itself in an amphibian boat with big tires that bumped over the land and gracefully slid into the water.  The hour-long ride to see the icebergs up close was memorable.

Our group on the Diamond Beach with Ashish and Gunnar

Last,  but not the least by any means was the Diamond beach.  Our guide had a mysterious look whenever he mentioned it and today, he said, go for it, “collect as many diamonds as you wish, they will be large and shiny”.  We were very intrigued!  No one wanted to stayed on the bus!!  We had a slightly difficult walk to the beach over the pebbles,  right across from Glacier lagoon, but we made it there.  And yes, there were huge sparkling “diamonds” lying around for the taking!  Men went ga ga and picked up the hunks and offered them to their wives.  Alas, the delight was short lived.   These diamonds were not “forever” as the ad says.   They barely lasted up to the bus because they were formed of transparent ice.  But the shapes and sparkle were unbelievable.  Oh well, it was fun while we played around with it!

The next day we took it easy, woke up late and after breakfast, packed up and boarded the bus back to Reykjavik.   On arrival we met our old Maharaj again who had made a nice lunch for us.   After that we headed for the airport after dropping off Mohan, Carol and the kids at an overnight hotel near the hot springs where they had planned  another dip that evening as their flight was the next morning.   We had flights to different destinations and waited a bit, but everything went smoothly and soon we were heading back home, thinking what a terrific time we had and packed in so many amazing sights and experiences in the short span of five nights.   Iceland is certainly worth a visit, especially if it is planned so very well as it was for our fortunate group by Lakshmi Travels.