Iceland – ticking all the boxes

Following the success of Hayden’s PhD defence, we decided to have a family Christmas “somewhere exotic”. Think warm weather, tropical beaches and swaying palms. No, that is not exotic enough for this bunch.

After much communication and research, the family selected Iceland as an exotic destination. Three hours of sunlight, snow and cold all seemed far more interesting.

So Hayden & Andrea and Evan & Steph joined us at Gatwick airport for the short haul to Iceland. It was cold and dark, as we had expected and it was also exotic. The highlights were

• Learning how to walk on icy roads without slipping over
• Learning how to rug up before heading outside
• Watching the sun rise at 11:30am over a lake surrounded by snow covered mountains
• Touching the ever-expanding tectonic plate between Europe and North America
• Waiting to get the best shot of the spouting Geysir after which all geysers are named
• Walking on a glacier which was showing off the beautiful clear, frozen, compacted snow
• Finding frozen waterfalls
• Walking on a beach on Christmas Day in the snow
• Building a snowman and throwing snow balls on Christmas Day
• Bathing in the hot waters of the Blue Lagoon with snow falling on our heads
• Watching the waving lights of the Aurora Borealis

Eight days is not enough to explore this exotic island, but time enough to have a heap of fun!

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