Iceland - Day 4: Leave nothing but footprints, take nothing but memories!

Our last day in Iceland was finally upon us! The past three days were amazing and now the last day had also arrived! However we still had two activities before heading back home to England. Again we grabbed some breakfast and made some lunch for our day a head and then we were off, enjoying our last day in the stunning Iceland!

Reykjavik!

Our mini group!

Our first activity was a wonder around Reykjavik which is the capital and is the biggest city in Iceland. Reykjavik was full of character with unique little shops for everyone to enjoy. We only spent an hour looking in the shops and buying some souvenirs to take back home with us. Me, Elly, Lucy and Lizzie bought t-shirts whilst other bought postcards, chocolate and goods to take home. It was a nice relaxing hour just wondering around and it was quiet too because it was still the morning. We jumped back onto the coach with our bags of gifts and goods and we were off to our last stop before the airport.



The red ceiling of the cave!

From the left: Lizzie, Elly, me and
Lucy in the cave!

The last stop was in the middle of nowhere, the coach pulled up by the side of the road and we all got off. We were going lava cave tubing! Now that sounds quite scary however it didn't involve us crawling on all fours or army crawling through tiny gaps. It was simply a tunnel and a short walk through it until we reached a wide area underground to sit down. When everyone sat down we turned off their head lights and our eyes couldn't adjust to the darkness that surrounded us. All we could hear were the drips that were coming off the roof of the cave. As we walked back out of the cave I took a photo of the cave roof and suprisingly it was bright red. The time went by and me and Elly's laughter filled the cave as we did impressions of Golem from Lord of the rings. It was a great experience sitting in the darkness. It was certainly a great way to end this amazing trip. Before we knew it we were driving to the airport and then we were in the departure lounge waiting for our flight. The gate opened to board the plane and we were ready for take off. Me, Elly and Martha sat next to each other and we watched Hairspray together to keep our spirits up. We all had an amazing trip, it was unique and special in everyway. From the northern lights to standing behind a waterfall, all the trip was spectacular and a big thank you must go to Mr Simmons who organised this wonderfall trip to Iceland. We said goodbye to Iceland and the plane took off. We lefted nothing but footprints and all we took was amazing memories which will stay with us!

The Icelandic Explorers!

Iceland 2013!

Iceland - Day 3: It's not Disneyland!

Over the 4 days spent in Iceland, the words "it's not Disneyland" were used quite frequently by Mr Simmons. The coach would pull up to our next stop and before we headed outside to explore Mr Simmons would clearly remind us that "it's not Disneyland" it's Iceland (hence the title)! It was again another early start to the day. We grabbed some breakfast and quickly made some lunch for the day ahead of us. We were told to wrap up warm because our first destination was a glacier. We were going on a glacier walk!

The glacier!

Elly, me and Lucy doing our
angry Viking face!

The ice pick and Crampons!

This was a very different experience. We were walking on solid ice! We got to the glacier after a bumpy drive and we waited for the experts to arrive with the equipment. After a short time after we were equipped with ice picks and crampons all ready for a walk up the glacier. Once on the glacier it took me a while to get used to the fact we were walking on ice. I kept on thinking that I was going to slip over but I remembered that I had these spiky crampons on. The guys who were guiding us up the glacier helped us as we walked up hill. One guy had to roll up my trousers for me because I kept on tripping over them with my spikes. We got half way up the glacier and everyone gathered round a hole in the ice. It was quite magnificent however I hate it when people look over holes, mountains, cliffs or any kind of edge so I thought it would be best if I stood slightly more away from the hole. We finally got to the top of the glacier and we had a group photo and then we headed back down. The sensation of walking down the glacier is quite different to walking up the glacier. Once off the glacier we were back on the coach and heading towards our next stop.

The beginning of the glacier!

A hole in the ice1

The waterfall from the viewing
platform!

Skogfoss!

Skogfoss! One of the biggest waterfalls in Iceland! The water plunges down from a drop of 60m (200ft). There's a viewing platform right at the top of this waterfall so you can see the beautiful landscape which surrounds this waterfall and the view above the waterfall itself. We all walked to the edge of the waterfall and the powerful spray washed over us and we stood to take pictures. Whilst me, Lizzie, Elly, Harry and George were taking photos at the bottom of the waterfall, Lucy and everyone else walked up to the viewing platform. When they were descending down from the platform me, Lizzie, Elly, Harry and George were running up. It was quite a steep hill to run up and occasionally we would stop, gasping and laughing at the same time, before carrying on with our run up the hill. We finally made it and Mr Vaughan was still there taking pictures. The view from above was stunning. You could see the stream of water running through the land. It was amazing! Finally we all descended back down and before we knew it half the day had already pasted us and it was time for lunch.

The view from the platform!

Seljalandsfoss!

It had started to drizzle a bit so we had  lunch in the coach, right next to Seljalandsfoss. This was one of my favourite waterfalls. There was a pathway which took you behind the waterfall. It was stunning. All you could hear was the powerful water hitting the pool of water below. You could feel the spray of water too which was refreshing. We took another group photo in front of the waterfall before moving on. The next stop was a while away so we had a bit of time to chill and relax on the coach. As we got closer to our next point the familiar smell of egg was getting stronger and stronger. We were at a geothermal power station. We had a quick look around to see how the energy in Iceland was made. Because Iceland is on many hotspots they get their energy from low down in the ground, I guess that's an advantage of living in a country with volcanoes scattered around the place. After adsorbing some information about Iceland's energy we made our way to our last hotel.

Behind the waterfall1

The Viking hotel!

Me and Lucy's room!

We pulled up alongside this colourful decorated Viking hotel. This was our last hotel we were staying at and what a hotel it was! I wasn't quite sure how many floors the hotel had. It was an odd layout.  Me, Lucy, Lizzie, Elly, Mr Simmons and a few others were on the first floor and then the rest of the group were scattered along the second floor. Me and Lucy got our key and as we were unlocking our room we were expecting a tiny room like in the first hotel, however we opened the door to a room that could of slept 3 or 4 people not just 2. We were delighted as our other rooms we had stayed in were smaller then everyone else's. We had a look in Elly and Lizzie's room and it was tiny like me and Lucy's first room we stayed in. They had managed to cram a table or a chair or even both, I can't remember, into the little wardrobe with the kettle and cups, which were provided, which were balancing on top. After everyone was settled it was time for tea and on the menu was the good old fish and chips!

Fish and Chips!

The food was great that night. In fact that night was great. Lucy, Lizzie, Maria and Martha all sat together and me and Elly sat with another table with some year 12s. We got the table laughing as we decided to do impressions from the Aristocats. It was a great way to end the last night in Iceland. But our night didn't end there. We went a small  "cinema" to watch a film about the birth of Iceland and E15. Some people drifted off to sleep whilst watching the film, as for me and Elly we had to contain our giggling but stuffing our jumpers in our mouths. We weren't laughing at the film, we had the giggles before going into the room.  By the time the film had finished everyone was exhausted and it was time for bed. Tomorrow would be our last day in Iceland but no one was ready to say goodbye yet!

Iceland - Day 2: What you can do in a day...

What you can do in day... wake up, have breakfast, see the division of two plate boundaries, see waterfall number one, have lunch, see the geysirs with a bonus of seeing Mr Simmoms falling over (Sorry Sir, it had to be said), see waterfall number two, see a frozen crater, then see Eyjafallajökull (E15) the volcano which exploded in 2010, go to the coast, walk along the volcanic black beach and finally drive to another hotel which is located in the middle of no where! Yes, that is what we did in one whole day, pretty impressive fitting, what seems like, everything possible in one day. However there were still more to come to fill the next two days.

No mans land!

We woke up bright and early, around half 6ish and Lucy and I packed our suitcases and got ready to go down for breakfast. We grabbed some breakfast and went back up to our room to check we had everything. By 9 oclock everyone was in the reception area ready to go. We all poppped into the shop across the road to get some drinks and snacks if you wanted them and then we were heading toward our first stop... Thingvellir. This is a national park where you can see the division of the two palte boundaries. The Eurasian and North American plate boundary which pull apart leaving a rigt valley of "no mans land". It was wet and drizzy when we got off here. We walked down into the valley to the other side where the coach was waiting for us. All around us was just empty land with a river, half flowing half frozen, that ran down the middle of this deserted landscape. It was oddly quiet as we walked from one side to the other, even though there was 44 of us it was still quiet. We left the silence of the landscape behind us and filled the coach again and went to our next point.

 

Gullfoss, the golden waterfall!

Our next point on the map was Gullfoss, the golden waterfall. This is a stunning waterfall which looks completely different in the summer than in the winter. The water foam the water creates blends in with the light snow/ice in the background. The water plunges into the gorge below. It was a wide waterfall not a long thin one however it was still very beautiful. We all took photos by this waterfall and of the waterfall alone before moving on. Lunch was calling us so we had to say goodbye to amazing waterfall. We pulled up for lunch by this wooden shelter in the middle of no where. There were picnic benches around the edge, some of them wet some of them dry, so I decided just to stand because I would be sitting on the coach for a while. On the menu for lunch was: A cheese and ham sandwich or if you were a vegetarian (special needs as the lady called it) you had slices of egg, cucumber and pepper in your sandwich, a chocolate waffer, a banana and a carton of juice. Simples, but when when everyone got back onto the coach they got out their own snacks. Clearly lunch wasn't enough. After everyone was satisfied we headed to our next desitation.

The waterfall!

The geysir sign!

This is what Mr Simmons looked
like when he slipped over!

The closer we got the more it smelt of egg. Then we knew we were by the Geyers and hot springs. We got off the coach and walked to strokkur which is a geysir that explodes every 5-7 minutes. This geysir errupted 3 or 4 times when we where there, washing us with a steamy cload of this egg smell everytime it went off. You could see the water slowly bubbling, ready to spout out this hot water. It was great seeing it in action. That wasn't the only thing "in action" as we were waiting, in the distance a man on the other side of the geysir slipped over. No one realised who it was until he scrambled up and gave us the thumbs up that he was ok. It was Mr Simmons and when everyone realised and everyone burst out laughing. Maria didn't realise what had happen until on the bus when she watching the video of the geysir that was about to explode and in the background someone slipped over. And that was it we couldn't control our laughter. (Sorry Sir for embarrassing you, but it had to be said) Anyway moving on swiftly waterfall number 2 was awaiting us.

The water exploding!

The little geysir!

The second waterfall we saw!

The visitor centre sign!

This waterfall was slightly smaller than the beautiful Gullfoss however it was still stunning all the same! It was still a wide waterfall but it wasn't a double one like Gullfoss. We only stopped for a short amount of time here before going to Kerid, which is a frozen crater. Well, how can I describe a frozen crater? It's a crater which is frozen, simple as that really. It was surprisingly big, I did think at first it would be a small hole in the ground but standing next/above it, it was quite big. Again time was flying by and it was time to move on. Eyjafallajökull (which means for Island mountain glacier), in this case to make life easier for you dear readers, E15 was our next pin point. E15 is a volcano which is completely covered by an ice cap. This was the volcano which erupted in 2010 leaving a large scale of disrupted air travel across the world, which many people were unable to get home from other countries or fly out to other countries. It also had an impact on the farming in Iceland and ever since the eruption the land hasn't been the same again! Anyway we visited a little visitor centre near the volcano itself, on the edge by the farm which was in danger by this natural wonder. All 44 of us crammed ourselves into the little cinema room where they showed us the volcanic eruption and the impact it had on the people around us and especially to the farm located on the edge of the mountain. It was interesting to see what had actually happened when the volcano decided to erupt. By the time we got out, the sun had finally come out to say halló (hello in English). However it didn't stay for long. Whilst the sun was out we took photos of the landscape in front of us and then it was time to say goodbye.

The crater!

E15!

The beach!

The rain had started again as we made our way to our next location. We were heading off to the coast. It was extremely windy as we stood by the coach to take pictures of the waves. We were there for about 5 minutes before jumping back onto the coach for a short trip to the volcanic black ash beach. It was still extremely windy as we all attempted to walk across the beach to the other side. The cold ripped through our coats and the wind blow in our ears. It was getting cold.  Everyone was getting tired by the time we headed back to our second hotel. This hotel was in the middle of no where however it was still a nice warm hotel. The girls were down one corridor and the boys down another, a part from me and Lucy we were at the bottom of the boys corridor. Me and Lucy decided to do a bit of "bed diving" before getting ready for tea. Tea wasn't as good as the night before but it was warm so that was the main thing. After diner we had some chill time so me, Lucy, Lizzie, Elly, Martha and Maria sat with the teachers as they played some card games. Time went by and before we knew it it was time for bed. We all said a tired goodnight to each other before heading off to our beds. It was another amazing day in Iceland. Jam packed with some great activities, but we still had two more days left to fill with fun! 

Me (on the right) and Lucy (on the left) bed diving!

Iceland - Day 1: The beginning!

It was an early start as my friends and I left for London Heathrow at 07:15 in the morning. We all met at school looking sleep, trailing our luggage behind us, ready to set off for our 4 day adventure in Iceland! There was 44 of us altogether, including 4 teachers and the rest were from years 11 (my year), 12 and 13. We were all the extremely lucky ones to get picked to experience this wonderful Icelandic trip!

Harry doing a "starbust challenge" in the airport!

From the left: Maria, Lucy, Martha, Lizzie and Elly
waiting in the airport!

We arrived at Heathrow within plenty of time. We all got into our groups and checked in with our luggage. We were all very excited and me and Lizzie still couldn't believe we were going to Iceland. The security check went well, we quickly walked through without many people getting beeped and then we were in the duty free area. Me, Lucy, Elly, Lizzie, Martha and Maria stayed as a group and Harry, George and Helen tagged along with us. Sometimes we would split up but most of the time we stayed together. Our flight wasn't until half 1 so we had some time kill. The departure lounges got slightly more busier as our flight drew nearer and everyone got more excited. The gates finally opened and we went down to board the plane. Everyone filled the plane and was finally settled for take off. We were with IcelandAir so the announcements were all in Icelandic and then was translated to English. I said Goodbye to England as the plane smoothly took off. After the plane had taken off everyone moved around to sit  next to friends but my seat was by the window looking over the wing of the plane and I was already sitting next to Martha so it was all good. The flight took roughly 2 and a half hours. There were TV sets behind each chair so everyone was entertained for the journey to Iceland. However I decided to plug my earphones into my iPod and tried to get some rest, one because I had a cold and two because I knew the next 4 days were going to be jammed packed with tiring but fun activities. The sun shone brightly through the window of the plane and warmed my face whilst I drifted in and out of sleep. Before I knew it we were landing in Iceland!

First sight of Iceland from the plane window!

Another view of Iceland!

Enterance to the Blue Lagoon!

Iceland is not actually that icy. On the top of the mountains and volcanoes it was icy but the land, I would describe it as, was empty. There was nothing just stretches of land on one side and mountains/volcanoes on the other with the road separating the two. We collected our luggage and headed for our first stop which was the blue lagoon. This is one of Iceland's most popular visitor attractions, with its milky blue pools of hot water that are shaped by the black lava. Luckily we didn't have to travel that far to get to the blue lagoon. In the distance you could see the steam rising from the light blue, cloudy pools of hot, relaxing water. It was amazing! I got into the changing rooms and managed to use the toilet to get changed because it was an "open" changing room so I thought that was be best. Once in the pools you could just make out the peoples heads. The steam floated around everyone as everyone gently floated about. It was very relaxing after a long day, however the day didn't end there. In fact it had just begun.

                                       

The Blue Lagoon!

                                    

View of the Blue Lagoon on the coach!

Lucy in our hotel room!

 Our next stop was our hotel which we were staying in for that night. Hotel Cabin. When I mean cabin, me and Lucy's room was literally two beds and a bathroom. You walked into the room and you were literally in bed. It was a nice small room though. We didn't have to stop there for longer because our next stop was dinner and that wasn't our last stop either. Me and Lucy plonked our suitcases in our tiny room and went down to meet everyone for dinner. Dinner was in The Hamburger Factory  (Hamborgarafabrikkan). It was a short 5 minutes up the road from the hotel The burgers was great, a perfect way to start the beginning of our Icelandic trip. Me, Lucy and Elly sat together on the higher tables whilst the others sat on the normal ones. It was a great meal, full of fun and laughter. It was an amazing night and it was about to get even better! Before we left the hotel for tea the teachers told us to wrap up warm because after we were going on a northern light hunt. We were all very excited and we crossed our fingers (and some of us toes) in hope to see the magical lights. It was a very late night. We had to drive out of Reykjavik, away from all the artificial lights so we could have more of a chance of seeing them. A hour or so pasted and Lucy looked out the window and noticed a green curved line in the sky. I told her it was nothing but a second later the coach had pulled up and the tour guide said that they were northern lights. We all scrambled off the coach to see the lights and when we got out into the open the black starry star had a green curved line going right across it. And that was that. We had seen the beautiful Aurora Borealis. The green light that filled the sky was stunning. One of the best experiences I have ever had! I didn't take any photos of the lights because something so special like that should be experienced in real life not by someone taking pictures. You should appreciate this magical wonder of our world just by standing there and absording the experience, it's about capturing the moment not capturing the picture!

The Hamburger Factory!

The burger itself!

The coach fell silent as we drove back to the hotel. It was getting on for 2 in the morning so I decided to sleep on the coach. Lucy's head was on the window and my head was either on Lucy's shoulder or on the tray in front of me. Lizzie and Elly were asleep as well. Lucy woke me when we finally arrived back at the hotel and we dragged our feet up the stairs. Only a few of us were on floor 4 and everyone else were on floor 6 so we got a quiet nights sleep. We were in bed and the lights went out and we immediately drifted off to sleep. What a way to start a magical trip in Iceland and what a way to end the very first day.

One of Mr Simmons' pictures of the magical Northern Lights!

A Winters Wonderland

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas... Everyone's dreams of a white Christmas. One of those fairytale dreams when you wake up to a city that lies beneath a blanket of soft, fluffy snow that crunches under your welly's. Well everyone would love one of those picture perfect Christmas'  but they don't always plan out. It doesn't always snow, the roast turkey gets burnt, there's bright coloured wrapping paper all over the floor and the kids want scissors to open their brand spanking new prezzies. It's a pretty hectic day which always turns out to be one of the best. But to make it extra special why not go to the magical place, that will definitely get you into the Christmas spirit, and that place is Lapland! A perfect Christmas treat to get you in the joyful spirit. With blankets of deep, thick snow, it's a beautiful winters wonderland. And the joyful spirit starts as soon as you step foot onto the plane...

I say goodbye to Birmingham for the day and head off to snowy Lapland!

A early morning start as I sat in the departure lounge with my nan and grandad, aunty and uncle, my two little excited cousins and my younger sister, waiting for gate 47 to open for my flight to Enontekio. It was only a small wait and seats 32 to 40 were called up first to board the plane which luckily was our seats. When we boarded the empty plane we were greeted by friendly air hostesses and the sound of Christmas music playing softly in the background. What a way to start a early, drizzly Saturday morning. The plane started to fill and sound of excited little children grew louder and louder. The plane took off and I said a goodbye to the drizzle and sat back and enjoyed the flight. On the right of me I had my little sister, my nan and basically the rest of the people on the plane and on my left I had, what looked like rolling fields of pure white. The fluffy, candy floss clouds rolled out like a ocean until it met the crystal clear sky. This was the only daylight I saw because by the time I got to Lapland the darkness was slowly but surely creeping over the clear sky!

The view from the plane!

The airport!

I finally landed at Enontekio airport, it was a chilly minus eight degrees Celsius but I had my thermals on and all my other layers on top. I briskly walked into the airport where they checked my passport and gave me my all in one snow suit and snow boots to wear for the day. I vaguely remember the building and the snow suits from last time and that was eleven years age. By the time I had put on my over alls
I wanted to get outside because it was getting hot with everyone to sort out their suits and boots.

The airport!

Now when you first step outside all you can see is snow and what I call "twilight" trees in the distance. The sky was that bright grey you get at home when it snows. The first activity was a sleigh ride through the snow as the snowmobile pulled all eight of us through the thick snow of Lapland and across the frozen lake. Snow was falling gently around us as the sleigh entwined in and out of the trees. I could feel the crisp sharp wind even though I had a helmet on. The journey across the lake was magical! The sky went from a dull grey to a deep indigo and in the distance there was a few glimpses of warm orange.

The snowmobiles that pulled the sleighs!

After the ride on the sleigh it was time for a hot drink and on a bench a man was giving out steaming hot juice which was just what I needed to kick start the afternoon a head. When I went to get a drink Amy, Alex and Jess couldn't wait any longer and they went off to play in the snow. The next stop was a visit to the big man. As the others played in the snow I de-iced my hands over a fire. The heat went straight through my gloves and through my snow suit and warmed me up nicely. We got back in a sleigh and went over to the other side of the lake where Santa's grotto awaited us. We didn't have a helmet this time round because it was a quick ride. The snow pinched my cheeks as we sped off across the lake and the wind whistled in my ears. I've got to admit it was rather refreshing. Me and my family got off near Santa's grotto and waited to be called to go and see him. When it was our turn to go and see Father Christmas I stood it the grotto, soaking up as much heat as possible before heading off outside again whilst watching my cousins talk shyly to Mr C. It was all good fun returning to see Santa but I don't think he would remember me now.

The restaurant is hidden amongst the "twilight" trees! 

A reindeer!

When we returned back to the other grotto's/cabins, it was like walking through a winter's wonderland. The cabins glowed orange and red and the roofs were blanketed with white soft snow like icing on a cake. It was truly beautiful! I did a few activities whilst I was there like a reindeer ride, a husky ride (oh what fun it is to ride on a one husky open sleigh hey... such fun that was) and I went to visit a stunning ice/snow castle, as they call it there, where everything was made from ice and snow and we got a yummy hot chocolate when we were inside. It was great! I was a bit too big for the sledging and tobogganing so I left the younger ones to have fun on them however one activity which I could of done over and over again was riding my own snowmobile. That was a highlight of the day. Me and my Aunty left the others on the sledges and went to have a go on the snowmobiles. The man put on another helmet for me and I went to sit on the snowmobile with my Aunty on one behind me. In front of me was the guy who lead us around but once we started I could see that he kept on speeding up because I was right behind him. It was so much fun it was like I was in a James Bond film trying to keep up with the bad guy. I was glad I was behind him because if I crashed he would of been there however there was a bit of pressure not to go too slow because I had six others behind me on snowmobiles. Anyway it was great fun to feel the wind against the helmet and to feel the adrenalin rush through you.

In the ice/snow castle!

A husky!

Me in my helmet and snow gear
ready to rock and roll the day a head!

After that exhilarating activity it was time for some hot food and on the menu was yummy bolognese and pasta and for pudding was sweet pancakes and jam with a nice hot cup of  tea to wash it down with. Time was running away. I had only an hour and a half left to absorb this magical place. So what did I do? Well I persuaded my little sister to come on the snowmobile with me again. Now, I thought I've done it once so I can go faster but then I was thinking I don't want Amy to fly off the back and break something because mum and dad won't be happy with a phone call home from the hospital. So what did I do? Obviously I went faster! Anyway on the first lap I nearly went off track into a pole and the second lap I decided to risk it for a biscuit and went even faster. Luckily Amy didn't fall off. We both jumped off the snowmobile and trekked back up to the restaurant to wait for the coach back to the airport.

Me and Amy ready to go on the snowmobile!

A wigwam where you can sit
and warm up by the fire!

It looks like the lamp post
from Narnia!

The coach arrived and I said a farewell to the beautiful Lapland. So many memories I will have from that day. I watched the snow settled as the coach drove us to the airport. I got given a "reindeer drivers licence" a "husking mushing licence" and a "snowmobile drivers licence" and I also retrieved a certificate to prove that I had crossed the Arctic circle. That's twice now I've crossed it. I had such a good time especially the ride across the frozen lake and the adrenalin from riding the snowmobiles. It was a fantastic experience and I'm glad that I relived some of those moments from the last time I went and now I can treasure them until maybe next time. I drifted into sleep before taking off. The flight was a bit delayed because the men were de-icing the plane for take off. That was the only sleep I had on the plane. I watched the darkness outside the window with my music playing quietly in the background. My sister rested on my arm before suddenly becoming hyper. So my peaceful silence turned into me and my sister doing impressions from films which entertained us and got us in fits of laughter. Suddenly we were flying over patches of orange lights from below and it looked stunning from above. We then flew over our home and I saw the masts near where we lived so I knew we were near the airport. We landed safety and we headed back home. It was a silent drive back home and I drifted in and out of sleep. My nan and grandad dropped us off and I managed to drag my feet up to bed. The day went quick but what a day it was! Lapland was a beautiful place, full of fun and magic. It's definitely a day to remember and to certainly treasure forever!

A experience I will never forget... Lapland!