We’re going to Iceland!
I’m not sure when my fascination of Iceland began. At least 5-6 years ago. Anytime I would see a beautiful picture or a beautiful scene in a movie, it always turned out to be Iceland. So I wanted to go and see it for myself.
Plus, my favorite musicians EVER, Of Monsters and Men, are Icelandic. They are Indie/Folk. They’re awesome.
So I talked to my husband and he was interested too. Yay! But then we ended up going to France, Belgium and the U.K. in 2015, which was great. However, we can only afford one international vacation every 3 years or so (which is still a luxury, I realize). So when we started thinking about our next international trip in 2018, we discussed either Iceland or Ireland. Because Ireland is on our list too. But, Iceland won out because of the great deal we got on tickets. We are going ‘off-season’ (May), which I believe is why we got such a great deal. It will be a late anniversary present to each other.
A few fun facts about Iceland (from Wikipedia):
*The population of the entire country is 335,000 (most of which live in the capital, Reykjavik).
*It is the most sparsely populated country in Europe.
*There are volcanoes, geysers, hot springs, lava fields and massive glaciers.
*It runs almost completely on renewable energy (geothermal & hydropower).
*It is at the juncture of the North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans (it is just a few degrees south of the Arctic Circle, and one of its smaller northern islands runs through the Arctic Circle (yeah…it’s up there). This pic gives an idea of how far north it really is. (what were we thinking?!?)
*The interior of the island is uninhabited. Most people live along the coasts.
*The official language is Icelandic, however English and Danish are both mandatory subjects taught in school and both are widely understood and spoken.
*The state church is Lutheran
*Icelandic people have a deep sense of community and are very happy people. They are also very healthy and have one of the highest life expectancy rates in Europe.
*Icelanders are avid consumers of literature. They import and translate more international literature than any other nation and they have the HIGHEST NUMBER OF BOOKSTORES PER CAPITA IN THE WORLD. Blown. Away. (until my husband pointed out that they probably only have like 10 bookstores because of the small population. Dream crusher!! Ha ha)
*Most of the cuisine is based on fish (mostly cod and haddock), lamb, and dairy products, with little to no utilization of herbs or spices (hmm). Traditional dishes consist of cured shark, cured ram, flat bread, dried fish, and dark rye bread. There are not a lot of fruits and vegetables because of the climate. The main meal of the day is dinner, which is usually fish or lamb as the main course. Boiled or mashed potatoes, pickled cabbage, green beans and rye bread are prevalent side dishes. Coffee is popular at all times of the day. The signature alcoholic beverage is Brennivin (‘distilled wine’). It is a type of vodka made from distilled potatoes and flavored with either caraway seeds or angelica. It’s super potent and has earned the nickname Black Death (because of the taste, not necessarily the alcohol content). There are many alarming things in this paragraph. Ha ha.
But….we aren’t going there for the food (thank goodness). We’re going there to relax, soak in some natural hot pools, and to see some pretty, pretty things.
I can’t wait!
