For those who may not know it, Reykjavik is the capital of Iceland whose name means "Cove of Smoke" due to the geothermal steam that rises from the Earth there. There's always been a story about how Iceland came to have the name it has today, but it's never been verified. Rumor has it that Erik the Great stumbled upon Iceland and Greenland, but to keep others mostly Europeans away from such a tiny paradise, he gave each country their respective names in hopes of luring people to Greenland instead where inhabitable land was scarce. I've tried to find some kind of proof of this legend, but still no success; I guess that in the end, it'll always be one of those stories told by high school teachers to curious students. Reykjavik is considered to be one of the safest cities in the world, but if you do the math, with around 120,000 inhabitants it can't be that dangerous right? Yet I did find something very curious; Iceland as a country has no rail system due to the sparse population of the towns, but the number of vehicles per capita ranks among the highest in the world at 522 vehicles per 1,000 residents. So all is not lost for those of us who come from more car-friendly realms!!! Even though I love backpacking through towns and countries, I guess with visiting Iceland, a four wheeled adventure would replace my usual rails or shoes. Needless to say I've discovered some beautiful treasures that this city and country have to offer.
To enjoy this little chilly island paradise though can get a bit pricey; even up from a year in advance, a round trip airline ticket can run between $1,000-$2,000!! Now if one wants to be more adventurous, there is a cruise ferry that departs from Denmark once a week to Iceland, if you go to their website http://www.smyrilline.com, you can see all the different packages they offer. Just remember one thing, getting to Denmark will be pricey as well. BUT I've done crazier things and if I truly wanted to make this a real adventure, I would probably fly somewhere into you Europe if Denmark was out of financial reach, make it some way to the Danish state and ferry it over to Iceland. As much as I would like to do that though, my pockets would have to run really deep seeing that renting a car once I get to Reykjavik would be a must.
However you decide to get to this curious little town, there are some things that would have to be a must! As a good starting list for the capital, I'd like to offer you two places: the Imagine Peace Tower and the Icelandic Elf School. The Imagine Peace Tower, for all the hippies out there, is a giant beacon of light located on Vioey Island created by Yoko Ono and dedicated to John Lennon in hopes of spreading the message of world peace. The beacon is so bright that it can actually be seen from the capital itself! I know it's not technically within the bounds of Reykjavik, but I thought that this was definitely curious enough to merit a mention. The Icelandic Elf school is also a very curious thing to mention. Although to some of us it may sound crazy, but elvish folklore runs deep in Icelandic culture. This school actually teaches about the 13 different types of elves that inhabit the island along with "hidden people". Now to avoid any confusion, the "hidden people" look just like us except they're invisible, while the elves come more from the humanoid species and start at a miniature 8 centimeters. If this wasn't curious enough, it's also believed that there are gay and lesbian elves; so the rainbow even stretches out into the magical realm. Just for my own curiosities I'd definitely want to check out this school; for those of you who were wondering, yes they do offer a curriculum about these magical characters. I intend on getting my certificate when I go to visit, that can be earned within half a day. Multiple surveys have been done over the years to gauge the Icelanders' belief in elves, and as recently as 2006, 26% of Icelanders believe in them while 80% take notice of such possible beliefs. 80 and 26? Math is a bit quirky, but perhaps magic defies traditional percentages.
I only named these two things because I thought that they seemed to ring out as unusual sites to see, but Reykjavik does also offer quite the healthy nightlife with surprisingly an ample gay population. Alcohol tends to be a bit expensive it's been said, so most people pre-game before leaving their homes. If clubs and bars are not your flavor and architecture and museums don't rank high on your list,
then one thing that will blow your mind will be the sheer natural beauty of the island. Something that perhaps isn't well known about this little rock is that it is a volcanic island, so the vast earth made beauty of the land is a MUST!!! You can see the various fjords, icefalls and volcanoes among others on your trip. I discovered that there are even bike tours that one can take to see the various landscapes the country has to offer. Just remember, if you've got no bike, a car will have to be in your budget; the country is gorgeous but in between point A and B there's a whole lot of space that although beautiful, still needs to be crossed. Vroom vroom!
I know this entry was supposed to focus on the Icelandic capital, but with so many little curiosities I came across and so many possible adventures, I couldn't help but mention other parts of the country. As much as I'd like to do this trip soon, my spontaneous and fiscally irresponsible side would like to come up with a creative way of getting there via the ferry from Denmark; flying direct can be so boring. On the other hand though, it seems like this little frozen yet plush treasure can offer more than enough adventure for two to three weeks.
I'll have to consult the elves for some advice on this one.
No comments:
Post a Comment