Ice Ice Baby

I was so nervous to come to Iceland with all the crazy volcano stuff going on. Boy oh boy, I can't say enough how happy I am to have had the opportunity to visit such an incredible place. 

Iceland is unlike any place I've visited before. It's hard to really describe it. It's very rugged and has this untouched feeling. The architecture is like walking through an Ikea store. It's very modern with a sort of "pop up shop" type of feel to it. It's also incredibly cozy feeling. The people are very warm and have a great sense of humor. They are also incredibly progressive given their size and how isolated they are. The people are very edgy fashion wise, but they all have a very rustic look to them. I enjoyed being there so so much. Can't wait to go back. Iceland is very expensive, so I'm happy that I'll know more of what to expect in that department when I go back one day.

I'm so happy I got to visit Iceland but I don't feel like I really did it justice. I checked into Kex (the cutest hostel I could ever imagine...with a pretty amazing breakfast)right after midnight early Tuesday morning. After having the most awful sleep of my life thanks to jet lag, I woke up to shower* and have breakfast. After breakfast, I immediately set out to explore. There was a pretty drastic temperature drop. It wasn't freezing but it was definitely a lot chillier than the place I was coming from. Between that and all the walking, I started feeling some old knee pains come back to the surface. Such a bummer! I had so much I wanted to do in Iceland. I also didn't want to screw my knee up right as everything was just starting. Rock, meet hard place. Oh well, c'est la vie. As I said, it gives me the perfect excuse to make it back there soon. Plus, it was worth it because I got to meet so many great people (including Anselm, a Canadian who will be spending his year teaching in France as well).

Here are some highlights of Iceland:

1) Kex- Kex is the coolest hostel dreamed up by some of the most creative people on the planet. It's such a quirky place. There are so many things to study and find in the hostel alone. Definitely made it hard to leave Iceland even more. There are a lot of young tourists stopping through obviously, but Kex is also loved by locals. There is an amazing breakfast bar that serves a very traditional Icelandic meal. Gosh, I could eat that breakfast every morning. So so good. They also have a bar there that is packed with the most lovely people you'll ever meet every night. Everyone is so anxious to hear your story. In my next life, I want to travel around the world and be a part of the planning party for places like Kex. While I was there, I met some new friends from Canada, England, France, Iceland and San Francisco. Can't wait to visit again.

2) *Shower- Okay, so this is a funny story. My first morning there, I went to take a shower. At that point, I hadn't really explored the hostel too much. I went into the room that was labeled as the bathroom/shower and I thought I was gold. Well, I knew I had taken a step into an uncomfortable direction when I walk in and find a woman in the nude just walking around drying off. I'm thinking...hm, ok...so this is a hostel...get a hold of yourself. To my surprise, I take a look at the shower and realize that the showers are communal. Now listen people, I'm not a complete prude...but I'm American and have never in my life had to shower in a group before. Not even in gym class. Deep breath. I'm of course trying to make it look like I do this sort of thing all the time. Meanwhile I'm freaking out on the inside. She leaves the room. I take a moment and think to myself "how badly do I need a shower and how long can I go without one." I quickly decided that maybe this was an initiation into my European life and went for it. I closed the curtain to the communal shower and started showering faster than I ever have in my life. I definitely didn't spend enough time to do normal things like rinsing shampoo and soap off. I heard voices and started showering even faster...throwing my shampoo and soap to the floor. Doesn't matter, I'd pick it up after. Luckily nobody else came in and I was able to get dressed in peace. I felt so proud of myself. Later on that morning, I saw that just one more door down was 1 of 3 private showers for women on that floor alone. DANG GINA! 

Moral of the story: I learned in that second that I am a fan of privacy. I also know now that I should do a better job conserving water. It is possible to take a 3 minute shower. 

3) People in Iceland believe in elves, trolls or faeries. Sometimes you can meet people who believe in all three. It's a magical place with a lot of folklore that is intertwined in it's history. This is a place where grown adults talk openly and honestly about their personal encounters with elves, etc. I think this is one of the coolest things about the culture in Iceland. There is a very faint and fine line between what is seen as being fact and fiction. The people are supposedly up there with the happiest in the world. Maybe they're doing something right?

I don't want to spoil the magic too much, but I had a conversation about elves one night with a guy from Iceland. He says he's believed in that stuff since he was a kid and that it's not at all unusual. He told us a story about his encounter with what he believes was one of these magical creatures. He says he was walking home and he sort of came to a group of rocks. His attention was captured by one rock in particular. When I say rocks, I'm describing really big rocks...not so much pebbles. He sat down and started talking and says he just felt this wave of comfort wash over him. He believes it was something magical. In his own words: "Why else would I have been so fascinated with just any rock?"

4) Incredibly attractive staff- Icelandair is probably the best airline I've ever flown with. The staff is so friendly. Also, they aren't half bad looking. Wasn't trying to be creepy, but I just could not believe how good-looking the flight attendants were. Case & point:

ooh la la

5)Northern Lights- Anselm and I took a tour out of Reykjavik to see the lights. We were pretty lucky to see them at all because I guess it's not always possible. They weren't quite as vibrant as we were hoping they would be, but it was still an incredible thing to see.

It was definitely worth losing feeling in every limb while waiting to see them. Plus, when this is the song that is going through your mind over and over again, it can't be a bad thing.

6) Blue Lagoon- such a cool and relaxing experience. I've never seen anything like it. My skin felt so soft and clean after.

7) So, there are quite a few cultural differences between the land I know and the Iceland I've come to know. 

#1: They have reindeer, puffins, whales (but no polar bears) in Iceland. In fact, they shoot (or tranquilize if they're able to)any polar bears that happen to make it there. They also eat whale and puffin. This may be part of the reason you see very few animals in Iceland.
#2: Parents will go into stores to shop and leave their babies outside in their strollers. I saw this a few times and I was shocked. It is supposedly very safe in Iceland. They also think it's good for the baby. Well, that's good I guess.

Here is the adult version of the description above:

#3: The people are beautiful. They are so beautiful, I'm listing it as a cultural difference. They're on that level.

#4: Everyone has a Lopapesa. I will own a genuine Lopapesa one day.

#5) Architecture is unreal looking. Dream land material. Definitely a different style than what we see in Oklahoma.

I have so much I still want to do in Iceland. Can't wait to go back one day. It's definitely a worthy place with everything you could want. nice food. nice people. nice scenery.

With a landscape like this, I count myself amongst those who believe. It would be pretty easy to in a place like this.