Roadtrip to Vik

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Iceland is like an amusement park, by which I mean, it's just one exhilaration after another. Unlike many places where the tourist destinations end up disappointing you, or are so mobbed with people that it takes all the magic away, Iceland's sights can't disappoint, and their majesty cannot be lessened even by crowds of tour buses. On our final full day, we drove all the way to Vik, stopping at several cool places along the way.

Our first stop was a friendly bakery in Hverdagerdi (forgive me, but I don't want to stop to insert the Ð all the time or the Þ). Then we drove all the way to the Saga Centre, where I was in heaven, remembering the story of Njal's Saga. On the way, I read the first section of Njal's Saga out loud to my family, and was excited that K. was asking to hear more and more of it. We only got to the killing of Hallgerd's first husband before we arrived. At the Saga Centre in Hvollsvollur, there is a small museum dedicated to Njal's Saga. They have a dress-up area for kids, and then they bring the saga - and the viking age - to life. Much of the museum is about the conversion to Christianity, because that happened at the same time as the Njal's Saga, and in fact, Njal represents Christianity while Gunnar represents paganism, the two values conflicting and yet co-existing for a time. I don't think I realized how powerful the story was until now. in college, I may have been too young and inexperienced to appreciate it. K enjoyed playing with the wooden swords and shields.

Next we visited two amazing and very different waterfalls. Seljalandsfoss is the tall waterfall that you can walk behind. It's a pretty slippery and muddy hike, not for small children, so we took turns. While I was inside the waterfall, getting soaked, a huge rainstorm broke out and soaked everyone else. I was so glad I had purchased the hardcore Icelandic raincoat at the Geysir store the day before, not to mention the hand-knit woolen cap. Given the appropriate clothes, I didn't mind the rain. The glory of the waterfall, both in front and behind, more than made up for being soaked. My son said that it looked like Lord of the Rings there. Then we visited Skogafoss. This waterfall will make you feel the power of water, of earth. It thunders down the side of a cliff, and hits the ground with such force that it blows water droplets for many meters. You can walk towards it, getting soaked, and you can hardly hear your own voice, or see in front of your face, and feel its power. Alternatively, you can walk the 26 flights of stairs to the top and peer down from above, which is not recommended for those with fear of heights (like me!).

Our next stop was Dyrhoaley (SP?), a rocky cliff outcropping near Vik. The rock formations are strange, and the water is continually carving out new formations as it crashes. You can walk on the windswept black pebble beach, or up on the rock outcroppings, with the strange formations (lava?). If you have small children, like me, you'll want to hold their hand! It was so windy and it would almost be unpleasant if not for the amazing views. I can only imagine how lovely it would be on a sunny day, only the weather we had gave us spectacular skies for our photos.

We ended our road trip in Vik, had amazing burgers at the Halldorskaffi (a coffee shop in Vik with great burgers and cakes too), and then drove all the way back to Reykjavik, our appetite whetted to return to Iceland some day and travel around the entire ring road.

We were seemingly the only people in Iceland without rain pants, but I do not see the need for them. I was wearing some quick-drying "Chataranga" yoga pants from Athleta, and although I got wet, they dried quickly. The uniform of travellers here is quite practical. It's convertible travel pants, rain pants, or yoga tights, topped with a fleece or Icelandic sweater, raincoat, and a cap. Most people were wearing hiking boots or trailrunners. No need to worry about fashion, even in Reykjavik itself, where you'll still blend in with the rest of the tourists anyway.

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