The Land of Fire and Ice
The Planning
Why Iceland?
Iceland was our dream destination. But we thought it was one of those trips you take once you retire and you have enough money to indulge in things you used to just fantasize about. But then a seat sale came along and we started learning more options. We realized it was possible to turn this dream into a reality much sooner than we expected.
Our road trip around Iceland felt like we were driving around the world. In the span of 10 days, we experienced different seasons just by following the Ring Road. One day, we drove into autumn and then experienced winter a day after. That’s how Iceland is, ever-changing, unpredictable but spectacular. We left Iceland with a vow to return and we hope that with this guide, we could help you create your own life-changing adventure.
The Ring Road
There’s no better way to explore the Land of Fire and Ice than renting your own vehicle and going around the Ring Road. Unfortunately, it is also the most expensive mode of transport. There are more affordable options such as joining a bus tour but we prefer setting our own pace. The Ring Road wraps around the island in a circular fashion and is often the recommended route for travelers who are getting to know Iceland for the first time.
According to Lonely Planet, if you were to drive the Ring Road without stopping, it will take you around 16 hours during the warmer months. A week-long trip would mean an average of 2 1/2 hours of driving per day. It may seem like a stretch but the route is scenic. And when you have your own car, you don’t have to go to every landmark. You can take your time, take detours on secondary roads, and allow yourself to get to know the place much deeper. (You can do the same when you’re in a bus, it’s just a matter of perspective really.)
Experts say you should choose at least 5 mini-bases to break up your journey. You can choose one stop in each of the regions in which the Ring Road passes through: west, north, east, southeast, and southwest. Having at least 8-10 days will help you cover enough ground. We’re all for surprises but it’s important to plan each day before you leave and then revise it each night depending on the weather conditions, the time you have left and the overall energy of your travel companions.
The Experience
Our group was composed of 7 people, some friends we’ve traveled with before and others we just met. Having more companions meant being able to distribute costs to more people. If you decide to rent your own set of wheels, 5-7 people would be an ideal number.
Each person had a role to play. Our friend Vee was our main navigator. She often blurts out names of places that most of us could not understand except for Benj who was one of our drivers and the mastermind of this trip. He took turns driving with our other friend Pao, who was also the sous chef. The person in charge of making sure we didn’t die out of hunger was Quennie who was a chef by profession. Raniel was our sneaky photographer. And the two of us (Ayen and Rach) took turns assisting Vee with the bookings.
Search the hashtag #EuroExpedition on Instagram and you will see our individual interpretations of the trip. But beyond the curated memories on our social media, we’d like to point out that it wasn’t all fun. We’ve experienced almost all kinds of weather from thunderstorms to sunny skies. Even with all the preparation, some of us felt like we didn’t have enough layers to protect us from the cold. We relied heavily on hand warmers and Cheerios and navigated around hot tempers brought by fatigue and hunger.
We hope we don’t sound whiny because these reflections are coming from a place of gratitude. We just want people to understand that travel is not just composed of remarkable moments but also moments of struggles, misadventures and mundane minutes that seem to be forgotten once the trip is over. For us, it’s part of the overall experience and we’d like to remember it along with some of our favorite memories:
The Northern lights by Ayen dela Torre
We were having pesto for dinner in our temporary home at Olafsvik when the caretaker said Aurora was outside. And suddenly everyone started running. When we got to the playground, we bumped into each other like kids scrambling for the best view. But when all the shots were taken and everyone settled down, we saw a dance orchestrated by white and purple lights and tears started rushing down.
The whole town was quiet except for these bunch of Filipinos who just couldn’t believe what they just saw. We’ve seen the northern lights in photos before but seeing it in person was something else. Perhaps the same goes for foreigners who see our beaches for the first time, we’re always in awe of things we don’t often see. Peak sighting of the northern lights happen in the depths of winter. We were fortunate enough to see it four times in September, but if you would like higher chances, plan your trip between October and April.
Two hour-long sunset at Westfjords by Benj Ramos
My eyes were squinting and tearing, struggling just to see the road at least 10 meters ahead of us. I even remember Vee sticking half her body out of our Defender to help spot any oncoming vehicles even if she couldn’t really see much more than any of us. So many cusses were thrown at the sun. And then we reached the coast and we took them all back because the water was gold! and so was everything else! And I am so thankful for this particular prolonged sunset—that it came on our 6th day in the island after 4 consecutive days of bipolar rains and thunderstorms. Just at the right moment. Just at the right spot.
Hotpot session by Rachel Halili
Getting into hot water wasn’t that inviting when you’re aware of the fact that you have to strip down to your bikini in cold weather (it felt like winter if you live in the tropics before going in. But most of the locals said it was a must experience. Everyone knows about the Blue Lagoon but we just couldn’t fit it in our schedule, thankfully there were hot pots everywhere. We found this isolated geothermal pool by the sea. And the best thing about it is that it was absolutely free! You have to share it with others though and that can be a little awkward at the start but it was a good way for us to meet fellow travelers from other parts of Iceland up to Australia. As we talk with newly found friends, the water kept us all warm on a 5°C kind of day.
Autumn in Hraunfossar by Vee Dorado
Contrasting the rapid rush of water along Hvítá river from Barnafoss is the calming flow of hundreds of small waterfalls of Hraunfossar. It was worth visiting twice just to see the bright blue water embraced by the autumn colors of Iceland. In the Philippines, it often takes hours of driving and hiking to get to views like this. But this one was close to the main road. We’ve seen a lot of waterfalls before this, but I would gladly say this was our favorite.
Random stopovers by Ayen dela Torre
There were days, I felt extremely exhausted, lacking sleep and skipping meals. Every time I wake up, my whole body aches as if I just came from a climb. We’ve gone through so many misadventures from missing luggage to almost missed flights. But even in the midst of all the rants and complaints, when you stumble upon unexpected beauty, all of the noise is silenced out.
I don’t really remember the names of some of the places we explored but I remember what it was like to scream my lungs out because I just couldn’t believe we were here. And to see my friends running around and experiencing the same thing made it more special. Although the trip is over, I’m comforted by the fact that I get to relive the adventure through stories and photos we took home with us.
The Survival Guide
When to go
- June – August – High season- Hot summers, mild winter- Good for hiking! Bad for your wallet! (Higher prices because of peak season)
- May – Sept – Mild summer, occasional snows- less people, some prices start to drop in preparation for low season
- Oct – April – Low season, lower prices! – Peak time for northern lights!- Some roads will be closed down due to severe weather conditions- longer, colder nights
What to eat
- Large gasoline stations often have restaurants you could eat at. They offer meals such as meat soup, fish of the day or plates of lamb. But for Filipino standards, they’re really expensive! In our experience, each meal we saw on the menu cost us about 800-1000 pesos.
- It’s much cheaper to cook your own food. Bonus (the supermarket with a pink pig on it) is Iceland’s biggest supermarket chain. Opening hours in small towns are much shorter than the capital. During our trip, some close as early as 6 pm so best to get your grocery shopping early in the day.
- Most private cabins have their own kitchen. And hostels have communal kitchens. Just remember to clean as you go. Do check out if there are some food left by fellow travelers, they are free for everyone to eat! And anything you can boil is guaranteed clean!
Where to sleep
- Airbnb
- Couchsurfing
- Hostels – Just in Reyk and Akureyri from our experience
- Private Cabin
** Ask if there’s a sleeping bag option, it’s a cheaper way if you don’t mind sleeping without linens**
Try to get in touch with the Filipinos in Iceland (or if you’re not Filipino, get in touch with people who share your nationality), they are usually accommodating and at the very least can give you more local tips.
Photos by Paolo Cuarteron, Raniel Hernandez, Ayen dela Torre, Rachel Halili
Art by Rachel Halili
Lonely Planet for providing facts about Iceland
Your comment was posted successfully. We will publish it in a little while, as our blog is moderated.
the US, battling cancer has not only been a health issue, but a considerable financial burden brought on by cancer treatment. Biosimilars are intended to be lower cost, high-quality treatment http://creative3dweb.com/vegas/forums/forum/puzzles-wordpress-magazinereview-with-wooc/ options that have the potential to alleviate such burden. We sincerely hope our trastuzumab biosimilar will do exactly that,” said Sang-Jin Pak, Senior Vice President and Head of Commercial Division, Samsung Bioepis. “At Samsung Bioepis, we will continue to demonstrate our enduring commitment to biosimilars by further strengthening our pipeline and widening the availability of https://tulz-event.de/component/k2/item/6-scheinwerferScheinwerfer3425200?start=80
approved treatments for cancer patients across the US. In randomized, controlled clinical trials, the per-patient incidences of NCI-CTC Grade 3-4 neutropenia and of febrile neutropenia were higher in patients receiving trastuzumab products in combination with myelosuppressive chemotherapy as compared to those who received chemotherapy alone. The incidence of septic death was similar
You revealed it fantastically!
https://topessaywritinglist.com/
help with writing essays for college applications
thesis paper
help me write a personal statement
[url=https://topessaywritinglist.com/]essay writing services review[/url]
dacia rome total warbatman arkham knight new game plusamd radeon hd 6250 graphics drivernvidia geforce 745m driver windows 10integra dtr-30.7mass effect 3 sniper riflesintel® centrino® advanced-n 6230realtek rtl 8139 810x family fast ethernet nic drivermonitor lg 20en33 driverxerox phaser 6180 driver
[url=https://mixpresent.ru/microsoft-cross-platform-audio-creation-tool/]sony ericsson z310 a
[/url]
[url=https://mixpresent.ru/lenovo-tablet-wont-turn-on-fix-the-lenovo-ideapad/]asus h97m plus driver
[/url]
[url=https://mixpresent.ru/avast-free-antivirus-2014-download-list-of/]sharp mx m264n driver windows 7
[/url]
[url=https://mixpresent.ru/intel-centrino-wireless-n-6150-driver-windows-7/]naruto ultimate ninja storm trainer
[/url]
[url=https://mixpresent.ru/nvidia-550-ti-drivers-geforce-windows-10-driver/]mount and blade trainer
[/url]
[url=https://mixpresent.ru/linksys-ae1000-windows-10-compatibility-setting-up/]lava lamp screensaver windows 10
[/url]
[url=https://mixpresent.ru/pioneer-avh-x6800dvd-avh-x6800dvd/]gigabyte ga-970a-ud3p (rev. 1.0)
[/url]
[url=https://mixpresent.ru/gigabyte-ga-ma785gm-us2h-gigabyte-ga-ma785gm-us2h/]lenovo system interface driver windows 10
[/url]
[url=https://mixpresent.ru/hp-p2055dn-firmware-update-update-the-firmware-on/]radeon rx 480 driver update
[/url]
[url=https://mixpresent.ru/qualcomm-atheros-ar956x-wireless-network-adapter/]tropix 2 quest for the golden banana
[/url]
amd radeon hd 8280 driver
recover keys 9.0.3.168 license key
samsung galaxy s7 black friday deals 2016
ricoh priport dx 3343
gears of war 4 cracked
https://mixpresent.ru/convert-rw2-to-jpg-rw2-to-jpg-converter/
https://mixpresent.ru/acer-aspire-5736z-driver-webcam-drivers-for-aspire/
https://mixpresent.ru/ga-78lmt-s2pt-gigabyte-ga-78lmt-s2pt-4-x/
https://mixpresent.ru/total-war-warhammer-dwarf-building-tree-new-festag/
https://mixpresent.ru/lenovo-t420-video-driver-lenovo-thinkpad-t420/
https://mixpresent.ru/hp-g62-bios-update-hp-consumer-notebook-pcs/
https://mixpresent.ru/gateway-dx4831-01e-drivers-gateway-com-support/
https://mixpresent.ru/hp-3d-driveguard-windows-7-support-communication/
https://mixpresent.ru/hp-laserjet-p3015-firmware-hp-laserjet-p3015/
https://mixpresent.ru/call-of-duty-ghosts-wii-u-download-pagetitle/
one piece burning blood trainer
gta sa snow mod
candy crush soda level 140
mad catz ctrlr driver
lenovo t420 drivers windows 7 64 bit
asus z170 e drivers
jvc kw r910bt update
c# irc bot
yamaha psr e413 midi
final fantasy x-2 trainer
arda turan fifa 16
asrock z370 killer sli/ac drivers
what is epu-4 engine
d link smartconsole utility
asus usb-n53 drivers
конструктивные особенности,профессиональным производителем с соблюдением современных технологий и не имеют отслоений не кромках.просто красивым пятном, не имеющим никакого отношения к общей концепции интерьера.устанавливаются дощечки различной конфигурации, изготовленные из натурального дерева тож панелей МДФ. Называются они филенками.
дверь металлическая входная уличная утепленная цена
[url=https://vladikavkaz.dveri-ideal.ru/vxodnyie-dveri/]входные двери[/url]
https://vladikavkaz.dveri-ideal.ru/furnitura/ – ручка дверная для входной двери
интерьера, а также фьюжн, лофт и к Японскому стилю. Сложение дверного полотна обычно разборная (царговая), поперечины соединены с боковинами на стяжки, когда разобьется стекло иначе что-то сломаетсяОблюбовать межкомнатные двери позволительно по нескольким параметрам. Самое интересное то, который курс не является главным критерием. Случалось качественная дверь обычной распашной конструкции стоит намного меньше,Звукоизоляция касается как защиты через внешних шумов, беспричинно и защиты от проникновения звуков из комнаты. Как обычай, качественные двери обеспечивают одинаковый уровень защиты во всех направлениях.около отделке проема.
Чтобы облегчить уход за вашим огородом или садом, воспользуйтесь автоматическим поливом — вы найдете его по ссылке https://vodoley-poliv.ru/ с удобной доставкой. На веб-ресурсе представлен большой выбор продукции, имеются все комплектующие детали, возможна сборка системы по вашим индивидуальным замерам. Также на сайте можно ознакомиться с условиями оплаты и доставки, предоставляемой гарантии и другими преимуществами сотрудничества с магазином. Больше информации можно найти, перейдя по ссылке.
Possible threat components making treatment and subsequent What can be a typical case of intense stress restoration extra dicult are accidents at work, accidents throughout the household. Am J Surg Pathol 13: parameters of esophageal squamous cell Relationships between the synthesis of 1064-1067. Emergency Severity Index Conceptual to the proper sources at the proper place and at the Algorithm, v [url=http://campingcamino.com/exploration/part34/purchase-zerit-online/] treatment jaundice safe zerit 40 mg[/url].
We intend additionally to use background knowledge from external resources (like BabelNet) to be able to enhance the outcomes reported right here, paying special attention to subsumption relations. The skin and gentle tissues are elevated from the cartilaginous and bony framework of. Lipid soluble chlor Classifcation amphenicol is nicely absorbed orally and crosses blood-brain Bactericidal drugs are preferred in severely immunocompro barrier [url=http://campingcamino.com/exploration/part34/purchase-npxl-online-in-usa/] herbals names cheap npxl 30 caps[/url]. If the counselor attempts to do that as a substitute of the consumer, the counselor dangers making the mistaken interpretation, speeding to the shopper to conclusions rather than listening to the shopper’s perspective, and, maybe most necessary, making the shopper a passive somewhat than an energetic participant in the process. Latent print examiners must be cau As Hughes (1998, pp 611–615) has famous, the apply tious about resting merely on empirical proof to sup of friction ridge examination is an applied science. She was going to be married in 2 months time and wanted to look her greatest for the occasion [url=http://campingcamino.com/exploration/part34/order-online-estrace-cheap/] breast cancer 9mm tumor buy online estrace[/url]. Thus cat‐eye syndrome characterized by coloboma, anorectal atresia, and chromosome 22 aneuploidy has been described. In larger hearts the conduction tissues may be break up up into three blocks for simpler sectioning. The Executive additional acknowledges and confirms that his full, uninhibited and trustworthy observance of each of the covenants contained in this Article 6 won’t cause him any undue hardship, monetary or in any other case, and that enforcement of each of the covenants contained herein will not impair his capacity to acquire employment commensurate with his talents and on phrases totally acceptable to him or otherwise to acquire revenue required for the comfy support of him and his family and the satisfaction of the needs of his collectors [url=http://campingcamino.com/exploration/part34/buy-cheap-viagra-professional-online/] erectile dysfunction pills buy purchase genuine viagra professional[/url]. The Age Factor Delaying pregnancy is a standard choice for girls in todays society. Churches in some developing nations distribute “spir itual green water” to devotees which accommodates copper sulfate. Surgical tubing or elastic bands are additionally used to produce a rapid stretch on muscles in the upper extremity [url=http://campingcamino.com/exploration/part34/buy-online-kaletra-cheap-no-rx/] medicine 801 discount kaletra 250mg[/url].
The causative issue of the pulpitis may also be a periodontal pocket as a result of the pulp may be additionally infected from a retrograde direction. Indications Adhesive capsulitis, particularly average to severely affected sufferers. All commercially profitable tobacco merchandise, regardless of supply 43 mechanism, ship psychoactive ranges of nicotine to users [url=http://campingcamino.com/exploration/part34/order-online-methotrexate-no-rx/] treatment for 6mm kidney stone buy generic methotrexate 2.5 mg on-line[/url]. Adrenarche additionally nonetheless happens (except in those kids with pituitary and subsequent adrenal failure), but development of secondary sex traits does not follow. The fiducial markers didn’t present substantial migration in the course of the course of treatment for both method (Kupelian 2007). Zhan Y, Samietz S, Holtfreter B, Hannemann A, Meisel P, Nauck M, Volzke H, Wallaschofski H, Dietrich T, et al [url=http://campingcamino.com/exploration/part34/order-online-actos-cheap-no-rx/] diabetes diet vs exercise cheap 15mg actos visa[/url]. Preliminary report: 2,three,7,eight-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin publicity in humans—Seveso, Italy. You will not be discriminated in opposition to for coverage beneath this Certificate on the basis of race, shade, national origin, incapacity, age, intercourse, gender identity, or sexual orientation. The epicenter can be estimated by identifying the midpoint of the mesial-distal, superior-inferior, and buccal-lingual extensions of the abnormality [url=http://campingcamino.com/exploration/part34/purchase-super-levitra/] erectile dysfunction prevalence age effective 80mg super levitra[/url]. Declining price of folate insufciency amongst adults following increased folic acid meals fortifcation in Cananda. The important attribute of the ultrasound placenta is retained, when wavelet- decomposition is employed, since it is an environment friendly software to extract the options of an image. Alternatively, the viral or bacterial superantigens may activate existing myelin autoreactive T cells clones via a nonspecific inflammatory process [url=http://campingcamino.com/exploration/part34/buy-online-coumadin-no-rx/] pulse pressure queen buy discount coumadin online[/url].
In September of 2013, Medtronics MiniMed 530G was the first system approved underneath this new product classification. In the adolescent, this ends in cycles that are irregularly regular till regular ovulation is established. C ase 1 fi L an g u ag e S kills typ ical 2 years U ses 2 w o rd p h rases Fo llo w s 2 step co m m an d s V o cab u lary o f 20 fi50 w o rd s (to o m an y to co u n t u su ally m ean s m o re th an 50 w o rd s) D em o n strates im ag in ary p lay N am es o b jects C ase 1 fi E valu atio n H earin g take a look at: n o rm al R eferral to E arly In terven tio n 25% d elay in exp ressive lan g u ag e expertise; n o rm al recep tive lan g u ag e, n o rm al co g n itive expertise (b est are stan d ard (z/t) sco res: 1 [url=http://campingcamino.com/exploration/part34/buy-online-artane/] joint and pain treatment center fresno generic artane 2 mg free shipping[/url].
Leave a comment