The Amazing South Coast of Iceland

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With a lot of ground to cover on the road today, I was hoping that we would get an early start. However, the desire to sleep in coupled with traveling with 2 women guaranteed that this would not happen. We checked out of the hotel around 10:00 and drove south towards the Kevlavik airport in order to visit Iceland's top attraction. The Blue Lagoon is a geothermal spa located in a lava field. Runoff water from a nearby geothermal power plant feeds the lagoon and the turquoise waters surrounded by volcanic rock makes for a very surreal contrast.

The Blue Lagoon is literally in the middle of nowhere. Surrounded by moss covered lava fields and volcanic rocks, if I didn't know any better I would have sworn I was on the moon. Entrance into the Blue Lagoon was pretty steep. I paid the equivalent of $60 and all this got me was entrance, a towel, and a robe. The girls decided to also have themselves a massage at about an extra $30. With their massage appointment at 1:15, we had 2 hours to enjoy swimming around in the therapeutic waters. We were each given a bracelet which allowed you to open/close your locker, as well as buy drinks and snacks at the cafeteria and swim up bar. In the locker room, you are required to shower before entering the Blue Lagoon and many people seemed to have no problem walking around fully nude in front of everybody. However, for the more self-conscious like myself there were individual stalls where you could shower in relative privacy. The therapeutic waters are rich in minerals like silica and are well known for their curative properties in helping with skin ailments. Stepping into the water, it wasn't as warm as I had imagined. Still, the water's temperatures were probably close to 100 degrees Fahrenheit. There were even some areas where the water was much warmer. We swam around enjoying the warm waters and located the silica mud. There were a few boxes placed around the lagoon filled with this silica mud and along with everyone else, we put on our mud masks which is supposed to be really good for the skin. We spent the next 2 hours just swimming around and standing underneath the waterfall in order to have our necks and backs massaged by the falling water. However, it got to a point where we were just ready to go but we had to wait for the girl's massage appointments. While the girls were having their massages, I was really wishing that I had set one up for myself as well. The massage they were given was in the water and everyone was looking really relaxed. The lagoon was a great thing to experience but if I ever return to Iceland, it probably would not be a priority to re-visit. Swimming around in the Blue Lagoon left my skin really dry and our hair really rough and course. It took a few days for our hair to get back to normal and I have yet to see any difference in the state of my skin.

We left the Blue Lagoon and set out for the long drive into the south of Iceland. Not wanting to go back towards Reykjavik, we drove along the rugged and nearly empty south coast along Road 427. We drove much of this route with hardly any other vehicle sharing the road with us. Parts of the road weren't even paved and I just hoped and prayed that our vehicle didn't break down here. Despite the isolation, the drive was a great glimpse into the emptiness that can be found throughout much of Iceland. We arrived in the town of Selfoss where we had a late lunch at KFC and had our first experience pumping gas at a gas station. In Selfoss, we caught Road 1 which is the Ring Road that circumnavigates around the island. Continuing our drive further into the countryside, we had our first glimpse of a volcano in the distance. The mountain's conical shape immediately identified itself to me as a volcano. I didn't know at the time but it turned out to be Hekla, Iceland's most famoust and most active volcano. The south coast is Iceland's wettest region and the weather began to turn. It was nothing intense but the great weather we had been experiencing had turned to cloudy skies with sporadic drizzle. As we continued further down Route 1, suddenly we see one of Iceland's most photogenic of waterfalls, Seljlandsfoss. What this waterfall lacks in shear force and power, it seems to make up with it's gracefulness as it softly plummets down 200 feet. A very visitor friendly waterfall, there was no need to hike in order to have a great view of it as the view from the parking lot was enough to satisfy many who stopped. However, a view from the parking lot was not enough to satisfy us and we chose to get a closer look. As we got closer, we discovered that there was a trail that lead behind the waterfall. Thankfully, Vita was prepared. We went back to the car and dug out the plastic ponchos that she had brought just for an occassion like this. The mist from the falls was pretty intense that we would be soaked without these ponchos. Once behind the waterfall, it was very wet and easy to lose one's footing. Even if we didn't have these ponchos, I still would have done this quick hike. How many times would I be able to say that I hiked behind a waterfall.

From Seljlandsfoss, we continued our drive down Route 1. The wetter weather here was clearly evident with the verdant fields of grass and all the lush fields of wildflowers. This prompted us to pull over on the side of the road a few times just to soak it all in. It was a relatively quick drive before we arrived at another of Iceland's well known waterfalls, Skogafoss. We pulled into the parking lot and just like Seljlandsfoss, the parking lot offered great views of the falls without having to hike. I thought that these falls were much more visually appealing than Seljlandsfoss. However, since we just visited a waterfall, our interest in this waterfall was not as great as the interest this waterfall deserves. We were content with taking a few photos and walking as close as possible without getting sprayed by the mist. There was a trail that leads up to the top of the falls. Ordinarily, I probably would have hiked to the top to get a different perspective but my interest just wasn't there. We only stopped here for a quick 20 minutes before we were back on the road.

After Selfoss, it was a quick drive to the small town of Vik. Our plan was to spend a little time exploring this charming little town. However, the rain had started to increase in strength and it was getting a little late in the evening. We decided to keep driving past Vik and visit it on the drive back tomorrow. Our destination was Hostel Hvoll which was literally in the middle of the nowhere. After the small town of Kirkjubaejarklaustur, with literally no other buildings for miles, the hostel was about a mile down a gravel road off of Route 1. For being in the middle of nowhere, there were surprisingly a large number of vehicles parked in the parking lot. We checked in and settled into our rooms when we realized that we had nothing to eat and there was no place in the vicinity to go to. Everyone in the hostel had brought their own provisions and were quietly cooking and eating their meals in the communal kitchen. It was almost 8:30pm and we needed to decide whether to drive somewhere or just eat the small snacks we had packed in our bags. We decided to drive back to the town of Kirkjubaejarklaustur to see if there were any small restaurants or grocery stores still open. It was probably a 20 minute drive until we got into the town and we were just hoping any places serving food didn't close at 9:00pm. Luckily, we spotted a place called Horgsland, a group of 13 cabins that included a restaurant. When we saw the sign that said restaurant, we immediately pulled in. We walked in and to my complete shock, I heard people speaking in Filipino. In case they stopped serving food for the night, I was prepared to use my "filipino" card for sympathy. Thankfully, they were still serving food and I didn't have to play the "filipino" card. Who knew that in the middle of nowhere in Iceland, I would still run into my fellow Filipinos! If I had only known about this place, I would have booked our night's stay here. It was cheaper than our stay at the hostel. The cabins seemed very cozy and it was in a beautiful location just off Route 1 and at the base of some craggy mountains. After filling our stomachs with food, we went back to the hostel and called it a night after a long day of driving.

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