As we planned our courageous journey to Iceland, all of us were anxious. The fear of having less food, sleep, cold and what the nature would hold for us in the four days that we set out to explore this country. We – Papa(Mahesh), Gubbal Peachie(Praveen), Chini(Chinmay), Baby Paws(Shreya), Nehaaa(Chhota Don), and me Rucha set out for a daunting adventure to one of the most scarcely inhabited and nature-rich places in the world. Due credits to Mahesh Prasad and Shreya Patwardhan for everthing.  I am really very thrilled to tell that the magic levels in this panoramic region are beyond expectations. Natural beauty is a legacy here. Nordic progressive culture and the Viking history is inevitable. A very scarcely populated, silent island located in the mid-Atlantic Ocean marooned away from the world. Nature weaves out a symphony of sorts with ever changing weather and erratic fluctuations, the finely cut glaciers and panoramic landscapes, the geysers that usher in a gush of revelations, mountains that reach the zenith of the skies, anything and everything that you see here will make your eyes remain transfixed at a location as you take in the breathtaking scenes of gushing waterfalls and aquamarine blue kaleidoscopic lake views. Each breath of fresh air, is crisp and clean with not one single mosquito to be seen anywhere. Daylight never ends in the summers and the skies shone bright when those radiant rays hit you in that shivering cold. The most preferred thing to do here was a quiet night of camping at Vik and a long drive to the Blue Lagoon and Tectonic plates.

More or less we followed the same itinerary, excluding two or three places which we fell in love, so we wanted to stay longer, therefore some specific locations we shifted to the last day on our comeback journey to Vik.

Iceland Itinerary – Thanks to a solid research by Mahesh Prasad – upcoming Eins Boy and physics genius and Baby Paws Shreya Patwardhan.

Day 1 – Take a flight from Amsterdam Airport to Reykjavik city ( Keflavik International Airport ) at night preferably which will last for 3.5 hours

Day 2 – Rest till late morning after you reach (preferably rent a car in Iceland, as roads are fantastic and driving is easy due to minimal traffic)

Get set with your car, fuel, rented stuff (if you are camping) , finances and plan your food expenses for the whole trip on the same day as Iceland is costly. Head to Vik from Reykjavik and visit Reykjadalur on the way.

Hike from Reykjadalur to Hverageroi to experience a dip in natural hot water from the glaciers. In those ice cold glaciers, warm waters are sigh of relief.

Drive to Seljalandsfoss – the most splendid waterfall in Iceland. Here you get a glimpse of hidden caves behind the rocks, as you walk inside through a canyon to experience a heart-warming view.

Drive to Skogafoss and Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach in Vik. (be careful as the winds howl and managing your hoodies is a crazy affair, only the lion-hearted can go inside the sea in those ice-cold waters. We were shivering from top to toe. Rains enslave you and you are at the winds command. (we shifted this location to the last day due to time constraints). It is said to be the prettiest black sand beach in Iceland.

Stay till late to watch the sunset if the place pleases you and the winds surprise you.

Drive to the camping site at Vik in Klettsvegur.

Next best thing on the planet – campfire and Maggi!! 🙂

Sleep in the tent in your warm sleeping bags for a refreshing morning.

Day  3 – Breakfast and Blah Blah (I mean shit, toilet, bath, cleaning, brushing, gargles etc etc.)

Drive to Fjadrargljufur Canyon. Majestic canyons again with turquoise waters, lush green meadows spread till the eye could see and many carved rock formations. The hike is steep and little bit dangerous. Gravel roads take you to the peak and viola!..there is place downstairs for your parking too. The views are different every year, they say, and many waterfalls welcome you along the way.

Drive to Skaftafell and Lunch.

Next in line is the Glacial Lagoon called Fjallsarlon, heading slowly towards Jokulsarlon where huge chunks of iceberg floating in water atleast made me go yelling downhill on the top of my voice. Blue is the word. This place is blue and nothing else. Intricate ice patterns formed on top of the sea, shining in radiant turquoise shades. A boat ride here will cost around 58 euros. We even saw ducks swimming in the cold water…. huhuhuhu…shivers!!..This was the place of Rang de dua hai Gerua (if you are a SRK fan, spread your arms and sing!)

Back to Vik – yay!… camping camping camping 🙂

Day 4 – Same routine morning chores and set off.

Drive to Crater Lake – Crater Lake was a deep, downhill lake which was created due to volcanic activity in the hills. It is very much like the Colosseum in Rome only downhill and smaller.

Drive to Gullfoss – Two Waterfalls at one go! Got drenched 🙂

Lunch time – Pet Puja

Next halt at Strokkur Geyser – Where geothermal energy is so live that boiling water erupts from the surface of the earth and makes you run for your lives (just a little bit), it smells of strong sulphur and is the best cure for skin diseases and muscle aches. Every 5 minutes a huge gush of water made sudden revelations about its power.

Going on, journey continues to Pingvellir National Park – TECTONIC PLATES from North America and Eurasia where two continents are technically separated. There is a drift that takes place near a waterfall. You have a chance for scuba diving and snorkeling in these areas where these plates are drifting apart and deep depths of water pass through them. School geography learnt and practically seen. The best part that I enjoy about travel and anything new I see is that if I have learnt or read about the same in school, it is so exciting to see everything and those childhood pictures in real.

Drive to return your things, like a Lannister always pays off his debts (Game of Thrones), we always return our things on time, Lol!

Drive to Keflavik Airport, say good bye to car (and with this I say a vote of thanks to Praveen and Chinmay for driving us along the whole of this trip and keeping us safe, may the Seven be with us(Game of Thrones), say good bye to Iceland (make sure you wave from the aeroplane too) and take off… ofcourse the pilot will do the honours as we go into deep slumber!

To conclude, Iceland was this in a nutshell – When you decide to visit a country sparsely populated, fear is how you will make through the journey, but Iceland opened arms with breathtaking panoramic views, hidden waterfalls that were gigantic in their approach, huge lagoons of aquamarine blue ice, crisp and fresh air each day, erratic yet challenging weather, unending roads that opened views to heart-warming landscapes, and those dreamy mists that we could not take our eyes off. Nature in its rugged and purest form showed us the raw and divine magic it created.

Until the next time.

Rucha Sudhir Khot