T H E L A N D O F F I R E & I C E
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I have been asked so many times what my favorite part about my trip to Iceland was. It wasn't a particular city, waterfall, or view. In fact, it was the milestone of successfully driving around the entire island by the means of Route 1 (Ring Road). The trip had a VERY rough beginning; first flight was delayed by several hours, therefore missed the connecting flight. Arriving in Iceland over 48 hours later than originally planned was such a bittersweet moment; the vacation I had dreamed of for my 6-year duration of college is finally here, just a bit disrupted. The 1200 mile trip on Ring Road was going to be challenging, especially with some valuable time taken away. With dangerous driving conditions and road closures, it’s understandable to see why a trip like this needed lots of planning. A few days into the adventure, the weather was so bad, we didn’t think we would successfully make it around the island. As the hopes dwindled, we faced the music and made plans to head back from where we came from, only to miss 70% of our itinerary. Neither of us wanted to give up, but safety was a priority. I couldn’t believe my dream trip was turning out this way. After a few hours of weighing the pros and cons, we said decided to continue our counterclockwise path. The days were filled with glaciers, black sand beaches, canyons, insane gusts of wind, snow, rain, delicious food, and beyond-friendly people. As the days went by and we got closer to completing Ring Road at its entirety, I couldn’t believe it. All these years of studying Iceland, saving money, and constant daydreaming led up to me scratching a top priority item off my bucket list. I never gave up on accomplishing this dream. When I informed people about my passion to see Iceland, the majority of people couldn’t grasp the idea why I would ever want to see such a cold and lonely place. But on the contrary, I don’t see why someone wouldn’t want to see one of the most and awe-inspiring countries this planet has to offer; the Land of Fire and Ice.
Never give up.
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