Home from the Glacier

I'm back after a weekend of adventures! I've now climbed a glacier and I had a great time.

On Saturday we left early afternoon. We were slightly delayed because the bus went to Reykjavik University instead of Iceland University and we had to wait for it to drive across town - typical! Then we had a very long bus ride. Again, in typical Icelandic fashion, the bus driver didn't actually know where we were going and we got lost. I figured something was wrong after we pulled off the side of the road while the driver talked on the phone, and after we turned off the highway onto a rocky dirt path I knew we were in trouble. We spent about two hours on the path before the driver turned around. Eventually we got back on the right road, but we didn't get to do some of the activities that were planned for Saturday. I didn't mind too much because of the magnificent view outside the window - I was content just watching the landscape zip by.

While we were travelling, we had to stop because locals were herding sheep! There was a bunch of people standing around the sheep leading them across fields and streams. I don't get to see this side of Iceland life in Reykjavik, and it was really cool to watch this genuine Icelandic experience.

Eventually we got to Stykkishólmur, a town on the north end of Snæfellsnes peninsula. It wasn't too remarkable, although I found this sentence on the town's Wikipedia page: "Today, the most important employer of the town after the fishing industry is a convent of Catholic nuns." This tells you something about the size of the town.

After that, we had dinner at a lodge in the middle of nowhere (We were almost always in the middle of nowhere on this trip). Then we went to a community centre-type building...except that it wasn't in a town. It had a swimming pool and a big hall. We had a pool party and then slept on the floor of the hall. The air outside was freezing when we were in the pool, and the water wasn't much warmer so we were mostly shivering. Then we went into the big hall where there was music. Everyone was really tired but there was music until 5 am so we were all pretty crabby the next morning.

It was tough to wake up Sunday morning but it turned into a great day. First we went to the hot springs at Deildartunguhver (try to pronounce that without looking!). Then it was a long drive into the interior to the glacier. The glacier was unlike anything else I've seen. Langjokull is the second largest glacier in Iceland. As we got closer, the soil turned to rock and it began snowing. I didn't expect the glacier to be too tall, but it rose out of the horizon like a mountain of ice. We got into a special vehicle - the only one in the world that can drive on glaciers - and drove to the summit of the glacier. As we got higher it began snowing more and soon all I could see was white on every side of the vehicle.

We reached the top of the glacier and got out for a look. I didn't expect it to be that cold but it was freezing! All I could see in the distance was stretches of white. As we were descending the glacier the clouds lifted and suddenly I could see snow-capped mountains surrounding us. The glacier was amazing although apparently some people go camping on Langjokull and I can't imagine ever wanting to - brr!

After that the adventure continued! We went caving at Víðgelmir which is, again, in the middle of nowhere. I've never been inside such a big cave before. We had to put on safety helmets, then climb down some rocks to get inside, where it was pitch black. It was a little creepy when we turned off the lights on our helmets because I could see nothing and I could only hear water dripping from above. According to our guide, the cave is big enough to hold 250 houses. Also, apparently they found evidence that someone lived in the cave 900 years ago - I can't imagine doing that! The land around the cave was, to me, the most beautiful place I went on the trip. It was a vast lava field with no trees - just mountains on all sides. It was just how I imagine Iceland is supposed to look, and I could have sat there for hours just watching the landscape.

It was a long trip back to Reykjavik. We stopped at a waterfall, but at this point everyone was too exhausted to be very enthusiastic. We got back to the university around 7 pm, but it'll take me a couple of days to recover. It was an unforgettable weekend, and I'm happy I was able to see this part of Iceland before winter sets in.

This is just a short update. I've been really busy! I've recovered from the rotten shark trauma and have since then been preoccupied by schoolwork. Today I had my first test (after only two classes!) and three classes. It all went well but I'm glad I don't have to worry about school too much, since I have one class tomorrow before the weekend. For the next two nights, I'll be at Reykjavik's Oktoberfest, and after that I'm going on a trip to a glacier! It should all be a lot of fun.

Also, the mountain Esja across the bay is now blanketed in snow! It's quite a sight, although it's pretty rainy and windy so it's hard to see. A reminder that winter is on its way!

Yesterday I accomplished one of my life goals: Eating rotten shark!

In Iceland, rotten shark (Hákarl) is a delicacy that is famous for being nasty. Hákarl is made by taking a dead shark and burying it in the dirt for 6-12 weeks. Then the shark (or what remains of it) is hung up to dry for a few months. Then it’s all ready to be eaten! If this sounds disgusting, it’s because it is.

I went to the market yesterday with some friends. The market had a stall selling hákarl so we decided to buy some for all of us. We each got a tiny cube, but the smell was overpowering. We went outside so we could eat it in the fresh air, then collectively took a deep breath, and popped the hákarl in our mouths! I just swallowed the rotten shark right away. Going down, it wasn’t so bad, but then the smell of it hit me and this foul smell lingered in my mouth. Some of us weren’t even able to keep it down! Immediately after, I went to wash my hands, but I couldn’t get the smell of rotten shark off my fingers. I had to wash my hands about 6 times before the stench went away for good.

Eating rotten shark is a classic Icelandic experience and I’m glad I was able to do it! Then we walked to Perlan which has great views of the city. The most notable part was this exchange:

American person: Oh, there’s a zoo here! I like zoos. We have one where I live.
Me: Where I live we have a zoo full of monkeys and lions and giraffes and stuff.

Finnish person: In Finland we have a zoo! It has cats and dogs...you can pet them.

Everyone: *crickets*

So now we all want to go to Finland to see the world famous Lahti petting zoo! Anyway, it was a lot of fun and now I can proudly say I ate rotten shark. :)

Just a quick update. Reykjavik had beautiful weather today and it was a welcome change from the typical weather. I've been struggling to understand why the Internet hasn't been working in my room, but today I discovered that the plugs for the phone and the Internet were mixed up -_- Anyway, now I have Internet in my room! Hallelujah!

I went to my first class today at 10:00am, only to discover that it starts next week. Whoops. The other highlight of the day was serving Kraft Dinner to Europeans! I had a guy from England and a guy from Finland over for dinner and I cooked up this classic Canadian dish. They seemed to enjoy it and for me it was a nice taste of home. I'm glad I was able to share something from Canada with people here. Next up: poutine!

I don't really have anything new to say, but this weekend I watched a movie about a show that a bunch of local bands put on in Reykjavik. There was a wider variety of music than I expected, and it showed me how everyone in Iceland seems to know one another somehow. It really is a small place.
Anyway, here's a song from the movie.

School starts this week! As nice as it would be to pretend I'm on vacation for a year, I am gonna have to do some work. I'm not really sure what classes I'm in because the university's website isn't very helpful, but I think I know what classes to show up to this week. It looks like I'll be taking three politics classes, plus one Icelandic class. Seems pretty good to me. The challenge now is finding where the classrooms are!

Yesterday I went for an adventure with some people I met on Friday. We walked to the Grótta lighthouse on a cape west of Reykjavik. It turned out to be a pretty long walk (almost two hours), but it was a really nice spot, and the weather was fantastic yesterday by Icelandic standards. When we decided to leave the cape, we saw that the path we had taken to get there was almost completely submerged under water! Apparently the tide was coming in and we hadn't noticed. We escaped by jumping from rock to rock and made it safely to the mainland. After that we wandered downtown for some pizza and drinks. It was an excellent day. I'm looking forward to more adventures!

The lighthouse (the path to the cape was completely under water when we left)

Some pools at the shore.

Some Pictures

Here's a few of my favourite shots. Iceland is so beautiful, I can't help but take pictures all the time!