When most college students think of spring break, they usually picture a break filled with the beach, sunshine, the pool, and friends. Well, my spring break was a little different than the typical break for a college student. I was fortunate enough to travel to Reykjavik, Iceland, for a total of five days.
Photo courtesy of Rylee Ruth
When my mother first told me that we were traveling to the capital of Iceland I was extremely elated, but a little confused. Iceland is a beautiful and unique country don’t get me wrong, but to me Iceland was always a country full of vast land and little to no people.
I was completely wrong. Reykjavik, Iceland is a city with with an estimated population of 250,000 people. Iceland’s total population encompasses a whopping 300,000 people. Upon arrival to the capital at around 8:00 a.m. I was pleasantly surprised by the sight that lay before me. Reykjavik is the cutest little town that I have ever seen in my entire life! Many of the buildings and houses mimicked something out of a Hallmark Christmas movie and the city had a cozy, welcoming feel.
My mother and I embarked on a walking tour of the city (CityWalk Tours) that afternoon and explored everything that this mini New York City had to offer. There was one school for the entire town, a prison that up until one year ago was in operation that only housed up to about six inmates, and the city had the most beautiful view of both the ocean and of the picturesque snow filled mountains. Everyone was almost too friendly and spoke English (which was nice since the Icelandic language is a very unique and hard one to learn). My mother and I explored the city for one day, but it was a very lovely and beautiful day in the town indeed.
Photo courtesy of Rylee Ruth
My next two days in Iceland were stacked full of excursions and late nights and early mornings. In fact, my first full day in Iceland started with a tour beginning at 6:30 a.m. While my mother and I were awaiting our bus at the bus stop closest to our hostel, something wonderful and amazing happened. It began to snow! As a born and raised Floridian, I had never seen snow fall before my very eyes Even after our tour guide picked us up, it continued to snow throughout the entire journey out to the countryside and that was a truly cathartic experience for a stressed out, full time college student like me.
My first day was filled with stunning and mind blowing views of the Snaefellsnes Peninsula. I got to see a couple of Game of Thrones filming locations, a black sand beach, and even some seals in the wild. I saw snowy white mountains, gorgeous waterfalls, and lovely landscapes. Thorstein, my tour guide, played traditional Icelandic music the whole way there and back. Their music is very soothing and folk sounding. The music and the views made the whole day one of the most relaxing days I’ve ever experienced.
I started my second day in Iceland by visiting the well known Blue Lagoon. The Blue Lagoon is a hot spring full of steaming hot water that is a very vibrant and light blue. I spent my Tuesday morning relaxing in the hot water with a smoothie in one hand and applying a free clay mask to my face with the other.
Combined with the beautiful view of the mountains, my time in the Blue Lagoon was the ultimate stress reliever from midterms. The only bad experience I had at the Blue Lagoon was the moment right before I entered the water. They had me walk out in nothing but my bathing suit into 20-30 degree Icelandic weather. I had never been more colder in my entire life, but it did make the water upon first entry that much more soothing.
After my relaxing morning in a hot spring, my mom and I started our journey to see the main phenomenon we truly came here for: the Northern Lights.
Photo courtesy of Rylee Ruth
Our Northern Lights tour started at approximately 9 p.m., so my mother and I were in for a long night out. Our tour guide drove with my group and me about an hour to an hour and a half outside of Reykjavik basically chasing the lights. Our original designated spot to chill and watch the lights was compromised, for the clouds were covering most of the lights. Our tour guide had to improvise and find us a new spot on the fly. My mom and I were extremely anxious and worried. They do tend to cancel tours if the lights are covered by clouds and or not visible since the weather in Iceland changes quite frequently.
My group and I eventually settled on a spot in the middle of nowhere to watch the lights. What a sight they were! The lights are not as easily visible or as bright as pictures suggest, but you can still definitely see them. They resemble bright clouds mixed with a hint of green. Regardless of how visible they were, the whole experience was mind blowing. I got to see a whole sky of stars directly above me and the Aurora Borealis off in the distance. We did not get back to our hostel until about 1 a.m., but it was well worth the sight I got to see.
My last couple of days in Iceland consisted of some more snow, a Golden Circle tour, a stop at the Reynisfjara black sand beach, and a tour of the Glacier Lagoon. I saw a geyser named Strokkur on my Golden Circle tour (which erupts every 5-10 minutes), and a mini version of the geyser Strokkur close by named Litli Geysir (Little Geyser). It was such a unique experience. The Reynisfjara black sand beach was a stop that I didn’t even know my tour was making. The town where the beach is located as well as the beach itself sports some famous Game of Thrones filming sites, so for a huge Game of Thrones fan like me, that was pretty cool.
On my last day in Iceland, I visited the famous Glacier Lagoon. The trip there took a good five hours, but it was well worth the drive. Half of my time at the Glacier Lagoon was spent with my mother and me walking along a black sand beach that was littered with icebergs. As the ice breaks off from the Vatnajökull Glacier, the icebergs drift off and eventually end up on the shore of the Diamond Beach. I was able to sit upon an iceberg and take some pretty cool photos with my mom.
After exploring the stunning Diamond Beach, my mother and I trekked back over to the Glacier Lagoon. The Glacier Lagoon is a lake filled to the brim with numerous icebergs that have broken off from the Vatnajökull Glacier. I was able to walk alongside the lake and even step onto some of the icebergs that were deemed safe and stable. I have never seen actual icebergs up close, so it’s cool to be able to say that I have now.
While my time in Iceland was short, the experiences I had and the memories I made will stay with me forever. Sounds cheesy, I know, but Iceland was truly magical!
Photo courtesy of Rylee Ruth