Iceland! Part 3: Stuck on a Deserted Island

Ahh. Day 2 1/2. After experiencing the sheer bliss of the Blue Lagoon (and, let's face it, its free exfoliant), my sister and I had the rest of the afternoon to explore to our heart's content.

What better way to explore than to book some random boat to... a deserted island? Awesome.

While my sister had read that this island (Videy, I think it was?) was TINY (only about a mile long), we didn't really know what to expect... I can guarantee you, being the only two people on the island (plus the owner of the only coffee shop on Videy) was not at ALL what had crossed our minds.

But... well, there we were. Might as well take some time to go exploring!

Yeah. Again, sounds all adventurous and rugged, now doesn't it? I can 100% assure you, the entirety of Videy can be seen in the span of exactly one hour. Why one hour? Because you're at the mercy of that little boat which run every hour on the hour. If you miss it... well, good luck. Because you will certainly just have to make another round of the entire island in order to keep yourself entertained.

I'm just kidding. Well, I'm not kidding about the length of time it takes to make a complete circuit of the island. But really, in actuality, this island was actually rather adorable and OLD. That's why we went to visit it... it's supposed to be the oldest settlement area in and around Iceland (or something like that). And, to be honest, my sister and I are kind of history nerds... don't come with us to a history museum! We're those people who will read any and everything.

And you certainly can't argue with how peaceful this place is. I mean, with a whopping three people on the island, I don't know how it COULD be anything BUT peaceful.

As much as we appreciated Videy for its finer historical components and beautiful views, I wouldn't exactly be lying when I say we were MORE than ready for THIS site...

You better believe we hurry-scurried on down that little hill! We couldn't miss our BOAT! Good thing everything on the island is in the span of about five minutes... we made it with, let's face it, more than enough time to spare.

Iceland! Part 2: The Gold Mine That IS The Blue Lagoon

After a restless night's sleep on our first night here (how these Icelandic folk deal with 24 hours of daylight is beyond me), I awoke bright and early to hit up the ever-famed Blue Lagoon.

I'd heard nothing but AMAZING things about this little wonderland of a place, so I was more than excited to check it out. The Blue Lagoon is a geothermal spa that apparently achieved notoriety and fame after one of its guests was seemingly cured of psoriasis from its therapeutic waters. Not only that, but you can't discount its amazing natural beauty- it's located in the middle of this lava field out in the middle of absolutely nowhere.

I. Could Not. WAIT.

And holy bejeezleweezles! Would YOU be disappointed being greeted with a view like THIS?!


Granted, I was a little overwhelmed (read: CONFUSED) at first... it doesn't help that you first walk into the reception area and they literally just hand you a locker key and leave you to it. But hello! I needed the rules of etiquette here! Do people just walk out in their bathing suits? It was FREEZING outside! Do people wear flip flops outside? How deep is that WATER? (This coming from a girl who can barely swim, keep in mind.)

It wasn't the hardest thing to figure out. I just befriended some old ladies who were changing in the locker room with me and... well, followed their lead.

For about two minutes. Until we got outside.

And I discovered a whole new realm to the term FREEZING.

I mean, I don't understand! My new two little old lady friends were just taking their own sweet time selecting a spot to hold their towels and stuff but, quite frankly, I was NOT in the mood for particularities. It was at the point where the ladies began asking my opinion about a spot like clear across the Blue Lagoon (slight exaggeration, but only a SLIGHT one) that I literally just dumped my towel and camera on the first open chair I saw and RACED right on into that steaming hot spa of a Lagoon.

Not my proudest moment but... oh whatever. They had each other!

There were literally NO thoughts running through my head at that point except to just get IN the water... until I reached the water's edge and realized I had no idea how on Earth I was to gauge the depths of this thing. Now, for any average individual, this would not be a problem. For a girl who can barely swim... well, problems can quickly arise. (Sigh. And can you believe there was a point in my life where I wanted to learn how to surf? Seriously.)


Oh well- clearly, nothing gets in the way of me and my temperature extremes. You better believe I just jumped right on in! Well, okay. There was a ladder. But "slowly eased down the ladder" doesn't have the same dramatic effect as "jumped right on in", now does it?

And GOD, I have to say, I have no real regrets. Thankfully, this thing is pretty shallow (you can't stand upright, otherwise, half your body will be out of the water) and the brisk breeze on my face and shoulders felt AMAZING intermixing with the gloriously warm blanket that we call the Blue Lagoon.

But that wasn't even the best PART! The bottom of the Blue Lagoon is notorious for this clay-like substance that contains all kinds of magical minerals and algae that serve as one of the world's greatest exfoliators. And there were seriously PILES of this stuff collected at the sides of the Lagoon for people to help themselves to their heart's content. I'm STILL in slight shock that there were PILES of exfoliant just lying around... it really was a miniature goldmine in the midst of lava fields, if you will. My only regret is that I hadn't brought a big ol' bag to hoard (excuse me, collect in a congenial, legal fashion) more for future use.

I kid, I kid. Kind of.

Iceland! Part 1: Frigidity with a Side of Whale Watching

First on our itinerary (which, by the way, was created on the flight over...)- WHALE WATCHING!!

I know, right?! I'm totally with ya. Sounds all exotic and glam and Icelandic-y goodness, right?

Wellll, until you actually get out on that open water and realize that... well, summertime in Iceland is about 30 degrees colder than summertime in New York and Chicago. So, summertime on Icelandic open WATERS?

Umm... needless to say, frigidity didn't really begin to cover it.
Okay, I'm exaggerating.

Oh wait, no I most certainly am NOT.

Oh well. As wimpy as I am in extreme temperatures (and trust me, by normal standards, I don't think this would be remotely considered an extreme temperature situation), it was totally well worth it. Because... well, look what we saw!
And not just once!

Granted, it was no Free Willy skyrocketing into the air, but still! Who knew whales could look so SLEEK and full of BEAUTY?! I mean, I don't know about you, but when I'm comparing something to a whale, beauty isn't exactly what I'm going for.

But I digress. So, that was day 1! Not bad, considering we'd only arrived around noon that day. Stay tuned- more Iceland updates are coming your WAY!