The King in the North

6 min read

This tiny Nordic island nation of about 364,000 strong inhabitants rule the north Atlantic with its dramatic landscapes and progressive political views. Iceland is small compared to its other Scandinavian counterparts but, just as David took down Goliath, this nation proves itself to be a tough competitor. Notably, it is the smallest nation to qualify for the World Cup, doing so in 2018, beating even 60-year veteran Italy for a spot.

There was so much hype about Iceland’s tourism in recent years that when my friend Rickson offered an invitation to travel to the country so far up north, I could not pass up on the chance, even if it meant journeying for almost 24 hours. Half of the people I was going with on the trip I did not know prior so I relied on the other half’s better judgment that we can all survive each other’s company for nearly an entire week. It turns out I was in for one of my most memorable travel experiences to date, with the most hilarious of companies.

I brought my digital camera with me to document the journey knowing beforehand that Iceland boasts one of the most panoramic views on the planet. But I was floored to find out my travel companions brought with them professional grade equipment. Billy and Rowena whom I met for the first time each carried their drone cameras while Rickson had his high grade DSLR with him. My camera suddenly paled in comparison. I can’t blame them for doing so. The views that greeted us were beyond exhilarating, my amateur skills would not have done them justice. I tried anyway.

The journey began without any hiccup. We reached Keflavik airport from Manila transiting in Istanbul and Heathrow, even bumping into hometown friends on the way. An employee of the car rental company came to pick us up and immediately gave us an intro to Icelandic culture – the peculiarity of their names. Icelandic people do not have family names. Everyone is someone’s son or daughter which can be identified by the suffix -son or -dóttir. A Grímsson is son of Grímur and Ólafsdóttir, daughter of Ólafur. With some supplementary reading, I learned that women do not take their husbands’ name upon marriage because it doesn’t make sense for women to become somebody else’s son. Touché. Recently, Iceland also became the first country to make it illegal to pay men more than women for doing the same job. Amen! Raise the roof! I wonder how long it will take for the rest of the world to get in line.

We spent the first afternoon in Reykjavic strolling around the charming capital where a third of the entire country’s population live. Though known supposedly for its superb night life, our tired bodies could only muster enough energy to walk up and scour for food. We looked for and found Iceland’s most famous hot dog stand. I did not find it that remarkable but we were starving so we each had two.

We were following a fairly packed itinerary that involved traversing along the entire island nation for the next five days so we had quite an adventure ahead of us. Along the way, we visited a UNESCO world heritage park, the Great Geysir – the one that apparently named them all, and waterfalls, plenty of waterfalls.

It was nearly nightfall when we reached our next stop. After a long day of walking and being on the road, we were ready to call it a day. But the universe had other plans. It was going to show us something cosmic. The most elusive yet sought after northern lights have manifested itself upon us and at that moment, we felt infinitely lucky.

Electrified by our luck from the previous night, we commenced the following day with a brand new perspective. We headed for a twenty minute hike out to take a dip at one of Iceland’s oldest outdoor swimming pools, nestled at the foot of a mountain in the southern part of the country. In freezing single digit temperature, the warm pool water was a welcome respite.

With still plenty to cover and barely enough time, we were back on the road in record time. We spent most of our time driving through scenic routes in cruising speed, stopping from time to time to take in all the splendor and take photographs that will put past Vogue covers to shame.

When we reviewed our route the next morning, we were quite shocked to learn that we were traversing along the North Atlantic ocean. One wrong move and we could have easily ended up at the bottom of it (Cue: Blackmirror Crocodile episode).

The rest of the trip went fairly smooth. We went to see the Black Sand Beach at Vik which, if you must know, is where GoT filmed Jon Snow and company arriving at Eastwatch by a boat.

Everything we visited was breathtaking, I’ll do it all over again if I could. But time was limited so I’d settle at being lucky enough to see a fraction of what Iceland could offer. We capped off the trip with a relaxing dip at the famous Blue Lagoon, it seemed like the only appropriate way to end an extraordinary journey.

We made this trip in September of 2017 but I remember everything as if it only happened yesterday. Voila. I have to say it was a trip of a lifetime. We all had a fantastic time. Each moment seemed comical now that I look back – from the Aurora Borealis-chasing koya we met at one of the stops, the fun drinking games, endless banter, et cetera. I will not zone in on the few occasions Rickson and I nearly murdered each other because at the end of the day he was in charge and I was at his mercy. Kidding! All is well that ends well. I’ve made new friends and collected memories for keeps. À la prochaine!

Filed: Extraordinary