About a week and a half ago Patrick,
Jessica, and I embarked on the greatest adventure I’ve had in years. We set out
to Iceland on the evening of Thursday June 7th. I would have written
about it sooner but we’ve been without wifi at the new house for the past five
days or so, so I haven’t been able to access the blog. Anyway, after the trip
has started to fade in my mind a bit, I feel the only way to accurately recount
the adventure is to break it up into three parts. Here follows part 1.
Our plane arrived at the massive (sarcasm)
international airport in Keflavik Iceland on Thursday at 11:45 pm. Based on the
light outside of the plane, I would have thought it was more like 7 pm. Anyway,
we gathered our bags, found the rental car place and a cash machine, and headed
out to Reykjavik. It was only about a 40 minute drive to Reykjavik from
Keflavik, so that was nice. We were headed for the Kex Hostel, which comes
highly recommended by both online reviews and the travel channel. We were
setting the hostel bar pretty high right off the bat. After driving past it
about 3 times, we finally found it. We checked in and hauled our bags up 3
flights of stairs to our dorm-room-esque accommodation. 4 bunk beds, 4 lockers,
a desk and a window. What more does a sleepy traveller need? We effectively
stumbled into the bathroom for a quick teeth brushing, then passed out.
Friday morning we woke up at 9 and headed
out. We searched google maps for a grocery store, drove to a store called Bonus
and loaded up with supplies. Bonus, it turned out, was like a dollar store with
massive amounts of food. We loaded up on sandwich supplies and snacks and hit
the road. Destination of day 1: the Golden Circle.
We drove for about an hour north east of
Reykjavik towards geysers and waterfalls. We drove through a national park with
a landscape not unlike an Arizonan desert. When we got to the geyser, quite by
mistake rather than intent (silly Google maps), we hit up the gift shop and
bathroom before heading to witness the explosions on the hilltop. Jess bought a
fuzzy new fleece to keep warm (the wind was quite punishing, but otherwise the
weather was perfect). We saw some smaller geysers before the real thing. It
erupted (do geyser’s really erupt?) about every 6 or 7 minutes, and was really
quite impressive. Once the wind shifted rather quickly just before an eruption
and a group of tourists were then showered with hot water. We snapped pictures
and videos and headed out towards the waterfall.
Gullfoss waterfall was just 40 minutes away
from the geyser, sot it wasn’t long before we were out of the car and in nature
again. This waterfall was massive, loud, and powerful. It threw mist high up in
the air and carved a deep canyon out of the hillside. We again snapped lots of
pictures, ooh-and-ahhed at the beauty of this island, and then pilled back into
the car. We drove back to Kex and had some dinner at the restaurant/bar, which
came highly recommended again by online reviews and travel shows. Our plan was
then to go to the Blue Lagoon, but soon discovered that it wasn’t anywhere near
Reykjavik, and we wouldn’t make it to it before closing. Instead, Jess an I
explored Reykjavik shopping while Patrick enjoyed a pint (or more like a litre)
and some football (soccer) at the hostel. After souvenir shopping, Jess and I
expanded our comfort zones and participated in our first group shower session.
Thank the gods it was just the two of us. We each took the showerheads in
opposite corners, stared at the walls or closed our eyes and giggled the entire
time. Not really as bad as I thought it would be, but it really did complete
the hostel experience.
