"Today Iceland showed us what a drama queen she can be. All stormy attitude and lots of waterworks. But then, every once in a while, she would brighten up and give us a smile that melted our hearts. A glimpse of something warm that made us fall in love with her, in spite of all the drama. Maybe even because of the drama.
She's a very mercurial lady. Ever changing. Every few miles, a complete new wardrobe. Pristine and cold in white snow with steam coming off of her. Then clothed in a rocky palate of black, white and shades of grey. All color leached from the landscape. Later, sleek and sexy, sheathed in endless waves of rolling black sand. Waterfalls cascading like long, luxurious locks of silver hair. And suddenly, gloriously awash in my favorite color green, all curvy and earthy.
There are signs everywhere of her infamous temper tantrums. Gouges and cracks in the earth. Huge boulders strewn about helter-skelter. And then some smaller rocks stacked neatly into pyramids, as if one of her elves came along behind her to tidy up a bit. She is epic and aged. Her varied and dramatic landscapes, all fire and ice. Quite the diva is Iceland. How could you not fall in love?"
I wrote this in the car on our first long day touring Iceland. I think I might have gotten a bit carried away. But, Iceland certainly stirs up those emotions. Our first day was the longest. We arose before dawn to pick up the rental car and then headed east along the southern coast.
As soon as the sun rose, I started taking photographs as we periodically stopped along the way. It was cold and wet, so most of our time was spent in the toasty car with the seat warmers cranked up listening to Icelandic radio. But the views were glorious! We planned to drive at least as far as Vik and then depending on time maybe venture out to the Glacier Lagoon.
I still can't get over all of the various landscapes. My photos just don't do her justice. It's all about the earth and the land in Iceland. It's as if it's a living thing. I've never seen anyplace like it.
It took about 5 hours to get to Vik and the rain was really coming down so we didn't get to explore as much as I wanted. Of course, we decided to venture on to the lagoon. It was another two hours east, but the sight of the glaciers was worth it! More on that in my next post.
What's your favorite dramatic landscape in Iceland?
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In partnership with Visit Iceland, we received a discounted rate from Hertz Car Rental Iceland.
All photos, writing and opinions are my own.
As always, I promise to be open, honest and transparent with my readers.
If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask.
In partnership with Visit Iceland, we received a discounted rate from Hertz Car Rental Iceland.
All photos, writing and opinions are my own.
As always, I promise to be open, honest and transparent with my readers.
If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask.
