Iceland Diaries - Hot springs and Volcanoes

Iceland - the name was quite apt when I visited this place. It was Christmas and literally the entire land was covered in a thick blanket of snow. There was not even a single area where vegetation could be seen. It is very hard to imagine how the cattle can live in such a kind of an environment. 

And yet, this is name is still ironic. Although from the surface, it was very harsh and cold, below the surface is a huge reservoir of boiling water. Yes! Iceland is full of geothermal energy and it is the water from the earth which is used for heating the buildings and the pavements in the city of Reykjavik. Iceland is self sufficient in terms of electricity and the major cost is only in the initial investment in the infrastructure such as the geothermal plants. 

Smoke coming out of hot springs filling the air with sulphur 

The hot water erupts on the surface at some places and forms giant pools like this one. Some of them even contain boiling water. 

The tour operators often said that you can take a very long warm/hot shower as long as you want as all the hot water is natural. Although one does get the sulphur smell in the beginning while opening the taps, it is not dangerous at all. That was something to look forward to when we came back from our day tours. 

The Great Geysir from which the term "Geyser" seems to have originated and the first known Geyser to the Europeans.

Naturally there are a lot of hot springs and volcanoes in Iceland. There are quite a few places near Reykjavik where this boiling water surfaces out and forms a pool of hot water. Often this is released in the form of a "Geyser" - a term which is actually originated from one of the hot springs in Iceland. Many people might still remember the eruption of Eyjafjallajokull volcano in 2010 due to which most of the flights in Europe and North America were grounded. Volcanoes keep erupting in this part of the world. But most of them do not cause such inconveniences.

This was a part of the Golden Circle tour which takes us through some amazing viewpoints near Reykjavik. The rest of the spots will be a part of another post. Stay tuned!!!