That's about all the German you will pry out of me (although I did also figure out "Englisch Speisekarte bitte!" pretty quickly) currently, although I have taken up trying to learn a little bit of the language as I realized how inadequate I am when I can barely speak fluent english and everyone in Iceland and Germany spoke at least two languages. I do now understand how some people can spend their entire life planning to travel the world, there is so much out there.
I admit I had considered not writing this and posting it, as not so long ago I decided the new format of the blog would be less about "me" and more about reviews and how to's. That said, it's still my blog and I'm allowed to change my mind back and forth as I see fit, and beyond that I've been gone so long I had some pictures and stories to share from the trip, and I also didn't have a review or how-to put together that would be out before Christmas, so I figured what the hell.
Travel
It might be a surprise, but not only had I never left the country before this trip, but I had also never been on an airplane or a "large" boat before... so we were going to be checking quite a few things off the list in very short order.
My wife's aunt and uncle had generously paid for the majority of our trip as our belated wedding present, and we were fortunate that both of them are experienced travelers (my wife also has some expeditions under her belt, so really only I was out of my element.) and could give me some easy guidance on some pitfalls to try to avoid.
We were going to be gone a total of two weeks, considering we took one extra day off work to drive up to Maryland and stay a night with her Aunt/Uncle. We were scheduled to leave at 7:30 from Dulles airport. Our package included one (50lb) checked back and a carry on bag each. After doing some research online I quickly realized that we would have trouble bringing back any souvenirs from Germany if we both packed a loaded check bag, so I figured I'd see if I could go as spartan as possible and pack everything essential to me in my carry on.
I chose the Timbuk2 Wander pack as my carry on bag. It basically pushes the boundary of the carry on pack, but it does fit, and although this isn't a full on review of the pack, let me just say it was easily one of the best bits of money I've ever spent. Plenty of extra pockets and dividers to keep things tidy, and it doubled as both duffle and backpack being pretty good at both.
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| Damn good bag |
Now the hard part, fitting that bag with enough stuff to survive two weeks in varying temperatures from holy sh*t cold to comfortable. In this I did a pretty good job in retrospect, a great job considering it was my first time... but not a perfect job. My list ended up like this.
- 1 Pair weatherproof Sperry boots (great choice, worn not packed)
- 1 North Face hoodie (for lounging/layering, worn not packed)
- 1 Travelers Jacket (lightweight, tons of pockets, worn not packed)
- 1 18oz Denim Jeans (worn not packed)
- 1 Baseball cap (to make sure I looked American, worn not packed)
- 2 "Puffer" jackets (the kind you can roll up and save space, packed)
- 1 Pair of thermal base layers (ls shirt and pants, packed)
- 5 Pair boxer briefs (Lightweight fast dry so I could wash them in bathroom sink if necessary - which it was, 1 on, 4 packed)
- 5 Pair socks (2 wool, 2 lightweight, 1 sport, again some that could be quick washed, 1 on 4 packed)
- 1 Pair winter lined Levi's jeans (packed)
- 1 Pair North Face wind proof pants (packed)
- 1 Pair Converse high tops (packed, pointless never worn)
- 5 T-shirts (1 on, 4 packed)
- 2 Button up lightweight shirts for any fancy situation (packed, should have been 1)
- 1 Long sleeve sweater (packed)
- 1 Toboggan (packed)
- 1 Scarf (packed)
- 1 Pair of wind proof (cycling) gloves (packed)
On top of that I also had my toiletry bag (primarily my contact lenses and glasses) and a portable charger brick (along with a power outlet converter) all fit neatly into my Timbuk2 bag.
In my checked bag I had my Ski jacket (too big for the check bag, didn't want to wear) and water bottle (should have emptied and hooked to my carry on bag) and just because we had a little extra space, I also packed my hand burr grinder and Aeropress so I could get a cup of coffee in most any situation (priorities) while still leaving us with a fair amount of extra space to fill up with anything we bought.
On Monday morning we drove up to Maryland, around an 8 hour drive from the house. We arrived in the early afternoon and spent the rest of the day with my wife's family. The next day we killed time in Maryland (and bought my wife a different check bag, as she felt her's wasn't big enough) and really just waited for time to head to Dulles.
Worried about all the checks/getting there on time/delays/horror stories, we arrived around 5:30, and reasonably quickly made our way through all of the hoops that you have to jump through to clear TSA. It actually went by pretty smoothly, other than the fact that I foolishly left my passport in my pocket as I stepped through the scanner. That got me a good feeling up (and without even a drink) but I understand it was my blunder and take it all in stride. First new experience under my belt!
As we've got some time to kill, I explore some of the duty free stores and keep looking out the windows at the different jets. Damn, there are some massive planes out there. Of course, when a dinky little 757 with "Icelandair" written on it pulls up in our gate, my disappointment is palpable. First flight on plane that has been in service longer than I've been alive, check.
My first takeoff was kind of underwhelming really. I kind of expected slightly more "oh shiiiiiit" but I guess they design them to kind of take that element out of it. Unfortunately it was pitch dark, so other than some of the lights of DC there really wasn't much to see. Our plane had onboard entertainment in each headrest, and my wife and I managed to make our way through "Wonder Woman" (yawn) and a couple of educational Iceland videos before Reykjavik was in sight. One smooth landing and a seemingly timeless wait to step off the plane and we were finally in Iceland.
Customs met us and again I had only the slightest problem (take your hat off!) before we were given our stamp. We head for the front door of the airport, where we'll take a bus to the rental car service. Only a few more feet until I take my true first step in a new country! We push open the doors and...
... Fuuuuuuuuuuuu!!!!!
It's cold. Not just cold, but holy crap cold. My hoodie and light jacket are absolutely laughably inefficient at protecting me from the wind. That walk down the sidewalk toward the bus pick up, and the wait for said bus, might be the coldest I've ever been in my entire life. It's about this time, going on 20 hours with no sleep and no food since a bag of chips at Dulles, that I think, perhaps this traveling stuff isn't for me.
The bus mercifully arrives and shuttles us to the rental car street. After a brief discussion with the man behind the desk (and assuring him we have no plans of going out into the wilderness) we are given the keys to a "nice" SsangYong XLV (which a quick google search will reveal is the 4th largest auto company in South Korea) which is basically the same as any small SUV you'd rent, with the slight exception that it's 4x4 and diesel, which are both sort of requirements in Iceland. Unexciting in the grand scheme of vehicles you could be driving in Iceland (Do a quick google search for Iceland Super Jeeps) but since we were planning to stick to the roads, it'd do.
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| There are no rap songs about SsangYongs that I know of, although it'd be fun to try to rhyme. |
The drive to our rental was fairly unexciting, it's dark (it's dark a lot in Iceland during the winter) and it was windy, with random bouts of fairly heavy snow, so it was tough to get too good of a grasp on the landscape... other than the ice. Did I mention it was cold?
We arrive in the small town (I won't even try to butcher it's name) where we had rented a condo, in an area brimming with... greenhouses... weird. All of that thermal heat is actually pretty good for growing plants it turns out, so long as you protect it from the biting cold. Our place is pretty nice really, the kind of place you wouldn't mind calling home, if you planned to never leave your home 6 months every year. The floors were heated (again, thanks nature!) which was a welcome relief, with nice, inviting beds. I love sleep all the time, but I REALLY wanted nothing more than to curl up in like 6 layers of clothing and sleep 12 hours, hoping that when I awoke the biting cold would be gone. Unfortunately, the rest of my crew outvoted me, suggesting that it would be best to suck up the jet lag right now and suffer through than it would be to sleep the day away now and try to adjust later. Sigh.
To thy own self be true... I'm a bit grumpy the next day if I don't get my 8 hours. Take a full 24 hours away from me, and I'm a truly miserable human being to be around. Then add to that I'm hungry and probably the coldest I've ever been for the longest stretch and you'll see why my wife especially is a true saint for not leaving me stranded somewhere in Iceland...
We drive back to Reykjavik to explore the town, and even in my grumpy mood I had to admit, it was a very cool place. The Chuck Norris bar and the Big Lebowski themed bar are interesting sights if you're into goofy pop culture references (I am) and the rest of the town does a good job of being a modern "big" city while still not letting you forget where you are.
We look for a place to eat, and while I was outvoted on whether to get some sleep or not I was adamant that I would not suffer the indignity of my first meal in Iceland being from the equivalent of an Ol' Charleys. Off on one side road I see a three story house converted into a restaurant... LOKI's. Alright, it's got the draw, and it's not flashy enough to make me think it's just a gimmick, so with my half muddled logic of "It's got to be good, look at it!" we cautiously embark on our first culinary adventure.
Let me tell you, this place kicked some serious @ss! While the "meat soup" I ordered sounded pretty adventurous, I'd be hard pressed to pick it out of a blind taste test with Campbell's Vegetable Beef. At the time, that was exactly what the doctor ordered though... the first bit of warmth I'd felt in half a day. The rest of the food was outstanding (lamb and rye is what I got, while my wife tried the Skyre... a form of yogurt native to Iceland.) and I really wish I had had the foresight to have tried some of the more "adventurous" meals while we were at a place like this, but at the time I was in a mental state where I didn't want to risk getting something I hated.
The ride back to our rental I pitched between consciousness and delirium... Eventually settling into a happy medium. I don't honestly remember much else... a stop at a woefully stocked grocery store with an odd piggy bank mascot, debating which bad coffee grinds to buy (no beans) and finally getting a shower. At this point it was evening again... While my wife quickly slipped away to sleep I decided to catch up on anything I had missed back home and kill another hour or so so that when I finally hit the pillow it would be back on my "normal" sleep schedule. Let me tell you... that is the deepest I think I've ever slept. 10 hours blackout.
The next day, after a couple of cups of coffee, I was back to my old self. Still not loving cold weather, but taking it in spite to appreciate everything else around us. I daresay I crossed the line back to "crotchety" away from "impossible to be around." Our second day was filled with lots of exploring, mostly in the car, but really trying to see as much landscape in Iceland as we could. We checked out frozen waterfalls, black beaches and a large crater! On our way to the national park we also found our way into a white out, which is one of the more harrowing things I've experienced. Snow so hard that you literally can't see the lines on the road or the taillights in front of you any longer is a bit of a shock!
Those final two days in Iceland were pretty awesome. I saw tons of things I really never thought I'd see... and came to really like a place I HATED the first little while I was there (look, I don't like the cold.) We're already planning a return trip (during the summer) to explore more of the island and see what else it has to offer!
Sitting in the airport, ready to head off to Germany for the next part of our adventure, I couldn't help but feel like I was leaving with unfinished business. I came to Iceland with one goal... to try Hakarl, (link to the wiki page, but for the abridged, dried rotten shark) which is an Icelandic tradition. There had been only one opportunity (at Loki's on that first day) which I squandered, and now it seemed I'd never get the chance. As fate would have it, as we were looking in some of the Duty Free stores at the airport, there was a little shop with a cooler in the back. More than anything I just wanted a bottle of water, but I was surprised to find a pack of Hakarl sitting lonely on the shelf! Price be damned, I scooped it up, and despite some incredulous looks from the cashier and a long sigh and eyeroll from my wife, I finally got my Hakarl.
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| Sounds pretty good. It's just shark, right? |
Opening the package quickly cleared out the area next to us, so I was free to try it (and video it, which you can see on my FB page) in peace. I channeled my inner Ultimate Warrior and psyched myself up. Feeling the Shark, it really just seemed like any piece of white fish sashimi. Smelling it was another, less pleasant story. Faintly fishy, but overwhelmingly encompassed with a lingering, pungent hint of ammonia. (That is the nice way of saying it smelled like a neglected urinal) Not to be deterred, even in the face of a four hour flight that I was risking possibly enjoying from the wash closet... down the hatch it went.
Chewy, and certainly not "good" by any stretch of the imagination, but not anywhere near the horror stories I had read on the internet. The ammonia smell lingers in your nostrils, although I didn't really catch any "taste" of it, for the most part... it really was just "meh." The closest thing I can think of to describe it to is when you go to that sketchy sushi joint that has all you can eat sushi, and you get that piece of fish that has probably been sitting out for a little too long... that's what this tastes like. With the smell of pee. So, after describing it and re-reading it, it's not very good.
And with that... we were boarding for Germany...
I think this is a pretty good place to stop for now so that this post doesn't take hours to read. I'll finish up with some pictures I snapped from Iceland! You can also check out my instagram or twitter to see even more pictures. My Facebook also has quite a few video's checking in on some famous sights if you want to head over there.
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| Look, I've played Skyrim, nothing good can come of going in here... except sweet loot! |
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| Inside, no loot unfortunately, but it was pretty cool nonetheless. |
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| A picture taken from the window of our rental. Isn't it...cold looking... |
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| Selfie (hi wife!) in front of the crater. I liked how there were 0 safety precautions taken here... one false step (on ice) and you just plummeted to your doom. Cool. |
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| The crater, sans selfie. You can make out tiny specks in the center... those are people! |
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| I kind of look like a drunken dwarf in this picture in front of the frozen waterfall. |
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| Iceland - go for the views, stay for the shark |
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| Another unbelievable view. Now that's an OWS! |
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| Look, I didn't come to Iceland NOT to eat at sketchy food trucks in the middle of nowhere. Good thing too, because these fish and chips (despite being $15/plate!!!) were awesome! |
Alright, thanks so much for reading! We'll wrap this up next time and then get back to some how-to's (which I've got in the works, arts and crafts time!)
Everyone have a Happy Holiday and be safe!
-Christopher Morelock
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