Icelandic stories and facts

When travel, talk to locals because they are the best sources of folklore and anecdotes. That's easier in Iceland than other European countries- Kids are required to learn English at school. 

Small country

Population in Iceland is around 300,000, two thirds living in Reykjavik. The remaining third are shattered along the coast, since inland is mainly desert and glacier. Although some villages are tiny, they still have pool, school, shops and bank that may open one hour per day. Crime rate is low, maybe because everybody knows everybody. 

The total number of livestocks in this country can be counted in thousands. All the +20 bird species can be listed in minutes. Sheeps are set free to the hills during summer to do whatever they want until September. The only natural threat is a kind of wild fox.

No rail system, because some say the population needs to reach one million to justify that kind of splurge. Although Icelandic are making lots of babies, it still would take a long time. 

No McDonald's

McDonald's has pulled out of Iceland, gone with it the most expensive Big Mac across all countries. The official explanation is "operational complexity". You can say it's a rather small market, but hey, Subway, KFC and Domino's are all present. 

Local green houses only produce tomato, cucumber, pepper and lettuce. But isn't that all the vegetables needed? McDonald's can even use trout to create a premium version of fish burger, replace normal yogurt drink with skyr, and cooperate with Nói Síríus for quality chocolate syrup. 

Respect the nature

Nature has its way in Iceland, from the dramatic change in the length of day to the volcano eruptions and consequences. People talk about time according to how nature operates: when the first puffin comes, when the sun stays all day, and when northern light starts showing in the sky. 

Along the ring road, we saw carefully positioned stones. Many stone piles are similar to those common in US national parks. The tour guide said these stone piles are all by tourists but locals are not happy about them. Wen you move a stone, you are destroying the vegetation around. 

Icelandic people don't complain when nature destroys roads and bridges without notice. They practice drills, rebuild roads,a and thank nature for adding back vegetation to the lava field.

The hidden people

Although the official number of population is some 300,000, most Icelanders believe there are the hidden people. The story goes like this: when Adam and Eve left Eden, they settled on Iceland and had a lot of kids. One day, god came for a visit under vey short notice. Eve tried to wash all the kids clean to meet god, but didn't have enough time. So she hide the dirty kids. When god asked, for three times, "are these all your kids", Eve lied to god by saying yes. All mighty god knows everything. He said " what's hidden from me is going to be hidden from all humans". 

According to the serious looking tour guide, humans can see the hidden people if they want to be seems. Sometimes the hidden people ask for help. We need to try our best to help them, because they pay with health ands happiness. Many stones and rocks along the ring road are believed to be houses or even a big church of the hidden people.

It is also believed that the hidden people move on New Year's Eve. On that day, bonfires is set all over the island to guide the way. Imagine warm yellow bonfires linked like pearls among thick white snow. It's really sweet.

Reykjavik and around, a lot to offer for such a small place

Reykjavik itself is small. I haven't had the need to use any ways of transportation other the walking. If only the weather had been better... Still, I prefer walking even in the constant threat of rain. Like what people say here, "if you don't like the weather, wait for five minutes".

Perlan view point (the Pearl)

Like any decent city, Reykjavik has places to get a panoramic view. Popular view points are Hallgrímskirkja Church and the Perlan, a power generator with a museum and a restaurant on top.

Since the wet weather makes hiking somewhat dangerous, the walk from city center to Perlan turned out to be the only hiking I did these days. To avoid the walk at no extra cost, take the free shuttle to Kringlon shopping center ands walk to Perlan from there.

Thermal pools and geothermal beach

Iceland boasts itself as the country who "solves every problem in a hot pot". (Hot pot here is for bathing, not for food.) The abundant geothermal resources guarantee warm homes, swimming pools and even man-made geothermal beach.

Naulsovik geothermal beach has imported white sand among all the other black sands along the south coastline, The sea water is heated all year round. And there are several hot pots to relax. I went to admire the creativity of mankind. It was smaller than I had expected, and I failed to see any hot boys/ girls sunbathing on the beach...

Reykjavik has nice outdoor thermal pools, six of them if I remember correctly. They are clean (because everyone is asked to wash thoroughly before entering the pool), well maintained and loved by locals, long opening hours (6-22:00) and cheap (550 ISK, the price of a cup of coffee). 

The biggest thermal pool is Laugardalslaug. Be prepared for a lot of screaming kids.

Harpa and the Culture Night

Harpa concert and conference hall is the latest addition in Reykjavik. Its beehive like glass walls shine different colors in different lightings. From inside, it looks very much like last season's Ed Hardy print.

I spent a whole afternoon/evening in Harpa for the Reykjavik Culture Night, the nation's favorite festival on the third Saturday of August. Harpa hosted many free concerts and performances, ending with fireworks near midnight.

The huge gathering during Culture Night showed how many kids and teenagers there are. On average, each household has 2.7 children, which must be the highest in Europe. Long winter nights... 

Coffee shops

Not in the mood for museum visits, I spent way too much time at different coffee shops. No Starbucks. But the local ones offer equally wide selection of coffees. I'm happily amazed. 

Short drive away from the city, the most famous day tours are the Golden Circle and Blue Lagoon.

Golden Circle

It consists of Geysir, Gullfoss, and Pingvellir National Park, and is easy to travel around in a half day tour from Reykjavik, hence the popularity. Worth it? Definitely. Am I impressed? Not really.

Personally I enjoyed Pingvellir the most because of the history and geological importance. Still a nerd at heart. You can see the continental drift between North America and Eurasia Plates. However, you cannot technically stand on both plates at the same time-there is a LNG strip between called no man's land. 

Geysir is the Icelandic version of the Old Faithful, or vice versa. Our guide said several years ago, you could throw soap into it to get lots bubbles during eruption. But that's banned now.

Gullfoss means Golden Waterfall. Every lake or river in Iceland is owned by someone or some organization, so it required quite a fight to keep this waterfall from being used for hydropower.

Blue Lagoon, just a hot spring spa

Not worth the hype nor the price tag. There, I said it. 

Blue Lagoon is a artificial spa built from the waste water discovered during an industrial process. The water and mud is full of algae and silicon, and supposedly really good for skin. Blue Lagoon has become so famous that it stopped paying commissions to travel agencies. And when I checked online, it seems no one from Iceland is willing to say bad things about Blue Lagoon. The worst some bloggers say is that a lot depends on personal preference.

It is very relaxing to soak in the milky blue water, no denying of that. But not enough to justify the €40 basic admission fee. Blue Lagoon's marketing team is pricing this way to build a premium brand. However, for a place that +80% of tourists visit, no way it qualifies as premium. 

If I'm paying for nice spa, I'd much prefer Bliss or Clarins. Kyoto offers much better hot springs. Or for half the price, you can buy a big stash of Lush products to soak up in whatever water you wish at home. 

Jökulsárlón Glacial Lagoon, my favorite in Iceland

Okay, I have so many other attractions to talk about after staying in Iceland for a week. But I have to put the Glacier Lagoon first. It is something hard to find in other places- you can see glacier lakes in Alaska but that requires a helicopter ride. And it is SO BEAUTIFUL! No wonder so many movies picked this site. On the list are two James Bond movies and Tomb Raider.

The Glacier Lagoon tour is one of the longest from Reykjavik. Even though the whole +5 hour drive is interesting across lava fields, volcanoes, and three  black deserts, my ass hurts toward the end. Wen the crystal blue iceberg appeared out of nowhere, everything is worth it!

The guide on the boat tour told us it is actually the rainy day that makes the iceberg appear so blue (so long my classes for general physics). There are super blue ones as well as crystal black ones that carry ashes from thousands of years ago.

Several kilometers away is Europe's biggest glacier Vatnajökull, whose ice are breaking away faster than ever and float into the lake and finally the sea.

All the guides I've met in Iceland have great sense if humor, which is only reinforced by their cute Icelandic accent. He talked about how the whole lake was frozen up and polished for James Bond, and longingly remember the days that Angelina Jolie jumped off the boat to swim in the lake. We each got a taste of his special Ice On Rocks.

Some staff were busy cleaning up the firework boxes from the previous nigh, Culture Night on August 24. however, the icebergs are living and dangerous. We saw two breaking and tipping off into the freezing water.

Vik

The minute we left Glacier Lagoon, the sun decided to come out for the first time in a week. We stopped at Vik, the southmost village in Iceland. Vik is near the volcano Katla, with 800 meter of ice directly above, the glacier called Mýrdalsjökull. If Katla erupt, the flood is enough to wash away Vik and almost everything near it. People practice the drill regularly, but no one choose to leave. They all believe if they can escape to the topmost church within 20min, then they can survive.

Vik also has a black beach. Not sure if it qualifies as the top 10 prettiest, but it is very nice indeed.

More waterfalls and more rainbows

We stopped several other times to see waterfalls. Iceland, together with Sweden and Norway, really give me enough waterfall viewing to last for a long time...

Best piece of information from our tour guide: you can see Northern Light now! Not just in the winter! The northern light were seen last week. I was so excited- if I can see northern light this time, my Iceland trip would be beyond perfection.

However, clouds gathered back together and it started raining again when we get back to Reykjavik...

Will talk about other tours and tips for traveling in Iceland as a solo traveller next. Cross that, as a solo traveller without huge amount of money to spend. You can always go to those expensive private river for salmon fishing if you are Prince Charles.

Reykjavik, capital of Iceland

I knew I wanted to visit Iceland even before I knew the name of its capital city. Something about being a secluded island up in the north with 24-hour day light in the summer and northern light in the winter is absolutely charming. 

Iceland seems to be enjoying more air time in the world news in recent years: The economic crisis leaving banks empty. The volcano whose eruption stopped European air traffic for days but whose name reporters still had difficulty to pronounce. The whistle blower who favored this country as shelter after failing to stay free in several other places.

All of the above, plus Iceland's location half way between Europe and North America, makes it a great stop for my trip.

Before landing on this somewhat mysterious island (Iceland is actually Ísland in Icelandic), limited research taught me three facts. 1) the capital is called Reykjavik. 2) Hot water smells like rotten egg because of the sulfur residue from geothermal heating process. 3) Iceland winter is not as cold as we would think ( based on its official tourism advertising) and summer can be pretty warm ( based on guys in flip flops in photos). So I came, mentally well prepared for the smelly hot water, severely under prepared in attire.

The weather when I landed was so beautiful. The sun was tirelessly radiating like an autumn afternoon when it was already 9pm. I walked from the shoreline to downtown to the city pond, admiring how differently the clouds shaped on this island. 

Reykjavik is small and special. Among the low story buildings, the Hallgrímskirkja Church can be seen from most places around the city. Later I found out that Icelandic churches are all very cute or unique.

You won't find most international retail stores here such as H&M. Instead, local apparel brands like Geysir, Farmers Market, 66° North are this countries answers to rebuild national pride. 

Probably for the same reason of national pride, the traditional lopapeysa or Icelandic sweater is wore by so many locals and tourist alike. I went to the Handknitting Association, which is said to have the most lopi sweaters directly for the knitters. Overwhelming amount... Sadly not my style of shopping... The store also sells yarn and knitting tools, which are not my category of shopping either.

From day two, the weather deteriorated into a wet, cold and windy mess. Even worse, all major weather forecasts showed the following several days were equally bad. I started reconsidering the lopi sweater. It turned out, the fleece from Icelandic sheep has two layers. The wet-resistant outer coat contains long, coarse fibers, while the insulating layer beneath consists of soft, short fibers. You don't need a raincoat over these sweaters! 

I went back to get one, because I need to stay warm in order to explore Iceland. Wen I was cold, the sweater didn't look half bad at all.

I also wrote a letter to Icelandic Santa.

More travel recommendations will be updated in later post after I fully explore the city and around. I planned 6 days in Iceland without any detailed plan. But since I'm by myself, I have no choice but to join tours- driving in a strange environment is not a good idea even for overly confident people like me.

I have to talk about the largest supermarket chain in the first post though. It's called Bónus, with a stupid pink piggy bank in the logo. The yellow and pink color scheme is ugly, but eye catching nonetheless. It's impossible to miss anyone on the trees with Bónus bags in their hands. I have to admit the whole design is perfect for its positioning- a mass market supermarket.

There are other grocery stores such as 10-11. Since I seriously need some spending control, I directly go to the cheapest one, Bónus. And to the other dairy product I've been longing to try, Skyr. 

Quoting my favorite description of Skyr from the Internet-

Skyr is, for want of a better word, Icelandic yogurt- only comparing regular yogurt to skyr is like comparing Kraft slices to a perfectly aged Danablu cheese.

Yes, it's thick and creamy and comes in tons of flavors. But I still prefer Greek yogurt over skyr.

Shopping the refrigerated products at Bónus is a new experience by itself- you literally walk into a refrigerated room with shelves of dairy and meat products. It's cold, so plan ahead.

Lucerne and Zurich, uneventful cities

I continued my way north to Lucerne and then Zurich. These are beautiful cities, prettier than most other cities, but I could hardly feel excited. Not sure whether it's because of the been-there-seen-that symptom, the fact that I started to get tired after 20 days no the road, or the prospect of much more exotic and exciting Icelandic nature waiting ahead.

Lucerne

There are some attractions that every tourist goes to, such as the Lion Monument, the Chapel Bridge and Jesuitenkirche at the end of it, and the old town. Go visit them and you can check off Lucerne. I enjoyed climbing some of the Nine Towers and walking the old city wall, because there was a huge rainbow on a sunny day! Be prepared though, some of the tower top smells like pee...

Since Lucerne Festival was on, I really wanted to go to a symphony concert by West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, at the KKL concert hall. But I didn't plan ahead and all thentickets were sold out :(

Zurich Lake

I only stayed one night in Zurich, and it was raining most of the time. Suprisingly luckily, the wearher had been good during the past several weeks, so no complains. For the time it want raining, I sat by Zurich Lake and read. Zurich Lake is therefore the only thing I can comment on and it is very lovely.

On the train to Zurich Airport, I suddenly realized this would be my last train ride in a long time.

Swiss Alps and childhood dreams

I first learned and fell in love with the Alps from watching a Japanese cartoon, like so many other important things taught to me by anime and manga. It's called Heidi, Girl of the Alps, by Miyazaki Hayao. Back then I had no idea about the awesomeness of his studio. So I was purely and completely in love with the beautiful story and pictures. I started to form the idea of a perfect life around a big dog, a caring grandpa, endless blue sky with cotton like clouds, and the most luxurious green grass. Time is recorded by the sun, the snow, the animals, and the plants. Dairy and pastry is prepared slow and fresh. This anime series has done hell of a job to present the beauty of the Alps.

(More on Wikipedia. I'm not the only one loving this anime! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heidi,_Girl_of_the_Alps )

Years later when my teacher asked each of us to talk about favorite countries, I chose Switzerland. Probably I didn't mention a Japanese cartoon as the reason. But my reasoning was apparently appealing enough that one of my classmates moved to Switzerland for school and work because of what I said! When we reconnected not long ago. He told me about that class, which I didn't remember at all. Look how you could influence someone without even knowing it ( trying to keep a straight face here).

All these have made Switzerland special in my heart. I didn't join ski trips to the Alps, because I didn't want my first visit to be sitting by the fire and drinking beer ( however good it actually sounds).

This time it is right and proper. The sun is shining, sky bluest, grass greenest. I am in the most relaxing mode, no Blackberry, no laptop. 

Geneva

Had a brief stop in Geneva. Jet d'Eau, the gigantic water fountain, is worth a visit. If more time in Geneva, it might be interesting to visit the UN building. I'm in Switzerland for nature, not for politics. 

Golden Pass Line from Montreux to Interlaken

The Golden Pass Line may be the most famous tourist attraction. It's a super scenic train routes along the lakes and cross the mountains. Swiss train company CFF smartly design the panoramic train to allow as much view as possible. Same price and same route as normal train. I didn't buy Swiss Pass (CHF287 for 4 days) but got a Half Fare Card (CHF120 for a month) instead. If my total train fare is between CHF 120 and 180, then it will be a wise decision.

From Geneva, we need to go to Montreux along side Lake Geneva to start the Golden Pass Line. Montreux is a wonderful stop to admire Lake Geneva. I just walked by the lake, and sat there eating ice cream.

From Montreux to Interlaken, sit at the left for better view. I didn't reserve seat, and the train wasn't too crowded.

As the train moved higher into the mountains, every picture was prettier than the previous ones. Until, like a dream came true, I saw the exact pictures from the cartoon! It almost felt unreal.

Three hours passed so fast. If I were to do it again, I would use the CFF luggage service to send my luggage to destination. Then I can get off at any small station and spend an hour lying on the grass, imagining how Heidi sees, smells, and feels in the cartoon.

Interlaken and the Jungfrau Region

Many tourist who visit Jungfraujoch or ski stay at Interlaken. It is therefore the typical touristy little town where there are always more tourists than locals. Upside: everything is so convenient for tourists.

I checked the weather on Jungfraujoch, which wasn't promising. Always check the weather before paying +CHF100 going up there, only looking at clouds or fog. And I was not excited at all about joining the crowd to see one snow covered mountain. Jungfraujoch has the highest train station in Europe. Big deal? Understand that Jungfraujoch is the top tourist attraction. I'm not the "check off the list" kind of tourist though.

My hostel has map of all the hiking trails in Jungfrau Region. And I knew then and there that if I didn't hike in the Alps, I would always wonder how great the hike could be. So I did what I always do- following my heart and hiking.

To hike the most beautiful part, I took the train from Interlaken to Grindelwald, then cable car to First where many great hiking trail start. 

First to Lake Balchalpsee

This is a one hour easy hike. It leads to the lake shown on many Swiss advertisements. There were strollers, kids, grandma with mountain sticks, and several happy dogs, but definitely much less girls with full on makeup compared to the Interlaken train station.

Nature is the best gardener and sculptor. The whole trail is blessed with beauty and life. Go in the morning when the shadow of the mountain falls to the other side.

Balchalpsee to Faulhorn

Admit that I enjoy setting goals and conquering them. I continue the hike to Faulhorn at an altitude of 2681 meters. It takes about 1.5 hour one way. The slop is steeper and temperature lower. I put on all the layers on top, but had only shorts all the way...

At Faulhorn is a restaurant. And there is a drawing of the surrounding mountains and their names. I spent 15 minutes trying to figure out the mountains but failed. The view was absolutely great. Overall the best hike I've ever had, all countries included!

I met people who have stayed for weeks, parachuting, skydiving, hiking, mountain biking, and so many other things to do. However, I wanted to leave Interlaken because there are way too many Korean tourists. Some popular Korean TV was shot in Switzerland which serves as the perfect tourism advertsing. Not that I have anything against Koreans. But if I want to be among them all the time, I would just visit Seoul.

Enough of beautiful mountain scenery

I took the other section the Golden Pass Line from Interlaken to Lucerne. The scenery was still incredibly beautiful, but I was not as excited. After church, castle, museum, tomb and garden, scenic mountain has become another category that I've kind of seen enough of the best.

Recharged in Paris

For a trip of more than 40 days, the longest ever for me, I need to stop at some place where I feel comfortable, and can enjoy some down time from all the trip planning. Paris won over London.

Paris can always slow me down. After the first time when I toured all the main attractions following an exhaustive itinerary, the city became my top destination for admiring famous paintings, shopping and window shopping, food, and walking around while doing nothing.

This time I had some plan in mind, such as taking a day trip to Giverny. However, when I actuallu got to Paris, the whether was too lovely to leave the city. It is super sunny but not as hot. So I spent three days in the city without a map or a plan. Now am feeling fully recharged to continue on the journey.

Paris in August

A valid question is that "is Paris shut down in August", considering every August all the colleagues in Paris turn on auto reply and jet off for their summer vacation. Summer can get unbearable for a city without extensive air conditioning. 

The city is still alive! And when the weather cooperates like these three days, it can be even better. Streets are quieter to wonder around. Days are longer and many activities are happening.

Along the bank of River Seine, Paris Plages is attracting all the crowds. The idea is to bring in the sand and pretend you are enjoying the beach. How cute if not desperate. 

Parisians have some innovative eays tomfight the heat, such as-- water spray!

I also did most of the things I usually do when visiting Paris-

Pharmacie shopping for French skincare

It gets easier and easier to purchase French skincare abroad. However, visiting French pharmacie has become a routine for me. Seeing all the French brands squeezed into one place is very satisfying. 

The most famous pharmacie is probably City Pharma (26 Rue du Four, 75006 Paris), because it stocks most brands at very competitive prices. Many complained about City Pharma being too crowded and hard to maneuver. It is pretty quick and easy for me though (living in Hong Kong for three years does bring up my tolerance for crowdedness). I can get everything I want within 30 minutes. Two tips: 1) go in with a list; 2) check out on the ground floor for much shorter queue.

Without makeup bag essentials for two days, thanks to the thief at Oslo central station, I'm finally restocked with my favorite lip balm, hand cream, etc.

Luxury shopping

Since I don't make any money any more, and I've been spending a lot on this trip, I restrained myself from visiting all the designer stores. I do learned quite a few tips regarding shopping in Paris over the past visits.

For tax return purpose, department stores are better than standalone boutiques because you can combine purchases to meet the minimum spending of 175 euro. (Standalone boutiques, especially those along Av. Montaigne, are much better for window shopping) Expect a queue at most luxury brands off Japanese and Chinese customers though.

Between the two biggest department stores, Galeries Lafayette and Printemps, I prefer Printemps. Printemps has better layout, more brands (Goyard as an example), and is generally less crowded. The only problem is the toilet is not free, which is stupid on Printemps part. Moreover, tourists can register online to get extra 10% off on most merchandise.

Food

All the cafes, bakeries, even McDonald I have tried are very good. Everything sounds delicious in French... 

Never a fan of macaroon. I've tried Laduree, Pierre Herme, and many other small shops. None has impressed me. Macaroons to me are too sweet with too much faked poshness.

While others bring home Laduree from the trip, I always pay my last visit to Carrefour to stuff my suitcase with LU's Petit Beurre. This version of butter and salt is not widely available, but most Carrefour City stores have it. It's the perfect amount of butter and salt, resulting in the most delicious texture and layers of flavors. Any cook, even non-cook like me, knows what a heaven,y combination it is of salt and butter.

Mondelez, please bring this biscuit to the US market!

I did go to several attractions for the N'th time: spending a whole afternoon and evening inside the Louvre (several visits are far from enough for the huge collection), celebrating the 850th anniversary of Notre Dame, and walking along the Pont des Arts simply because it appeared in a recent movie Now You See Me.

Why would anyone use combination lock? Doesn't that defeat the purpose of eternally locking down love for each other? Or those couples really believe you should be free to fall in as we'll as fall out of love? LOL

One more discovery: could you recognize Notre Dame from the back?