Iceland: Homecoming

This summer I had a family reunion on the other side of the country. I spent several days exploring locations completely new to me, and it felt amazing. I have always wanted to travel around the entire country but haven’t had the chance yet. So far, I have been able to do sections, and this summer I got to add a chunk to my completion goal.

This journey started by flying to Akureyri, the second-largest town in Iceland (excluding the capital region). About two-thirds of the entire population live in the capital region, or around 240,000 people. In Akureyri, the population is around 20,000, for comparison.

I spent the day driving with my cousin, exploring the town and surrounding area. It felt really good to be there. I had always wanted to go there, for no particular reason, and I’m glad that I finally did. It is a very small place but somehow it still packs a punch, especially downtown. I love any town that has a good bookstore though I wish Iceland had more options beyond Penninn Eymundsson (there is one other one in Reykjavík called Forlagið, which is my favorite). Iceland has always been big on reading, but you can get books in other places of course besides bookstores.

After that, we drove to the family reunion in Borgafjörður Eystri. It took just a few hours, but we stopped along the way to take photos. My favorite stop was probably Goðafoss, which is currently in competition to be my favorite waterfall that I have seen, the other one being Barnafoss. There weren’t a ridiculous amount of tourists there, which I was grateful for, and I could have spent hours there sitting and watching the waterfall, contemplating life. I love locations like that.

Once we arrived, I discovered that several people in the town, which is extremely small, were related to us, which was fun. I enjoyed getting to know several family members that I hadn’t known before, or hadn’t known well, and it was wonderful. Icelandic weather can be unpredictable and after a rush of a few days, it was nice to take a bit of an extended break on a Saturday when the rain and the fog prevented us from doing any activities. My favorite thing, besides getting to know family and spending time with them, was visiting the puffins there. It was a beautiful experience because you get very close to them, without disturbing them. It’s extremely important to always be respectful of nature, especially in a place like Iceland where nature always wins.

Once the family reunion was done, I stayed a couple of extra days in a summer cottage with my family. Aside from not having internet, it was amazing. Honestly, we went around the surrounding areas for so long, and my cousin and I spent hours in the hot tub, talking and enjoying the midnight sun, that not having the internet ended up being just fine. While I loved seeing more of the surrounding area, I think my new favorite village would have to be Seyðisfjörður. Aside from the brief terror of climbing up a mountainside in a car, precariously close to a seismic drop, and climbing back down to get to it, it was a beautiful experience. It is a place that has been ravaged, not that long ago, by nature, but Icelandic resilience is everywhere. Except in reopening the bookstore. Maybe I should go live there and open one up.

Nothing compares to returning home, feeling the Icelandic air drawn deep into my lungs. It feels like home, no matter how long I’m away. This time was precious, because time is the one thing that we never get back.