Blue Lagoon, Iceland

Last day in Iceland, last day of our adventure and it's my birthday. To celebrate we went to the Blue Lagoon.

Yes it is touristy, yes it is expensive, but it is worth a visit. Even Jason, who is not a spa person enjoyed it. It is not cheap if you only visit for an hour or two, so we stayed for five!

It is not a swimming pool but you can do a little. Most people are just hanging out and taking it all in. You walk around (carefully) to find the little pockets of cold, warm and hot water. You apply silica mud to your face, visit the sauna, or such. The time flew by and then we had dinner at the on-site restaurant Lava.

The history of the Blue Lagoon is very interesting, a lot of people think it just happened in nature and Iceland is capitalizing on it. If you visit the Blue Lagoon website, they tell you that it "was accidentally formed in 1976 during operation at the nearby geothermal power plant. In the years that followed, people began bathe in the unique water and apply the silica mud to their skin. Those with psoriasis noticed an incredible improvement in their condition." As such, people kept going! What an interesting history!

Of course, we had to check it out and see what it could do for our skin. It was a wonderful day.

The only lifeguards you will find in winter wear!

~ Christine

Day 6 & 7 - Myvatn to Akranes to Reykjavik, Iceland

We did a big push for the drive along the north side of the island. We probably should have given it more of a look, but for us, we did not find much that interested us so we did a drive of 450km to Akranes. The land scape on this side of the island is different from the south and east but still beautiful in its own right. It rained most of the way which also deterred us from stopping anywhere. As such, few pictures were taken.

We did stay in a wonderful guesthouse in Akranes though, so if you are ever in the area, we would highly recommend: Teigur Guesthouse, the owners are wonderful people, and the accommodations are very comfortable.

On day 7 we drove the short 50 min to Reykjavik where we went on a boat to see puffins! Too cute! They are much smaller than we expected and fly very fast so it was hard to capture in a picture. We also cannot get too close to them as they are wild and need their space.

It was not too rushed of a trip around the island but it was pushing it. Iceland is an amazing country and needs to be seen from the road! Visit Reykjavik, but don't limit yourself to just this one place. There is so much to see and do in Iceland and a lot of it is easy to get to by car. Just be sure to watch a video about driving in Iceland before going. A few helpful tips :)

Lava mound

puffins

~ Christine

Day 5 - Eglisstadir to Myvatn, Iceland

Going further north along the Ring Road, we headed to Myvatn. The only thing we planned to see along the way was Dettifoss (most powerful waterfall in Europe). It required a 25km detour off the Ring Road, then a 1km walk through snow, mud, etc. The hike was not difficult but it was a little messy (and wet). When we got to the falls it was beautiful but not as much as the ones we had previously seen.

The highlight of the day was the geological wonders of Hverir. We also hiked up Hverfjall (tuff ring volcano) but the size (too big), and color (black) did not work in my pictures so you will have to look it up :)

Another amazing day along Iceland's Highway 1 (Ring Road).

Hverir - see pictures below! Soooo cool!

Mud pot - bubbling acid mud!

Possible location for the next Star Wars?

~ Christine

Day 4 - Hofn to Egilsstadir, Iceland

Continuing east along the Ring Road, we had a short drive ahead of us, only 186km but once again, it took us hours to complete. We stopped a few times but it took so long because this part of the Ring Road winds around the coast. This makes the drive fun, but it is also a little exhausting being on high alert. To top it off, the roads here have NO shoulder, so there is little (no) room for error. And if you make that mistake there is often a good ditch (or worse) you will encounter. So if you see oncoming traffic (in good or bad weather), it is best to slow down a bit.

In the end, it was a good thing that we had a plan of where to stop driving for the day because although fun, it was a little exhausting. But with all things that require a little extra effort, we were rewarded with more stunning views. Some of the most awe-inspiring which is impossible to capture on camera, it is also feeling.

Whopper Swans - now I understand Bjork's dress!

~ Christine

Day 3 - Vik to Hofn, Iceland

Continuing along the Ring Road in Iceland, we came across more stunning scenery. Sometimes you see things just on the side of the road, other times you need to take a turn off to see what's hidden around the corner. Pictures cannot describe what we are seeing. This really is a place you have to see for yourself...

Largest lava flow in human history

Single lane bridge

Village destroyed by lava, this is a cemetery now

Trolls?!

~ Christine

Day 2 - Selfoss to Vik, Iceland

We were not sure what else we could possibly see that was as impressive as the day before, but it just got more incredible! There is so much to see here! The drive was just over 100km, but we saw so much that it took us hours to get to our next destination!

On the road

Seljalandsfoss - waterfall you can walk behind!

Icelandic horses, small with lot's of hair, so cute!

Skogafoss

Gljufrabui -  "hidden" waterfall

Black sand beach from Katla volcano, near Vik

Vik Village

Double rainbow!

~ Christine