With Love From Iceland

Some of the awesome little things I picked up during my trip in Iceland

Love & Snowflakes

Cate

xoxo

The Blue Lagoon

The warm waters of the Blue Lagoon is the perfect way to warm you up on those cold days in Iceland, it was 8 degrees below freezing on the day we visited and the lagoon was shrouded in an eerie mist so thick that you would think you were the only person there...

And so ends my adventures in Iceland, I hope you've enjoyed seeing this beautiful place through my eyes.

Love & Life

Cate

xoxo

Adventure Time in Iceland: Waterfalls, Geysers & Tectonic Plates

I'm completely in love with Iceland's beautiful scenery and I've been lucky enough to visit quite a few beautiful places on this planet but I think Iceland definitely ranks high on the list of most beautiful I've seen so far so we made time on this trip to visit some of Iceland's most popular natural wonders starting with Gullfoss

I've been referring to this place as the Prometheus waterfall but apparently that one is in the north but Gullfoss is still as epic, so beautiful encased in all that snow and ice it almost seems surreal, the trek down that icy staircase, freezing cold winds and temporary loss of feeling in my fingers were totally worth the view!

Next stop a visit to see Strokkur one of the few geysers in the world that erupts and lucky for us quite regularly, we timed it to go off about every 5 mins although while we were standing there it did a double eruption, it really was an amazing sight and a great reminder of just how magical and awesome nature is.

We ended our "Golden Circle" tour with a trek through Iceland's rift valley and actually saw where the Eurasian and North American plates meet which is pretty damn cool when you think about it, you can actually go scuba diving between them to although it was probably a bit to chilly to do that when we were there.

Iceland is so beautiful in the winter time but I would love to go back in the summer and see everything in colour, there is just so much natural beauty and amazing wonders to see there I hope I get the chance to visit again one day.

Snow Shoes & Hot Tubs

Cate

xoxo

Dog Sledding in Iceland

Dog sledding has been something I have wanted to do for the longest time so on my return to Iceland I made sure I booked myself a lesson. I absolutely adore dog and Huskies are my favourite so I was super excited to go see these adorable wolfies even though it was 17 below freezing and one of the coldest days that Iceland had experienced in a while.

Luckily the dog sled team provided us with some thermal suits for extra warmth, I was already wearing several layers but I wasn't going to refuse another one that day, once suited up we were then taken out to meet the dogs.

They had different varieties of Sled Dogs at the center, Greenland Dogs, Huskies, Malamutes and some puppies which I think were a mix of Pointer and Spaniel, if you couldn't already tell I'm a bit of a dog nerd and the guys at the center both found this amusing and impressive, you can thank my childhood obsession with Puppy in my Pocket for that!

I loved these dogs so much they were so friendly and the huskies howling and "talking" was the best thing ever, one of the reasons I love huskies is because they're so chatty (anyone remember Mishka). We were then given brief instructions on how to harness the dogs and then got to work suiting them up.

After harnessing up all the dogs we then attached them to the "sled", as there wasn't much snow we used a trolley instead of an actual sled but it was still dog powered and man are those doggies strong. I was taught some simple instructions in Inuit to give to the dogs then it was my turn to drive the sleigh, which was SO much fun!

I imagine doing it on an actual sleigh would be much more challenging as you've got the added problem of trying to keep yourself balanced and upright but on the trolley I found it relatively simple (this coming from someone who can't drive) and I would love so much to do it again.

Our sled dog trainer seemed to be quite impressed with how I handled the dogs and I was so in love with them at this point I could have spent the whole winter with them so when he mentioned that I maybe should think about applying for a job next winter I totally gave it some serious thought...

So who knows maybe I'll be spending next winter living with huskies in the land of ice and fire, it seems hard to imagine but after my day dog sledding with these cuties how can I resist.

Dog Cuddles & Snow Angels

Cate

xoxo

The Most Delicious Places in Reykjavik

Reykjavik is a really great city to explore it's full of amazing street art, quirky shops, cuddly polar bears and some of the nicest food I've had in a long time, so here are just a few of my favourite food places I found on my recent trip to Iceland...

Santa Karamba 

(Laugavegur 22)

I had a massive craving for some ridiculously spicy food to warm me up and popped into this place and OMG was it good, the food was amazing, the atmosphere super friendly and the prices were really reasonable! Anyone who knows me knows I eat a stupid amount of chilli and when I asked for some hot HOT sauce I got it, in fact I devoured the whole bowl of it much to the surprise of the chef, I'd definitely recommend this place it was the best food I had in Reykjavik and quite possibly the best Mexican food I've ever had!

Lebowski Bar

(Laugavegur 20a)

Dude is this place awesome, seriously when I heard that such a place existed I just had to go! I love quirky places like this and they went all out I mean there's even a bowling lane on the wall! I had the "Walter Burger" and it was surprisingly delicious and my first experience of a White Russian was pretty gosh darn good to, in fact if I didn't have to get up so early the next day I would have tried a few more things off their "White Russian Menu" but I'll save that for my next visit if I'm lucky enough to go again!

Icelandic Fish & Chips

(Tryggvagata 8)

Second time eating here and it did not disappoint, although the "skyronnes" are kinda weird the fish is freshly caught that day, delicious, super crispy and melts in your mouth. I decided to try the salad this time as it's kinda a rarity in Iceland and they grow it themselves and it was no joke one of the nicest salads I've ever had, so fresh and so delicious and it complimented the fish perfectly, definitely recommended if you're ever in Reykjavik!

Sushi Samba

(Þingholtsstræti 5)

Japanese and South American may sound like a strange mix but it makes for a great name and some great food to. I saw some drool worthy pictures of sushi from this place in a magazine that morning and made it my mission to eat there and it did not disappoint, the calamari was so good I ordered seconds, the salmon ceviche a plate of pure happiness and the big plate of sushi rolls I had intended to share I ended up devouring all to myself so that's a pretty good indication food there was daaaamn gooood!

Café Loki

(Lokastigur 28)

Traditional Icelandic food can be a bit daunting with the pickled whale and sheep heads but Café Loki has some nice options for those of you not so brave but would still like a taste of Iceland. I went with mashed fish and picked herring on rye bread and despite my reservations it was actually really nice the fish was yummy and not too over powering and the rye bread was the best I had (I ate rye bread pretty much every day I was in Iceland it was that good!) and the rye bread ice cream definitely worth a try whilst my Dad wasn't too keen I loved it and despite the freezing temperatures outside devoured it pretty damn quickly but the "Loki tea" warmed me up so much so I even bought a pack to bring home with me. Café Loki is located right next to the church so you get a really beautiful view whilst you enjoy your Icelandic delights.

Café Haiti

(Geirsgata 7)

Last time we were there in 2011 I had the smoked salmon lunch and it was delicious but this time came for the coffee. If I wasn't already full from breakfast I probably would have devoured some of the delicious cake they had on offer but the coffee here is worth the trip alone, the owner was actually roasting the coffee beans in the back while we were there which must explain why the coffee there is so damn good, it's such a nice relaxing place to I could've spent all day there so if you're a coffee fan I definitely recommend you give this place a try.

Cookies & Coffee

Cate

xoxo

A Trip to Asgard (Hallgrímskirkja)

During my latest trip to Iceland a visit to Hallgrímskirkja was a must, although I saw it at a distance on my last trip I didn't get the chance to see it up close, luckily it was just a short walk away from where we were staying and seeing it up close somehow reminded me of Asgard...

 

It's a very beautiful church and I'd like to think that they took inspiration from it for the Thor movies as Iceland is very proud of its Norse roots and you can find all sorts of Viking related stuff around the city much to my delight!

The inside of Hallgrímskirkja is just as beautiful as the outside, there is a magnificent organ which must sound amazing and some beautiful stained glass windows, whilst there I decided to light a candle for my Nanna as she's been through a tough year and I knew even though she says she's not religious anymore it was something she would do if she was there.

  

But the highlight of Hallgrímskirkja has to be the view from the top, for 700k ($5/£3) you can take a lift to the top of the church and get a beautiful view of the Reykjavik, we were lucky to get there just as the sun was setting and the view was just breathtaking.

I was such a perfect way to start our trip, Iceland is such a beautiful country which never fails to amaze me and they'll be more on my adventures in the land of ice and fire soon!

Snowflakes & Hot Chocolate

Cate

xoxo