Iceland - Day 1

Droitwich (UK) to Hella (Iceland)

After 19 hours on the road, I walked into the hostel in Hella with a big grin on my face. I was very tempted to pass out on the comfortable bed but I wanted to enjoy every minute of my trip more, so I decided to ignore my exhaustion for as long as possible and went for a walk. I changed into shorts, packed a few essentials, bought a small sandwich, and set off towards the local waterfall. Even though the famous Ring Road passes right through Hella, once you get to the river, the sound of cars disappeared.

I was tired to the bone and was tempted to stop at the very first bench but my alter ego had different ideas: just one more bend, just 5 more minutes ... just whatever; so I carried on. It was definitely a wise decision. The waterfall may not have been a high one, but it was powerful and stunning for a different reason. It reminded me of the Prometheus movie, so I sat there for a good 40 minutes listening, eating, and just being.

After my return, I checked my pickup location for tomorrow and went to the restaurant for something warm. If you want to go on a diet, Iceland is your place. The food, especially the Icelandic meat soup, is amazing, but so are the prices, your card will cringe every time you use it. I appreciated every drop of that soup almost as much as the warm sunshine. I spent the evening car watching: the number of 4x4s were too numerous to count, and it's almost a novelty to see 'normal' cars. It may not have been 7 pm, but I was ready to pass out for the next 10 hours. I need my energy levels up for the next few weeks. AAHH, can't wait.