Lowvelders share a magical Icelandic trip

It was not fun in the sun, but rather a magical winter wonderland for four Lowveld friends who travelled around the coast of Iceland for two weeks.

The former general manager of Emnotweni and current mac farmer, Ig Olivier, his wife, Wilna, and their two friends, Rose and Callie Carlson (owner of Huson Panel Beaters), left for their adventure on January 22.

Wilna said she had wanted to do something special for her 60th birthday on January 25, when Ig suggested Iceland.

“The trip around the Icelandic coast is 1 322 kilometres. He suggested we do a round trip all along the coast. Of course, there was so much to see. Due to the weather, we could not go up to the north of Iceland, but were able to visit the south, east and west of the country.

“We wanted to go because of the snow, of course, and the fact that there are volcanos that had erupted in the past, with a few still expected to erupt. The glaciers were also a big attraction to us,” said Wilna.

She said she and Ig had travelled to Saariselkä (200 kilometres north of the Arctic Circle) in Finland about six years ago, and were lucky enough to have seen the Northern Lights.

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“Ig was very anxious to see them again, which is another reason for our adventure in Iceland,” she said.

“We also prefer non-touristy countries, and Iceland is one of those, especially in winter.”
Wilna said the four friends had left on January 22 to Frankfurt, and then got a connecting flight to Reykjavík, the capital of Iceland.

“During our layover in Frankfurt, we taught Callie and Rose canasta, because we knew the days were going to be short and the nights long in Iceland. (Daylight during the winter typically lasts for about four hours.)

“We arrived in Iceland on Sunday afternoon, January 23. We then rented a VW Combi, which could handle the icy roads, and we were off.

“We stayed in Reykjavík for the night, did our shopping for warm clothes and started planning our trip. We went where the road took us and never planned too far ahead. Callie was our designated driver and did an excellent job driving in difficult circumstances,” she said.

Wilna said the four friends stayed in Iceland for 10 days. On Tuesday January 25 it was her birthday.

“Ig started our day by reading to me and Rose from Proverbs 31:10 onwards, and prayed for us. We did the Golden Circle the rest of the day and ended up in Fludir, where we stayed and swam in the hot Secret Lagoon as it was snowing. That evening my dear friends Rose and Callie made us a savoury and cheese platter and we had enough wine.

“All the time we bought food at the local grocery stores and our drinks at the vinbudin (liquor store), which later changed to the verboden store, because liquor is quite expensive in Iceland,” she said.

Wilna said they made many fond memories in Iceland, such as snowmobiling on the Langjökull Glacier.

“A 8×8 truck took us to the glacier and believe it or not, got stuck in the snow. It seems as if the Icelanders are used to this, because in a couple of minutes, a bulldozer came to the rescue.

“Another wonder was to experience an ice cave at Vatnajökull Glacier. At the bottom of another glacier called Jökulsárlón, we saw massive ice blocks, the size of taxis and bigger, moving towards the coast, slowly melting.

Once we were at the coast, we saw blocks of ice the size of rugby balls on the beach. Most beaches are pitch black due to the ash from the erupted volcanoes that ends up in rivers, flowing to the sea, just to be washed out again on the beaches.”

She said they ended their trip with a visit to the famous Blue Lagoon, where they swam, had natural mud facial scrubs, and drinks. “One can stay as long as one wants in the lagoon, but the water is hot, and after a while you go to the bar with chairs in the water and have an ice-cold Icelandic beer.”

Of course, the four friends were lucky enough to once again see the Northern Lights, much to Ig’s delight.

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“To see the Northern Lights, you must have a clear sky. We went out a few evenings, but with no success. At last we were blessed the night before leaving Iceland. Beautiful. Afrikaans describes it as asemrowend. It takes your breath away.”

She said Icelandic people are very friendly and helpful, and enjoy tourists. She said they enjoyed meeting the locals and did the local things.

“The advantage for me visiting Iceland is that you do not find tourists around every corner. The temperature varies from -5 degrees in the mornings up to maybe 5 degrees during daytime. The houses and buildings are all heated, so once you are inside, you wear normal Lowveld clothes.

“It was a wonderful experience and I recommend it to everybody who likes travelling without planning every day of your holiday before leaving SA.”