There comes a time in every man's life when pursuing one's dream or dreams seems the right thing to do, the proper thing to do, the only thing to do. That particular thing without which you find it difficult to go further in your innate evolution, elevation of your thoughts and mind set. For me, hunting the Aurora Borealis in Iceland has been one of these dreams for too long now. So February 2016 brought me really close to seeing it actually come true. The chosen itinerary was Bucharest - Norway - Iceland - Norway - Bucharest, but I will talk about my visit to Norway in a separate blog post. With my hopes and spirit high, I joyfully stepped towards the boarding gate. So, as an old saying goes: "good things happen for those who wait"...Our waiting time was about 3-4 hours until we were able to embark the plane, due to a technical problem. All worries and excitement aside, I had good books with me so time flew by almost instantaneously. Landing on the Keflavik International Airport and picking up the car we had previously booked online at the car rental company (Lagoon Car Rental) were the following first steps to be done once we have arrived in Iceland. The weather did not seem happy to see us at all since it immediately began snowing really hard. We soon reached Reykjavik and faced the wind vigorously and mercilessly rumble straight into our newcomer complexions. We took shelter indoors for the first night and most of the first day. Iceland is famous for its very moody weather and is totally entitled to it since we are talking about a lonely island located in the Northern Atlantic Ocean, very close to the Arctic Circle. The wind increased its blowing power so much that it would even be dangerous to open the car's door. The attempt of visiting touristic sites such as the Hallgrimskirkja church or the Sun Voyager turned out to be pretty tiring and not fun at all since ruthless cold would strike you as soon as you got outside. We enjoyed a great cup of coffee, had a delicious lunch at a small Indian restaurant and explored the Kringlan mall. Being born in a Balcanic country, in South-Eastern Europe, gives you the chance to constantly experience all sorts of natural weather conditions during wintertime, from menacing blizzards and temperatures of -20°C to fairy-tale snows, mild sky, mellow winds and temperatures closer to 0°C. Icelandic winter is quite different, colder, harsher, unpredictable, but it provides you with a certain stability and stillness which I found to be charming. However, most of the country and its roads remained closed and unsafe. In this time of the year, the sun in Iceland rises at about 10:00 a.m. and sets at 17:30. Suddenly, sun rays gently flooded the room and wrapped us and everything around in a dreamy beatitude. Our first long drive across Iceland’s frozen roads. Absolutely stunning views, uncovering majestic mountains heavily adorned with white sparkling snow, like chocolate cakes with whipped cream glazing. Wild Icelandic horses, some scattered, some gathered in groups, defying the snow blowing up their strong thighs and exploring the endless Neverland. At about 100 km from Reykjavik, we witnessed minerals exploding, geothermal force manifested as geysers. In this area’s proximity lies the largest waterfall in Europe – Gulfoss Waterfall. During this day, I constantly had the sensation that we landed on a strange, frozen planet, where solitude reigns, where snow hugs you, and where sun beams amplify the inherent beauty this setting has been gifted with. On our way back to Reykjavik, we passed through Thingvellir National Park, constantly admiring Icelandic horses’ freedom and courage, and gazed in total surprise at the cerulean blue sky, with turquoise, amethyst and pink quartz accents reflected into soft fuzzy clouds. It seemed a good idea at that moment to start our hunt for the Aurora Borealis. We studied its activity, consulted the current Kp, had a look at the hourly weather forecast, searched for a good place with real chances to glance at it, dressed up really well and off we went. The destination would be Kirkjufell Mountain, a popular spot for seeing the majestic Northern Lights at about 2 and a half hours drive from Iceland’s capital city. We drove through a modern underwater tunnel of about 6 km, continued the road as the sky maintained its clarity and stars were visible, all good signs for the Aurora. But at some point, when 50 km were left until destination, strong winds started blowing snow, so strong and so fast that there was nothing we could see in front, to our right or to our left. Frozen snow arrows flew by and everything was so intense, visibility reduced almost close to no visibility at all, wind raved and hauled from minute to minute. The whole image was terrifying and I felt panic like never before. We were under siege and were left with no other option than turning back to safe Reykjavik. We assigned the next day to relaxation and stress relief and made reservations for the Blue Lagoon in Iceland, located at about 50 km from Reykjavik. Crooked pieces of black land started appearing as we drove towards the Blue Lagoon. It seemed to me that we were driving directly to a place existing only in tales and stories, something similar (in my mind) to the black volcanic plain of Mordor. The Blue Lagoon appeals with its light blue incandescent waters, encapsulating minerals and geothermal benefits for all those who are courageous enough to bathe in it taking into consideration that the inside temperature is about 37-40°C while outside you face a -10 or -15°C one. We were lucky to experience this beautiful oxymoron at the Blue Lagoon: while we were swimming around, the blizzard and snow started pouring heavily. Salty messy hair and crumbles of joy startled in me. After a luscious Indian dinner at the Bombay Bazaar, we anxiously went to sleep until about 2:30 in the morning because we were going out to hunt for the Northern Lights again. This time, we set camp at the Grotta Lighthouse, at about 15 minutes-drive from Reykjavik city center. There were no cars, only us, expecting for the unexpected. So the unexpected occurred, and green lit flares charged the dark black sky over the frozen waters the lighthouse silently guards. The indescribable outer-world feeling comprehending me in those moments was just a mere appetizer feeding thoughts, emotions and ideas for future Aurora Borealis hunts. Unfortunately, due to bad weather conditions, we missed out on some beautiful objectives in Iceland such as: Vik beach, with its black volcanic sands bathed by the foamy ocean; Vatna Glacier, the second largest glacier in Europe after Austfonna in Svalbard, Norway; Grimsey Island with its 86 inhabitants, idyllic spot for the Northern Lights; Svartifoss Waterfall; and many more. There is still time to go back at some point in this lifetime. On the morning of our return, Icelandair surprised us with indoor Aurora Borealis lights, which seems so simple yet so creative and so impressive to my mind! We said goodbye to Iceland and promised to come back during autumn time, just in time to catch the whole island still green and to hunt down Auroras if possible! We were blessed to see one of our dreams come true, and I encourage every one of you to feel free to dream, there is no harm in doing so. Your rewards for being courageous enough to dream big will come sooner or later!
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