Iceland Arctic Blues — Kisses From The Clouds

In America, I'm just a girl, but in Iceland, I'm a fairy princess.

It really doesn't get more magical than Iceland.

Especially in the winter, when the crowds are slimmer, Iceland gives a new appreciation of the planet and the raw beauty that is still waiting to be discovered. I had heard before going that Iceland resembled the moon, and was looking forward to this trip. Who doesn't want to go to the moon?

While Iceland did not remind me of a dusty rock satellite in the slightest, it did have the strangeness of a different world, of another landscape that I had never seen before. It gave me such a feeling of happiness that I wouldn't be able to find anywhere else. I tried to go in January because I wanted to reverse the concept of winter being the evil snow bearing months of pain and gray and misery. I still don't care for it, but going to Iceland was definitely a step in the direction of winter appreciation.

Armed with a camera, a GoPro, a rental car, and a remarkably enthusiastic travel gal pal, we set off for Reykjavik and made mini road trips from our cute little Airbnb apartment in the middle of the city. It was one of the nicest Airbnb's I've stayed in actually, clean and comfortable and close to downtown.

Disclaimer : If I were to speak to my past self from 2017, I would tell her to stay in hostels around the country and not make Reykjavik my only home base, instead traveling around the perimeter of the island for the entire trip and staying for an entire week. This would make it much easier for us to see everything we wanted to see. However, in just five days we were able to see most of the southern part of the country.

Taking the road well traveled.

Winter driving in Iceland? Not as bad as I expected. I was actually surprised at how warm it was- all I needed was a North Face winter coat, gloves, hat, scarf... typical cold weather attire and nothing too extreme. There is a saying in Iceland that if the weather is bad, wait 15 minutes... and this turned out to be absolutely accurate. On our first day, there were clear roads and no snow, but the second day attracted a huge blizzard where the snowflakes couldn't decide what direction to fly in. Upside down, diagonal, horizontal, and I'm sure some rebellious flakes tried to snow upwards as well. But still, driving was not as difficult as we had feared.

The first day took us to the gorgeous Snæfellsnes Penninsula. Otherwordly is an understatement. After jumping around and squealing and running all over the place, we managed to take some pictures.

okay leave me here forever k thanks bye.

Volcanoes simply make things more enchanting. I am a huge fan of black sand beaches after Iceland. I will gladly give up all my material possessions to live amongst these strange earth formations.

A Quick Mention About The Cutest Horses in the World

Icelandic horses are definitely my best friends. I would love to become a lady who lives among the horses and feeds them apples. Anything is possible.

I didn't know this, but the Icelandic breed of horse is a special one. Unique in its adorable stature that barely straddles the classification between a horse and a pony, they're also unique in their gait styles. They have two special gaits, the tolt and the skeio, gaits that are known for being smooth to ride, the skeio also known as the "flying pace". No other breeds are allowed into the country, and If they leave the country they are't allowed back. At first I figured it's because Iceland wants to keep their horses "pure blooded", which would put them into the Slytherin House at Hogwarts, but it's more to do with their inability to handle the diseases that other horses bring into the country. When European horses were introduced into Iceland, nearly half the indigenous Icelandic horse population died. These are sensitive and gentle creatures!

I admit it, I fell deeply and helplessly in love with these horses and am looking forward to coming back to work on a horse farm in the summertime on day.

yes, this is the happiest I have ever been in my entire life.

The thing about these horses - they have such style and glamour that I would like to book them with a modeling agent. Have you ever seen a creature with such luxurious hair? I wonder if they apply coconut oil treatments on a regular basis. And how do you get your hair to make that swoopy swoop? As they glommed over to me for attention, I became a five year old girl who was just so excited that she didn't know what to do.

Driving down Ring Road, you will see many many horse farms along the way. Pull over and say hi to them, they'll be eager to meet you and are the sweetest creatures. We loved it so much that we booked our horseback riding adventure in the snow later that week. Check out Ishetar for a great experience riding the Icelandic horse.

I can't feel anything. Remember to wear gloves. Don't pull a Megan. Don't be that girl.

After our love affair with the horses concluded, we moved on to the next destination, taking the car down the highway again to the town of Vik.

Vik and Reynishverfi Black Beach

Coming to Vik took a few hours, a scenic drive, and an introduction to one of the most breathtaking and haunting black sand beaches I've seen. In addition, the beach is cursed, its waves capable of pulling unsuspecting tourists into the ocean, even when standing firmly on the sand. The volcanic ash composition of the shore is responsible for this, its texture creating a suction effect when the waves crash onto the beach. An enormous sign warns people to stay away from the beach, but I saw at least a few tourists attempting a selfie by the waves. There's always gotta be one...

The other great attraction in Vik are the besalt rock formations- to give you an indication of size:

There was a cave around the corner and of course we had to check it out. Not sooner than we ended up in the back of the cave that we saw the tide come in, and we realized that pretty soon we'd be trapped inside the cave with no escape from the death waves threatening to pull us under to our ultimate demise. We ran out of there as if the ground was made of hot coals.

Skogarfoss Waterfalls

Another of my favorite stops along the road in the south of the country just happened to display a rainbow across the waterfall as we stepped closer to capture its natural beauty.

What more did we need to catapult our trip from otherworldly to simply spiritual? Well, a trip to the Blue Lagoon couldn't hurt.

Yes, You Should Go to the Blue Lagoon

One touristy place that a lot of people recommend avoiding is the Blue Lagoon. I disagree for the following reasons.

It's so flipping beautiful. A huge hot spring that admittedly is not "natural" and heated by a geothermal plant, but the water is still a refuge from the cold and you can wander around the lagoon for more than four hours and feel like you've just arrived.
Beautiful European men (ok and women) will just be lounging and stretching their bathing suit clad bodies around the lagoon as though they were born in the lagoon and waiting for you all these years.
You can drink Prosecco, red wine, white wine, beer, and smoothies inside the lagoon.
Included in admission price is a mud mask spa treatment-- you'll receive a mud based face mask that dries and then an algae face mask to moisturize your newly cleansed face. It looks glamorous in photos.
Twilight is positively sparkling along the water. I've been in June and it was still light outside at around 11:30pm.
It's the Blue Lagoon! Just go already!

We had a fabulous time here. The water felt incredible and we stayed for over six hours. Just make sure you book the time slot early before you arrive.

Oh Iceland, Can I Stay A While?

Iceland brought out the inner child in me, the child who only needed a walk in the woods to be content. Iceland is a very special place, a place of effortless wonder. Every place we visited took our breath away, from the fresh snowfall in the morning to the rainbows over the waterfalls, the strange green mossy landscape, the black beaches bordering a frigid ocean, the random horse farms along the roads, the beautiful city itself that is so beautiful you don't mind paying $100 for a sandwich. Okay well, I minded a little how expensive everything was, but if you realize that going into Iceland, you'd be better off packing a lot of Rx Bars, Quest Bars, Luna Bars, or any other protein meal replacement bar that would keep well on a road trip. If you're more adventurous, a great plan is to bring polar sleeping bags and camp out in the car along the way around the country as you save money on hotels. I know of a lot of people who do this and it sounds pretty cool. Just don't forget about that deodorant spray!

Travel Therapy Conclusion:

You need Iceland to lodge its icy tendrils in your heart. Go to Iceland if you're aching for an adventure, road trip, a bonding experience with your friends, a romantic rendezvoux, or you just want to experience something completely different from what you're used to on a typical vacation. You need Iceland if you love fresh air, Experience everything this island country has to offer, you won't regret it.

Kiss Kiss!