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Iceland Travel Blogs

Settled by Norwegian and Celtic immigrants during the late 9th and 10th centuries A.D., Iceland boasts the world's oldest functioning legislative assembly, the Althing, established in 930. Independent for over 300 years, Iceland was subsequently ruled by Norway, then Denmark, achieving full independence in 1944.

Iceland experiences a rather mild climate for a country on such a northern latitude, yet weather patterns are known to be volatile, conditions changing frequently. During the summer months, Iceland never reaches full darkness, and in northern areas a Midnight Sun can be seen. Iceland's stunning landscape provides areas of geothermal activity, mountains, waterfalls and glaciers. It's cities although small, provide both a taste of traditional culture and the chance to experience the Icelandic way of life.

Highlights

• Gullfoss (The Golden Falls)
• The Jökulsár Lagoon
• Dettifoss
• Vestmannaeyjar
• The Culture House museum - holding a large collection of medieval manuscripts.
• The Blue Lagoon
• Reykjavík

Tips and Hints

Best to travel in the summer months - winter offers near permanent darkness and freezing weather conditions.

Iceland

Hostels in Iceland
Latest Iceland Blog Entries
Iceland Photos

By Edas
September 3rd 2008

Hveragerði miestelis. Arba ir zeme gali virti Europe » Iceland » South

Siandien aplankiau visiskai salia Selfoss esanti miesteli. Ten ruošiausi jau seniai, bet vis darbas arba oras sukliudydavo mano planams. Su kuo teko kalbėti apie si miesteli, dauguma sakydavo, kad ten visiškai nera ka veikti, jis maas, neidomus ir šiaip visisapusiskai nepatrauklus. Keista, nes galiu pasakyti visiškai kitaip. Man jis pasirode daug jaukesnis ir grazenis uz Selfoss, jauciasi gamta, visiškai salia grazus kalnai, gatvėse pilna medziu, teka upe ir yra netgi nedidelis krioklys. Kazkodel net susiejau mintyse si miesciuksti su sekmadienine šeimos idile :) O visas miestelio „cinusas“ yra karštosiose versmėse (angl. „hot spring“, isl. „hver“). Net ir miesto pavadinimas siejamas su [View Full Entry]

By AnnaAdventuring
August 24th 2008

Farewell Iceland Europe » Iceland » Southwest » Reykjavík

Scenes from Iceland's history

We woke up this morning fully recovered, well, more or less, from our whale watching expedition. Our flight wasn't until much later in the day so there was still time to do some sightseeing in the morning. We decided to head for somthing that was warm and dry and firmly on solid ground so we set off for the Saga Museum in the Perlan. The walk there proved to be interesting. We walked along the main road and couldn't quite believe how completely empty it was. A main road in a capital city and there was no-one in sight. After about [View Full Entry]

By NigWar
August 24th 2008

Iceland Complete Europe » Iceland

Iceland Complete Tour, Day 1 - 13th August 2008. We were heading to Europe for the trip of a lifetime on a Riverboat, little did we know that the fill in visit to Iceland would turn out to be probably the best holiday that we had ever had. No better way to start it than to travel on this new A380. Luxury and we didn’t realise just how comfortable and quiet it was until we later transferred to another plane. This is the cabin upstairs, must be about the most comfortable economy seating there is with an entertainment system that [View Full Entry]

By JintysJourneys
August 23rd 2008

A whistle stop tour of the capital to whale watching in rough seas! Europe » Iceland » Southwest » Reykjavík

Cathedral in the capital

Our second to last day saw us returning to the capital. Yes it still looked as grey as ever. We drove under the Hvalfjordur tunnel to get there. Due to the Iceland marathon being on we only had a very short tour of the town which meant basically a quick look at the cathedral and a very quick tour of the 'Perlan.' After a quiet afternoon sorting out we went out the the harbour for our great 'whale watching adventure.' Now I don't like boats. I'm OK in my own canoe but put me in anything larger than that and my [View Full Entry]

The cathedral under scaffolding or course!

By AnnaAdventuring
August 23rd 2008

Return to Reykjavík Europe » Iceland » Southwest » Reykjavík

View of Reykjavík.

We came full circle today as we travelled back to Reykjavík. The city was silent as we arrived. The marathon was on so presumably all the locals were gathered along certian streets. We had a whistle stop tour of the world's most northerly capital. Established by the Norse chieftan Ingolfur Amarson in around 874 CE the real development of Reykjavík began in the late 18th century. It currently has a population of about 120,000 with more than 200,000 living in the Greater Reykjavík Area. Reykjavík is also unusual in that most of the homes and businesses are heated by natural geothermal [View Full Entry]

By Katm1987
August 23rd 2008

Land of Ice and Fire Europe » Iceland » Southwest » Reykjavík

Leifr Eiricsson

Finally arrived full circle in Reykjavik, the least icy and least firey place in Iceland, having travelled the entire way around the coast of Iceland. I'm ashamed to say it was a huge relief to see civilisation again! However stunning the Icelandic countryside is (and it really is!) it's slightly unnerving to be able to go all day without seeing another living soul and nothing but vast expanses of nothingness. Reykjavik didn't seem as pleased as we were to see it and decided to be as grey and overcast as every other day had been so far. The town was also [View Full Entry]

By JintysJourneys
August 22nd 2008

A tranquil paradise in Akureyri and a journey across the north. Europe » Iceland » North » Akureyri

Switzerland or northern Iceland?

Today was a big change from the landscapes of the past few days. We drove westward towards the northern town of Akuryri. This was a place where I could actually consider living. It lay near the bottom of the long fjord of Eyjafjordur. The mountains gave the impression of being in Switzerland and everything was a lot greener. This town is the capital of the north and an important centre for services, culture and commerce. Around 17,000 people live here and there was a warm atmosphere to the place, unlike the greyness of the capital. (Maybe I just don't like cities) [View Full Entry]

By AnnaAdventuring
August 22nd 2008

Out of the Wilderness Europe » Iceland » North » Akureyri

View of Akureyrí.

We left our lovely hotel in Myvatn and continued on to Akureyrí. The Norse Viking Helgi magri (the slim) Eyvindarson originally settled the area in the 9th century. The first mention of Akureyrí dates back to 1562 when a woman was sentenced there for adultery! Permanent settlement at Akureyrí started in 1778 and the town was granted its municipal charter by the king of Denmark (and at the time Iceland as well) eight years later in 1786 along with five other towns in Iceland. The king hoped to improve the living conditions of Icelanders by this action because at the time, [View Full Entry]

Akureyrarkirkja (The Church of Akureyrí)

By Katm1987
August 22nd 2008

In an Icelandic Country Garden Europe » Iceland » North » Akureyri

Lake at Akureyri

Started the day bright and early with a visit to Akureyrí. Stopped for gorgeous photos over the town and lake (see panorama) before continuing onto the town itself. Akureyrí is the fourth biggest city of Iceland and the only metropolis outside Greater Reykjavík. The ”Capital of the North”, as it is often called, is the administration and service centre of Northern Iceland. Although only around 15.000 people live here, it offers an infrastructure that probably cannot be found in a City in Central Europe of similar size. It's truly unbelievable that a town that size can even be termed a city [View Full Entry]

By J and M
August 22nd 2008

Reykjavik Europe » Iceland » Southwest » Reykjavík

Here we are!! The last leg of our journey in Iceland. I´ll get to that in a bit. First thigns first. Scotland. We got up a bit to 7am on Wednesday morning and got ready to leave on the train headed for Edinburgh. It was all going so well. We made perfect time acturally. 45 minutes into the train ride we are asked to get off to due to the lack of air conditioning and loss of power in the resturant. Our option was to get on the 10 45 am train to Edinburgh which was the train that Blair [View Full Entry]

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Iceland Travel Blogs, page 14

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