Sólhei-what? Frolicking on an Icelandic glacier

Yesterday's Golden Circle adventure had whetted R. and my appetite to see more of Iceland's magnificent natural wonders, so today we decided to go to the South Shore. The weather wasn't cooperating though - snow was falling fast outside and showed no signs of letting up.

A few minutes before the appointed pickup time, the tour operator called up the Fosshotel Lind reception and asked to talk to us. Uh oh, Houston - it seems like we have a problem. True enough, the South Shore tour was cancelled for the day, much to our dismay.

Luckily, Perla, who was on duty behind the reception desk, sensed our plight and swung into action. She suggested calling Reykjavik Excursions to inquire if their tour was pushing through or not. Within a matter of minutes, Perla had spoken to their representative and arranged the hotel pickup, just in the nick of time and thus saving the day. Takk!

While the day's adventure visited a number of memorable destinations including the waterfalls Skogafoss (short and stocky) and Seljalandsfoss (tall and skinny), as well as the black sand beach (abeit covered with snow) at the village Vik, easily the highlight was the visit to the protruding glacier tongue of Sólheimajökull. Typical of long Icelandic names, I was fearful of causing offense by mangling its name, so I declare this tongue-twister unpronounceable.



Not sure if I contributed to the glacier receding, but it was impossible to resist lying on its surface and taking small pieces of the ice which according to the guide could be eaten, slight brownish coat of dirt notwithstanding. "Really?", I was incredulous but did it anyway. Other than that R. and I busied ourselves taking pics posing inside Sólhei-what's various crevices.

A group of active-looking types arrived at roughly the same time wearing proper clothing and carrying the right equipment for hiking atop Sólhei-what. I later discovered that this is quite a popular pastime, and an easy way to do so would be to join a tour led by outfitters such as Icelandic Mountain Guides, who offers all sorts of outdoor activities ranging from ice climbing to horseback riding. Their Sólhei-what glacier walk was recently featured in the Reykjavik Grapevine, the best source for everything happening in Iceland.

Oh well, I looked wistfully - maybe next time, on another longer visit to Iceland. Just don't ask me to pronounce Sólheimajökull.

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The Golden Arches Packed Up Their Knives and Left, no Padma needed

I didn't quite know what to make of this cartoon that recently appeared on the front page of the Reykjavik Grapevine, a weekly paper that chronicles all things happening in the capital city of Iceland. A brief backgrounder: In late October 2009, the global fast food chain McDonald's announced that they were closing all three outlets in Iceland due to high operating costs brought about by the worldwide financial crisis. Importing all those buns, beef, and ketchup became too expensive.

Hence, the Reykjavik Grapevine decided to come up with "Three Reasons why Icelanders will miss McDonald's". At first glance, and keeping in mind my brief introduction to Icelandic humor (chronicled here), I burst out laughing and marvelled at the sarcasm of the creators. Freaking brilliant, I thought.

Later on, the more I obsessed about it, doubts crept into my mind. Was it satire, or was there a grain of truth buried somewhere? Imagine your neighborhood McDonald's closing down - would you say, "Oh well, such is life" and move on, or would you be urging your congressman to give them a bailout? Maybe the Icelanders were sad about losing the Golden Arches.

So I went back and forth, back and forth - don't McDonald's burgers contain real beef? Or were they lying all this time and it was really some synthetic stuff like those healthy veggie burgers that I switched to that taste like cardboard? (Counter argument: Maybe Icelanders simply don't like beef. They do eat a lot of seafood). And I conscientiously drop loose change into those collection bins for the Ronald McDonald House, was that a scam too? (Rebuttal: Maybe Icelanders don't like giving to charity and expect their government to take care of everyone's welfare).

Finally I came to "McDonald's employees are happy". Really? Since when? Unless the counter people in Reykjavik had drastically different demeanors from the ones in New York, "happy" isn't the word I'd use to describe them. Unmotivated and unhurried are more like it. No counter argument will convince me otherwise.

So, after all this analysis, I have to go with my initial impression. It is satire. I think. Whatever. Here's a Reuters article (with video) chronicling Icelanders lining up for their last Big Mac.

P.S. That is one mighty scary looking Ronald McDonald who does look like he loves to eat children.

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Welcome aboard Icelandair - Langloka: $5; Dry Icelandic Humor: Priceless

"So why on earth are you going to Iceland this time of year?", numerous baffled friends inquired when apprised of my plans. They had a point - checking the weather online for Reykjavik confirmed my suspicion that it would be freezing cold, snowing, and with about five hours of daylight (sunrise @11am, anyone?).

I couldn't really pinpoint a specific reason, though I've always had this notion of Iceland as an exotic destination (not because of Bjork, mind you) with its numerous waterfalls, glaciers, and landscape. Moreover, I've read and heard about the famously hedonistic nightlife scene ("the best in all of Europe"), the abundance of tall, blonde Icelandic women who won't look out of place at a fashion shoot (or Miss World contest), and of course, the Blue Lagoon.

But the real reason was far more practical - great deals that Icelandair was offering on their air/hotel packages made travelling to Iceland at least a bit affordable. (The ads were ubiquitous, a few friends mentioned seeing them inside NYC subway cars). Coupled with the US dollar's doubling in value vis-a-vis the Icelandic krona, and the fact that I didn't want to sit at home for 4 days during the Thanksgiving holiday, the timing felt right. Plus, by coincidence R. was thinking of going to Iceland as well, so we booked the Icelandair package online.







So, never having been on an Icelandair flight, I didn't know what to expect. The flight from JFK to Reykjavik took only 5 hours non-stop, so I figured an Icelandic dinner would be served (whatever that is), followed by a short nap, and voila - welcome to Reykjavik! As it turned out, food on board Icelandair wasn't free and choice was somewhat limited - the veggie wrap and Langloka (ham and cheese baguette, pictured above) were both 4 euros*, and some sort of chicken salad was selling for 9 euros. Drinks other than cola, juice, and water also wasn't free. (That did not stop the Ukrainian woman beside me from downing a few shots of vodka though).

Luckily, we were seated in the back of the plane and got served first, because the buying process was excruciatingly long. The flight attendants carried these handheld devices for swiping your credit card, which was pretty nifty, but still I wouldn't want to be seated in row 5. By the time I had finished devouring the Langloka (amazingly good for airline food), the attendant had advanced all of three rows. Instead of the nap I intended to take, I spent the rest of the flight being entertained by the funny Icelandic history and cultural tidbits printed on the napkins, food cartons, and seat backs. Dare I say I even found them educational. Who knew Icelanders had a great sense of humor?


*4 euros = $6 at current exchange rates. I only got charged $5 though. Go figure. Attention Icelandair accounting department!!!

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Meet the Fosses*

*Foss = waterfall. As I'm sure the legions of Icelanders reading this blog will say, "Fosses" is NOT the plural of foss. I was going for a (hopefully) clever reference to a Ben Stiller movie which I have not actually seen.

(Photo: Gullfoss, Iceland). Walking behind the Niagara Falls was a truly unique and unforgettable experience. It makes one appreciate how powerful the falls are, since this is as up-close-and-personal as you can ever get. Donning that flimsy yellow poncho and trying not to cringe at the thought of 8,529 people who had previously worn my rented shoes, I said to myself, "THIS made the 8-hour drive truly worthwhile".
Heck, getting spitzed by the water (don't get those cameras wet!) was so much fun that we decided to go around twice - I'm sure the group photos are on someone's hard drive somewhere, since that was over a decade ago and I've lost touch with everyone.

Don't shed any tears though. The Niagara Falls were probably the first ones I ever saw, and attracted by their beauty (especially the horseshoe-shaped one on the Canada side) and the force of the cascades threatening to obliterate anything in its path made me seek out waterfalls on trips since then. Let's see - memorable ones include those along the Route of the Waterfalls in Banos (Ecuador), Los Chorros in Juayua (El Salvador) with its bathing pool (pictured), and the puny ones on the Loboc River in Bohol (Philippines). While none of these were as gigantic and powerful as Niagara, it's quite interesting to see the different shapes and sizes they come in.

Gullfoss is perhaps Iceland's most famous waterfall, owing to it being part of the famous Golden Circle. Every tourist in Iceland at some point must have visited Gullfoss. These falls aren't that tall (only 32 meters), but the split-level shape (or double cascade) is quite unique. The water then plunges into a narrow crevice that is at a right angle to the flow of the water. I find it extremely beautiful covered in snow.



Gullfoss Youtube video


This one below, Oxararfoss, is inside another famous historical attraction, the Thingvellir National Park, more known for being the site of the world's first-ever parliament (outdoors, to boot!!). If you're wondering how they coped with the cold weather, I am too. Oxararfoss empties out into - hold your breath - the Drekkingarhylur (these Icelandic names are simply unpronounceable!), aka "Drowning pool". That was how capital punishment was meted out in the old days. Guilty people were put in sacks and drowned in Drekk. Isn't Oxararfoss lovely frozen over? (shivering)



Oxararfoss Youtube video


Now we come to the one which was the most fun, Skogafoss. This waterfall (62 meters tall, 25 meters wide) topples over a cliff with great force producing lots of mist. It's relatively simple to walk all the way up to the foot of the falls to feel the intensity. However, unluckily enough the path has frozen over, so it's akin to walking on a carpet made of ice cubes. Despite the obvious danger involved, I continued walking towards Skogafoss, focusing simultaneously on shooting the video and trying not to fall on my butt. (The length bloggers go to for their audience's pleasure). Notice the guy in the video walking in my direction. Initially he appears headless but then emerges whole. Initially I thought that was due to the mist, but more likely a smudge in the camera lens. Nevertheless, got a big kick out of that one (as I normally do).



Skogafoss Youtube video

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Saegreifinn's World-Famous Lobster Soup (plus some Mink Whale)

I knew vaguely that Mark Bittman was a food writer for the New York Times, though I never really followed his blog posts. And then I saw a couple of episodes of the TV show "Spain: On the Road Again", where he and three cohorts (including the actress Gywneth Paltrow and famous chef Mario Batali) savor culinary delights all throughout Spain. Oh, so that's him...then I promptly forgot what he looked like. Honestly, what male would take their eyes off the lovely Claudia Bassols for one second to look at some guy?!





My opinion turned in his favor though, when R. sent me his review of the seafood restaurant Saegreifinn. Bittman raved about the lobster soup at this rustic shack situated right by the harbor in downtown Reykjavik. My appetite was whetted further after reading yet more press about Saegreifinn - see owner Kjartan joking around with a journalist in this Three Sheets Iceland video, as well as a Amateur Traveller podcast mentioning Saegreifinn and yes, the lobster soup.

Scanning the assortment of fish skewers on display, the mink whale caught me eye - I asked the lady manning the counter what it tasted like. She replied, "Somewhere between beef and liver". Though not especially fond of liver, my adventurous instinct was unable to resist such a novelty, thus I decided that mink whale it would be. You know, in the spirit of "When in Reykjavik...". And of course, a steaming bowl of lobster soup each for R. and I, shivering as we were from the freezing temps.

(Note: Before you hate me, mink whales are not endangered, and it is legal to eat them).

The much-hyped, world-famous lobster soup lived up to its billing. Slightly sweet, filled with chunks of local lobster (see pic). The mink whale? Well, the waitress' description was right on target - it looked like beef and tasted like liver. Neither great nor bad, though we both agreed that R.'s grilled cod was the tastier dish between the two, and that Saegreifinn's reasonably-priced seafood is a welcome departure from most of Reykjavik's dining scene where sticker shock is the norm.

On the way out, guess what I spotted tacked on the wall by the door - a yellowed newspaper clipping of Mark Bittman's review, no less. Well done, MB. Maybe now I'll pay closer attention to "Bitten". Just maybe.

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Hi, I'm Vatnsleysufoss...please call me Faxi

Quite a number of tour operators in Reykjavik offer the day-long excursion to the "Golden Circle" (the Icelandic tourist board's brilliant marketing term) - the trifecta of south Iceland's most popular historical sights consisting of the Geysir (hot water shooting up into the air), Gullfoss (thundering two-level waterfalls), and Thingvellir national park (site of the world's first-ever parliament, outdoors to boot).

So, for the traveller spending only a few days in Iceland, this tour is one of the must-dos. The only decision really is which mode of transport to take. The biggest company, Reykjavik Excursions, operates huge tourist buses that accommodate about fifty people, while a host of smaller companies like Go Travel Iceland use more intimate mini-buses that can seat roughly twenty or so. Thus, it was a no-brainer for R. and I - we decided to book the Go Travel Iceland tour for the next day. Our driver/guide was Gummi, an affable man full of information about Iceland, its history, and sights - all told with dry humor that kept it fun for the passengers.

Since these three main attractions are located relatively not far from Iceland's capital Reykjavik, and somewhat close to each other, it makes you wonder why the bus tours take 8 hours. If you bother to read the trip itinerary, buried in the fine print (if mentioned at all) are other stops along the way including the Kerið volcano crater (pretty cool, pun intended), Hveragerði greenhouse village (residents live above the hot springs, risking total destruction of their homes), Skálholt church (fascinating mosaic tile image of Christ, as pictured), and the Nesjavellir geothermal power plant (nice - if staring at heavy machinery turns you on).

For me though, the biggest pleasant surprise among all these "extras" was the Vantnsleysufoss (or Faxi, a widely-used name for horses), one of the lesser-known waterfalls even among Icelanders, as Gummi pointed out. (True enough, no mention of Vatnsleysufoss in either Lonely Planet or Rough Guides). Located just seconds off the main road, people drive past it all the time - oblivious to Faxi's beauty. Their loss, I say.

Note: Be sure not to miss the guy who climbed to the left hand side of the waterfalls (in the first few seconds).


Watch the Youtube video

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