Mike is right that there is an Icelander on the list, but after changing jobs last summer I've been too busy to participate, except for PUGs.
I'll try to outline some things that you should see here, but feel free to contact me for further information. First on what Pal said: He was mostly right except that the Puffin population in Southern Iceland has been rapidly declining the past years, and there are hardly any left any more. He was correct about the weather: it's often rainy in either the southern half or the northern, and you should plan two trips if you can, one for the south coast if it rains in the northern part of the country and one for the opposite case. That's what I do on my summer holidays. On to general tourist spots: Popular tourist attractions in Iceland include: Thingvellir (where we had our parliment from the tenth to the thriteenth century), Gullfoss (a waterfall), Geysir (hot spring area with an active geyser). These 3 are close together and are often visited in one day. The Blue Lagoon is now popular for people on stopover (perhaps since it's close to Keflavik airport where you will arrive). Lake Myvatn (or Mosquito Lake) and surrounding geothermal area is the most popular attraction in northern Iceland, and to the east of it is the Jokulsa river gorge which has some beautiful waterfalls and rock formations. You will need a four wheel drive there. The town of Akureyri is also a popular stop. On the West coast we have the Snaefellsnes peninsula with many sights and the West Fjords peninsula north of it with still more, e.g. the Latrabjarg cliffs which Pal mentioned. This is by far the best place to see puffins anywhere I know of. Pal was right in that the Puffins are almost tame and you can get within 3 feet of them. The south coast has more attractions than I can list here, but the most popular is the Jolkulsarlon glacial lagoon on the South-East coast where they have filmed e.g. parts of two James Bond movies and even a scene in Tomb Raider. The Skaftefell national park nearby is also popular, especially for hiking. The coast is very picturesque to the west from there all the way past Myrdalsjokull at the southernmost point. The Reykjanes peninsula in the South West is atractive. It is basically a lava flow and was used by Clint Eastwood for his Iwo Jima scenes in Flags of Our Fathers. Now on to other information: Like before, Pal was basicaly correct, although we are a little over 300 thousand now. Just about everything is more expensive here than in Europe or the US. You can expect to pay 15 USD for a hambuger meal. A liter of gas costs $1.50, so it costs about $55-60 for a full tank. This is particularly high now since the exchange rates are favourable to us (i.e. the Icelandic crown is high and the dollar is low). And last: Yes you can buy gas canisters and keep them in the car for longer trips into the highlands, but there is less need for it than you might think, since there are gas stations all over and the country is small. Again, feel free to email me for more info. Thrainn Thrainn On Friday 26 January 2007 12:46, Amita Guha wrote: > Nate and I are planning our next trip, to Iceland. We will probably go > in August. I've been reading and I know there are endless photographic > opportunities there, but I was wondering if you guys know about > anything in particular that I shouldn't miss. We are tentatively > planning to do the southern coast and Lake Myvatn region, though I'm > not sure if Lake Myvatn will work out. > > Thanks, > Amita -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
