The Golden Circle

The afternoon tour of the Golden Circle was pretty much the only tour that seemed worthwhile that we could afford. It started with a 12:00 pick up at our hostel and, after picking up the rest of the people on our tour, we were on our way out of Reykjavik. 

Our first stop was a national park, and also unesco world heritage site (I think), which I can't remember the name of or could even attempt to spell. It was where the two tectonic plates of North America and Europe meet, or come apart as the landscape consisted of massive cracks in the surface. It was also the place where law and order was established in Iceland.  The landscape is completely different to any other place we've been. It was quite green, yet very rugged also with mountains and volcanos in the background. After a brief walk around and description we were back on the bus moving further into the countryside. 

Our second stop was the Golden Falls. These were a sort of two tier waterfalls and were quite impressive, and very cold. We had a walk down to the platform next to the falls as well as up to a walkway over looking it and then we were on our way again. 

Our next stop was one of the biggest geysers in Iceland. It erupts once every 4-8 minutes so we were guaranteed at least a couple of viewings. And we weren't disappointed. The hardest thing was waiting and anticipating the eruption to allow for a good photo. We tried, and between us I think we succeeded.

On our way back to the city we had a couple more stops. One at a smaller waterfalls, and the next and a fairly large crater which had been formed due to a lava pocket under the earths surface apparently. And so after a 6 hour round trip we were back in Reykjavik. 

Our last full day in Reykjavik the weather wasn't especially good. After breakfast at a local bakery and a little walk around the town, we decided to visit a local swimming pool with hot springs, which was rather relaxing. Our last evening was spent looking for somewhere to eat which had something suitable for vegetarians and was suitably priced. This proved quite difficult, although we succeeded in the end. 

Our last morning was spent packing, ready for our afternoon flight. We arrived at the airport with plenty of time, eventually made it through check in and bag drop, and boarded our flight. The destination was one we had been looking forward to for a while...New York City.