Do you ever have these wanderlust dreams corrupting your day-to-day routine? Those haunting images of other lands, stunning nature, cities, distinct people?
Why not give it a try?
I am Anna, originally from Poland and I have decided to take a gap between my studies and career to volunteer in
Iceland for a few months. My job was to support a local NGO that promotes environmental awareness, intercultural relations and consideration for social issues through projects they conduct. I would like to share with you some facts and my personal reflections all regarding Iceland and mainly Reykjavik. It sure is an incredible piece of land with extraordinary stories to unravel and stunning nature lurking everywhere.
Let’s kick off!
The opportunity to come to Iceland appeared quite unexpectedly. I was browsing through the web and facebook groups and fan pages just to find calls for participants. Another tactic I undertook was reaching out directly to organisations by sending an independent application (without any ongoing recruitment). With my host organisation SEEDS I am provided with food and accommodation, bed linen as well as some detergents to keep the house clean I also receive a little pocket money - 70 euros/month.
What I would like to start with is my flight I took from Warsaw to Keflavik airport and how many Polish people I encountered on the deck. It turns out Poles are the biggest minority in Iceland aside from Lithuanians. The island as magnificent faces also some obstacles.
Owing to a big number of budget flights, it has become a more and more accessible destination luring with its natural beauty.
Due to massive tourism outgrowth over last years Iceland’s urban landscape has been strongly influenced. It can be seen in the architecture of the Reykjavik city as well as in the environment. The corrugated steel houses have been exchanged for modern hotels and offices. The impact on the nature is also immense. Rural areas are not well suited for the vast amounts of tourists cropping up the landmarks. They lack drains and struggle to get rid of the waste produced by tourist tides. One of the evident issues of the island is soil erosion.
Iceland is also a renewable-energy super power and sustainable life advocate, where electricity is almost fully received from natural resources such as geothermal energy.
There are also handful of fun facts I would like to share with you!
Did you know that...?
- Icelanders can trace back their roots up to the first settlers. „The book of Icelanders” Íslendingabók www.islendingabok.is/English.jsp, holds the story of first drawing a genealogical relatedness of the ancestors and contemporary Icelanders. You can also explore whether you are related to any notable person from Icelandic history or a celebrities and public persons.
- Since the population of Iceland is scarce and overall related with each other Icelanders stand a high chance of mating with their (not so) distant cousins. To the aid of newly committed couple comes the ÍslendigaApp so called “incest prevention” app. Just within a phone bump, you are able to tell whether both of you share an ancestor. Very handy and ingenious!
- Icelandic is the most closely related language to old Norse – the original language of the Vikings. Being a remote island, not very inviting for outsiders, Icelanders managed to preserver its natural shape. This indicates that Icelanders are capable of reading and understanding original sagas and books from medieval times.
- Skyr – a low in fat, dairy product, referred to as yoghurt or curd cheese that contains high volume of proteins. It is extremely healthy and does not ruin your figure. It is said to originate from the Viking era.
- Only in Iceland will you find an original lopapeysa sweater, hand-knitted from the wool of local sturdy sheep, to bear the arctic air. The special pattern that frames your arms is the local trend that steadily catches on overseas.
- Fermented shark meat delicacy – Kæstur hákarl, due to harsh weather conditions and lack of possibility to withhold fresh food, Icelanders have invented a dish, that will leave no tourist indifferent. More on Icelandic national foods: www.northbound.is/blog/58/vikings-guide-to-traditional-icelandic-food.
- Iceland exclusively contains lava soil and there are active volcanoes that might burst out. Do you remember the Eyjafjallajökull eruption back in 2010?
There is no better way to depict the possible revelations of volcano eruption than the extract from a movie „The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hnt9xLxQVN0
As you can see, Iceland is a remarkable place, but this is just for a warm up to let you get the taste of that place.
