Magma and the Land of Ice: Iceland Aurora Journey

From January 21 to January 28, 2017, I traveled to Iceland, the "Land of Fire and Ice," via a tour. I flew with Finnair from Kansai Airport, connecting through Helsinki.

Day 1:
Departed from Kansai Airport at 11:45 AM on Finnair, flight time 10 hours and 25 minutes.
Arrived at Helsinki Vantaa Airport at 3:10 PM.
Time difference (Japan/Helsinki): -7 hours.

I spent about 2 hours sightseeing in Helsinki, known as the "Maiden of the Baltic Sea," a city with beautiful streets. I visited Helsinki's iconic Lutheran cathedral, the Helsinki Cathedral, and explored the Senate Square in front of it. With some free time, I decided to walk to Helsinki Central Station. At this time of year, it starts getting dark around 4 PM, and the cold was noticeable. Afterward, we gathered and took a bus to the hotel. On the way, we stopped at a Japanese restaurant, likely owned by Japanese people, where I picked up a bento box. I ate it at the hotel, and it was quite delicious. Tonight, we are staying in Helsinki.

Day 2
Departed from Helsinki at 11:30 AM on Icelandair, with a flight time of 3 hours and 35 minutes.
Arrived in Reykjavik at 3:55 PM, Keflavik International Airport.
Time difference (Helsinki/Reykjavik): -2 hours.

The Republic of Iceland is the second largest island in Europe, surrounded by over 200 volcanoes, glaciers covering 12% of the land, and fjords. The island is divided by the rift valley, known as the Geysir, where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates meet. This area continues to grow by 2-3 cm per year. In 2008, Iceland faced a national crisis due to the Lehman Brothers collapse, but it has since made a miraculous recovery. However, the cost of living here is quite high.
Tonight, we stayed in Hella, about 90 km from Reykjavik.
The "Struktur Hotel Hella" had cottage-style rooms, and the courtyard featured a jacuzzi, where guests could relax in swimwear.
After dinner, we waited outdoors for the Northern Lights around 9 PM under a slightly cloudy sky, but there was no sign of them.

Day 3
Although the weather was bad with clouds and rain yesterday, it’s raining again this morning. We are now about to head out for sightseeing along Iceland's southern coast. Despite being located south of the Arctic Circle, Iceland is not as cold as one might expect at this latitude due to the influence of the Gulf Stream. However, the weather changes rapidly and unpredictably.
Today, we visited the Eyjafjallajökull Visitor Center, Seljalandsfoss Waterfall, and Skógafoss Waterfall. As the rain and wind grew stronger, it became impossible to take photos with the camera, so I only managed to take a few pictures with a zoom lens from the shelter of a building.
We arrived at the hotel around 5:30 PM. Once again, it was cloudy and drizzling, so I gave up on hoping to see the Northern Lights. Instead, I enjoyed a soak in the jacuzzi, had a beer, and went to bed.

Day 4
The weather is still not great today; it's cloudy. After visiting an Icelandic horse farm, we set off for the Golden Circle tour. Our first stop was Gullfoss, located about 70 km away. The name "Gullfoss" means "Golden Falls" in Icelandic. The waterfall stretches 70 meters wide and drops 30 meters, creating a roaring sound as the water plunges, and the spray sparkles gold in the sunlight, which is how it got its name. However, when I visited, it was winter in January, with cloudy skies and snow on the ground, so there was no sunshine to make the falls glitter.
Next, we headed to Geysir, about 50 km away. The name "Geysir" means "geysir" or "geothermal spring" in English. It used to spout hot water as high as 70 meters, but now it is dormant, and instead, the nearby Strokkur geyser erupts every 4-5 minutes, which was quite impressive.
Finally, we visited Thingvellir National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site, where we walked along the rift valley known as "Þingvellir." On one side was North America, and on the other side was Eurasia. It felt like a strange experience.
Tonight, we are staying at the "Hotel Grand" in Reykjavik for a three-night stay. In the evening, if the weather was good, an Aurora Hunting Bus tour would take us to see the Northern Lights. However, due to the bad weather, the tour was canceled again.
We walked for 10-20 minutes from the hotel to a place along the coast where the Northern Lights could be seen. With the guide, I brought my camera and tripod, but unfortunately, we couldn’t see the Northern Lights. It was disappointing. We returned to the hotel and went to bed.

Day 5
Today, we toured Reykjavik city. First, we visited the historic Hofdi House, where the 1986 meeting between U.S. President Ronald Reagan and Soviet Secretary General Mikhail Gorbachev took place. Afterward, we visited Lake Tjörnin and the Hallgrímskirkja Church, followed by a trip to the Blue Lagoon hot springs, about 50 km away.

The Blue Lagoon is a world-famous geothermal resort. The artificial outdoor hot spring uses mineral-rich geothermal seawater pumped up from the Svartsengi geothermal power plant. After receiving a towel and wristband, we changed into swimsuits in the locker room, took a shower, and followed the signs to the "lagoon," where we entered the hot spring. The water temperature was around 38-39°C, which may feel a bit lukewarm in winter. There were places to pick up silica (white mud pack) and drinks. After leaving the hot spring, there were restrooms, a shop, and a café in the waiting area.

Upon returning to the hotel, I inquired about the Aurora Tour, but due to bad weather, it was canceled again tonight. Since the tour was not running, I decided to go back to the same coast as last night with my camera and tripod, but unfortunately, the Northern Lights did not appear. It was disappointing, but there was nothing we could do.

Day 6
As I was still thinking about the Northern Lights, I woke up early and looked out the window, only to see everything covered in white. However, there weren’t many clouds in the sky, which gave me hope. Today, we visited the Langjökull Glacier, the second largest glacier in Iceland, about 110 km away. We traveled part of the way by bus, then switched to a specialized super truck to head to the ice cave. The cave is a man-made tunnel inside the glacier. Some areas inside were bluish-white, possibly due to the lights installed in various parts. We spent about an hour exploring the tunnel with the guide's explanations. When we stepped outside, there were fewer clouds and the weather was nice.
On the bus ride back to the hotel, the tour guide announced the good news that tonight's Aurora Tour would go ahead. The bus erupted in applause.
After returning to the hotel, we had dinner at a restaurant in downtown Reykjavik. We gathered at the hotel front at 6:00 pm and took only our valuables with us.
Just before we left for the restaurant by bus, I noticed a long, large, faint cloud in the sky, and thought something seemed strange. The tour guide then told us that it wasn't just a cloud, but a sign that the Northern Lights were about to appear. Immediately after, a large “curtain-like” Aurora appeared across the sky. It was an incredible surprise. Unfortunately, I had left my camera in the room, so I couldn't take pictures. The Aurora lasted only 2-3 minutes before fading away. I was amazed that such a large Aurora appeared in downtown Reykjavik. It was my first time seeing the Northern Lights.
After dinner, the Aurora Tour bus arrived at the hotel, and we set off. It seemed like the guide was searching for a good spot to see the lights, and eventually, the bus stopped in a park at a higher elevation. There were dozens of buses and crowds of people. I was speechless. We set up tripods and cameras, waiting for the Northern Lights to appear. It was barely visible to the naked eye, but it was captured clearly on the camera. Although the “curtain-like” Aurora from earlier didn’t reappear, I was happy just to have seen it. It was probably because the Aurora level was low that night.

Day 7
Departure from Iceland at 7:30 am with Icelandair, flight time 3 hours 25 minutes
Arrival in Helsinki at 12:55 pm
Departure from Helsinki at 5:25 pm with Finnair, flight time 9 hours 35 minutes
Arrival at Kansai Airport at 10:00 am the following day

Pros and Cons of the Iceland Trip

1. There are many places to visit, making it perfect for sightseeing.

2. The Blue Lagoon hot springs are amazing.

3. The weather changes rapidly, so be cautious, especially in winter.

4. If the primary goal is to see the Northern Lights, it might be challenging. For Northern Lights-focused trips, it's better to visit Canada or Alaska.