This blog entry sends greetings from Iceland! When I arrived in this amazing country, I couldnt quite believe I was there. It is one of those mythical places you often read or hear about, but never imagine being able to visit. I felt the same about Japan, the Galapagos Islands, and now this remarkable island! I had it very much confirmed during my first few days, even hours there, that it is indeed a stunning and beautiful place. I loved my first few days there, and was so excited to explore more!
In my last blog entry, I was drying off in my very cosy Air BnB in Hoyvk, back in the Faroe Islands, with the central heating on full blast drying off everything I was wearing and carrying on that soggy day. I made a note to myself, to look into buying some proper waterproof clothing and a waterproof cover for my daypack for next time, and to also perhaps look into a waterproof camera. All turned out well on this day in the end, the windows became very steamy indeed, and I felt much better again once dry.
at a deliciously late 1pm, so after a wonderful It was still raining when I set off for Iceland, and during my walk to a slightly further away bus stop, I got a little wet again. The bus shelter was no use as the wind was driving the rain into the shelter, so after another ten minutes of getting wet again under the shelter, the bus arrived to take me to the wonderful Faroes National Museum, where I was able to dry off again. I spent a wonderful couple of hours there. I normally visit such places at the beginning of a trip, to learn about the place Im visiting and find out about local places of interest. I did it backwards this time though, so after having visited the places, I then learned about them in the museum. I found this was also a nice way of doing it. In the museum, I learned about the formation of these volcanic islands around 55 million years ago, and their subsequent glacial erosion during the last ice age which ended around 25,000 years ago which wore the islands down. They were formed over a hotspot in the tectonic
ridge which now sits under Iceland, and thus were created in a similar way to the Galapagos and Hawaii, as the earths crust gradually moved over the hot spot of volcanic activity below, creating a series of volcanic islands. The oldest of these islands, Suuroy in the south, is also the flattest, and thus has had time to be eroded, longer than the newer and more rugged northern islands. I also learned about the islands wildlife, mainly the sheep whose population of around 70,000 outnumber the Faroese population of 50,000 by nearly 50% more. The museum also told about the Viking period, the beginnings of Christianity on the islands, the development of the Islands fishing industry, and the very same Smyril Line that Id be taking that evening for my onwards transport. It was a lovely visit to the museum, and after touring the exhibitions I enjoyed a bit of time in its seating area with panoramic views over the sea and onto Nlsoy island in the distance, so as to stay warm and dry before my ferry departure time of 6pm
had cleared up for a bit, but then after arriving in town for the walk again to the ferry terminal, the heavens opened once more, and I got wet again. I dried off by the radiator in the ferry terminal building while waiting for my onward transportation.
My goodness, I was certainly not very fortunate with my Faroese ferry sailings during my time there, but Im actually quite happy with this as it certainly added to my Faroese experience and made my time there feel more authentic. I had been checking the UK Met Offices North Sea conditions forecast for the previous week. The only times and places where gale warnings were in place were during my ferry trip from Denmark through the North Sea areas called Viking, South Utsia and North Utsia, and now again during my ferry trip from the Faroes to Iceland, through the areas called Faroes and Southeast Iceland.
