Thoughts in Transit

July 2024

Our 3 day itinerary:

Making a playlist was our saving grace, being on the road most of the day. Give Melissa and I’s playlist a listen!

Day 1:

• Pick up van (we rented from CamperVan Iceland)
• Stock up on groceries in Reykjavik
• Kirkjufell Mountain/Waterfall for lunch
• Hit Godafoss Waterfall
• Visit Viti Crater Lake
• Studlagil Camping Ground to sleep for the night

Day 2:

• Wake up and explore Studlagil Canyon
• Vesturhorn Mountain
• Vatnajokull Glacier Island
• Kayak Jokulsarlon Iceberg Lagoon
• Visit Diamond Beach
• Fjaorarglijufur Canyon
• Camp at Skogafoss Waterfall

Day 3:

• Wake up and explore Skogafoss and make breakfast
• Kvernufoss
• Dyrholaey to see puffins
• Seljalandsfoss waterfall
• Glijufrabui waterfall
• Hrunalaug Hot Springs
• Drop van off

The Journey:

Iceland was a spur of the moment decision, but the best decision I’ve made while studying abroad. Half way through studying abroad in Italy, Megan left Italy to head toward another program based in Spain. When she moved out, Melissa moved in and was my roommate for the remainder of my time in Italy. Before studying abroad I didn’t know Melissa well, we had mutual friends and would exchange a smile if we saw each other. However, we were the only ones we knew who would be doing this study abroad program, so we agreed to room together. I knew Melissa and I were destined to be friends after I told her my dream of driving around Iceland in a van and she quickly said she shared the same dream. Within 24 hours of her arriving we booked a flight to Iceland and our camper van that we would share for 2 nights. If we weren’t close before, living in a camper van for 3 days would soon bond us. Now let me preface, neither Melissa or I had done any prior research on Iceland, nor had we known anyone who had ever journeyed there themselves. However, after looking through many online suggested itineraries and marking down what we wanted to hit we decided to drive the Ring Road which is a road that takes you around the entire coast of Iceland in one big loop, ultimately spitting you out at your original spot after completing it.

The next weekend we packed what little cold weather clothing we brought with us to Italy into our tiny backpacks and headed to the airport!

Our flight ended up having a 7 hour layover in Germany (I guess you can’t complain when the flight was only a $200 roundtrip from Italy). Melissa and I explored the city of Hamburg for the next 5 hours. We tried a coffee shop, shopped around, and went to dinner before heading right back to the airport to catch our connecting flight to Reykjavik, Iceland. As two girls on a budget, we chose the cheapest flight, which usually ends up being the most inconvenient flight. With that being said, we landed in Reykjavik airport at 12:25am and had to wait until 7am to pick up our van. Instead of coughing up the $170 hotel, we decided to sleep on the floor of the airport. And that we did, in all honesty, I’ve had the worst sleep. But we woke up to the unfortunate discovery that someone had stolen Melissa’s portable charger. A great start.

We grabbed a coffee and headed to the van rental company. When we arrived all went smoothly, we got in our van, both of us so giddy at the chance to be exploring Iceland in a van together. The man working at the rental company handed us the keys, we loaded the van, and hopped in. This is where I mention that also in our attempt to save a dime we chose the cheapest van option, which happened to be a manual van, you know one of those stick shift vans. Melissa had mentioned that when she was younger she had driven her dad’s tractor that also happened to be manual, and that was enough proof for me to book it! We put the keys in the ignition and right as we started to go, the van stalls. If you’ve never experienced stalling, imagine trying to go forward but being violently jerked back. It’s… humbling.

We hop back in the van and successfully make it out of the parking lot, as we ride up to a nearby stop sign, not even a mile away from the rental company, we stall out once again. At this point Melissa and I are near tears, and we finally accept defeat. I got out of the van and waved down the first car that turned on the road we’re currently stuck on. A man and what I assume to be his girlfriend rolls her window down and I tell them our current situation. The kind man gets out of his car, gets into our van (I’m sorry mom, I know this doesn’t sound safe) and Melissa and I sit in the passenger’s seat as this man drives our van back to the rental company. When we arrived, the employee stood there like he’d been expecting us, hands on his hips, and said, “Let me see if we have any automatic vans left.” Lesson learned: don’t cheap out on a manual if you’ve never driven one.

Once we got our automatic van, everything was smooth sailing! We stocked up on groceries and hit the road. Iceland is the kind of place that feels like another planet. We saw so many waterfalls that by the end of the trip, we were almost numb to them. Our first stop was Kirkjufell Mountain and Waterfall, where we whipped up tomato soup and grilled cheese, chef-style, on our little camper van stove. We continued on to Godafoss waterfall and Viti Crater Lake before camping at Studlagil Camping Ground.

One perk of visiting in July? Iceland has 21 hours of daylight, which meant we could pack in a full day of activities.The first night we realized our heater didn’t work, so we layered up with leggings, sweatpants, long sleeve shirts, and two sweatshirts for warmth. That first night sleeping in the van was honestly some of the best sleep I had ever gotten in my life, it was also a plus that I woke up to stunning fields of green all around me. We woke up and explored Studlagil Canyon and quickly got on the road as we had 9 hours to drive until we got to our next camping spot. The next couple of days were filled with pulling over on the road to take in the breathtaking views that Iceland offered. We saw puffins, had fun making friends with other tourists parked next to us, and Melissa and I became best friends by the end of the trip. We woke up to some of the most stunning views of waterfalls, and gladly enjoyed pancakes and toast as we watched.

By the time it was time to go home, we wished we had booked our trip longer and started dreaming of the next time we would be able to travel back to Iceland together. I can only try to put into words the experience of Iceland and how that trip impacted me, but I will never do it justice. I experienced God’s intentionality and craftsmanship in a way I never had before, I rested in the stillness that Iceland offered and couldn’t help but give praise to God for what my eyes were seeing. Until I returned.