I didn't know what to expect from Reykjavik. We had spent about 4 waking hours in the city before we headed out into the countryside on that bus. I did a little research on some possible shooting locations, but didn't turn up too many that caught my attention. Everyone said you needed to climb the Hallgrímskirkja, but we've climbed a lot of church towers and I wasn't feeling it. What did catch my attention was the Sun Voyager sculpture (above) on the walkway near the Harpa Concert Hall and which faces the bay and Mt. Esja. When we set out to shoot around the city on our third day, it was an incredibly cold morning, but the light looked like it was going to be magic. We walked through several construction sites (Reykjavik is in the midst of a building boom) to arrive at the sculpture. The light was just getting good and we weren't the only ones set up at the location. There's something about this sculpture, the material, the design, the way it catches the reflection of the sky underneath. Most people think it represents a Viking ship (the iconic symbol of Iceland's settlers), but the artist, Jón Gunnar Árnason, was thinking of a ship that transports souls, not settlers. He died of leukemia a year before the sculpture was put in place. With the cement buildings, construction zones, and traffic behind you and nothing but the mountain, the sky, and the sea before you, it's a spot that removes you to a different time and different state of mind. It is one of the most photographed locations in the city, so it was no surprise we weren't alone. What was surprising, was that everyone who was there was particularly friendly that cold morning. Normally, when I show up at a spot or am joined by someone else with a tripod, I'm lucky to get a greeting or acknowledgement to my greeting. Maybe it's because I'm a woman and they're always men, maybe it's a territorial thing. I don't know. It's weird, kinda like cyclists who won't respond to a greeting on the road. So, imagine my surprise when we had several really nice chats with multiple photographers at the sculpture. It was a nice start to Easter Sunday (which finished perfectly with the aurora that I covered last week). Like I said, the Sun Voyager is a special spot.
The rest of the day we wandered the streets of the mostly shut city and popped into the few places that were open on the holiday. We discovered a city of uncommon vibrance and vitality, emerging from rotten concrete and construction sites. Iceland's history is mostly a tale of a country and economy that could barely stay afloat. Its capital, the highest populated region of the country, is a city that until recently has struggled. You can still see the wear and tear of that on the face of the buildings. But, it's coming around. It's a city of art galleries, boutiques, cafes, restaurants, night life, and, well, great paint work. They've painted every surface possible with incredible street art. In a place where Winter daylight lasts about 5 hours, all this color, I imagine, helps hold back some darkness. In many ways, Reykjavik reminded me of our hometown of Akron, OH. It also has had a long, hard road, but in pockets here and there it is coming alive again.
On a normal day when the businesses are in full swing, I think this would be a great city to spend a lot of time in. Oh, and I'm 100% certain Reykjavik has the coolest cathedral in existence. Hallgrímskirkja is absolutely massive and dominates the city's skyline. It doesn't look like it even belongs there, sitting next to all the graffiti covered, crackling buildings. The design hearkens to the basalt formations found throughout the landscape. It was the last thing I photographed in the city. The night was incredibly cold, of course, so there weren't too many people out. I decided to go for a classic head on composition because the building demanded it. I also decided to shape the color and vibrance more brilliantly than I normally do. When we were standing there, I was struck by the modernity and stark whiteness of the structure in contrast with the blue of the sky. A little purple hinted through the clouds as twilight set in. It, like the Sun Sculpture, was a magic, evocative location and I wanted to bring out that feeling by lifting the intensity of the image.
Our last day in Iceland was spent back in the countryside on another guided tour. We were late enough in the season that the tours to the natural ice caves were no longer going on. However, in 2015 a new ice centric attraction was opened that was still available. It's a gimmick, for sure, but the man-made ice tunnel into the Langjökull allows people to see the ice of a glacier in a way that is not possible otherwise. To get to the glacier you take a modified gigantic German military vehicle up onto the glacier. The thing is a total beast.
The trip takes you from a valley floor, into the mountains, and finally to the crest of the glacier. The landscape changes from scrubby plants, and rushing glacial rivers, to lava rocks, to snow covered lava rocks, to snow, to wind blown deep snow.
I love wind blown snow, almost as much as I love ice. At the top of the glacier, the monster truck's journey ends and we disembark into the entrance of the tunnel, which typically needs to be cleared of snow before the doors can be opened.
It was incredibly fascinating. The entire thing is lit by LEDs that have been run behind the ice. You're walking over lit floors, while gazing at clear blue ice and volcanic ash layers that normally wouldn't see any light at all.
The most fascinating bit, for me at least, was having the chance to see into the bottom of a crevasse. Normally, the only way to do this is if you have made the unfortunate mistake of falling into one. In that situation, it will probably be pitch dark and even if you could see your surroundings, you won't be interested in admiring them since you're probably in the process of dying. Anyway, the Into the Glacier tour lets you check it out without the risk of death or even slipping. The really cool thing about being able to see this crevasse is that this feature was totally unexpected. They came across the crevasse while digging the tunnel.
For those less interested in the science of ice, there's the added attraction of a wedding chapel. Yeah, you can get married inside a glacier. So...as I said, it's a bit of a gimmick.
After our time in the tunnel, we re-boarded the monster truck and headed down off the glacier. Our last night in Iceland was spent trying to find a place that didn't serve the obligatory tourist dinner of whale or puffin meat. We lucked out with the aptly named American Bar that served a surprisingly delicious meal of chicken wings and ribs. Seriously, those were the best ribs I've had outside the States. I also found my new favorite IPA, Úlfrún Nr. 34. It alone is a reason to return ASAP.
The next day, we boarded the bus back to the airport and before long we were headed home to Germany. There are few places we visit that grab us the way Iceland did. We fell in love and we fell hard. The last time we were that sad to lift off the tarmac was when we were in Norway. Is there something about Scandinavia? I think so.
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