The Blue Lagoon, a no so natural lagoon.

The smoke on the background is the geothermic plant

The second tour we did was to the famous Blue Lagoon geothermic natural hot spring, to find out that it is not natural. It is formed from the surplus waters from the geothermal power plant Svartsengi, located next door which was established in 1976. This runoff is what heats the water in the pool, and it renews itself every 48 hours.

The first public bathing facilities opened in 1987, and was aimed for people with skin problems as the seawater is rich in silica, chloride, natron, calcium, sulfur, carbonate, magnesium, and a blue-green alga which combined with the minerals is great for the skin and it is supposed to do wonder for Psoriasis. The algae are what gives the blue color to the water. Due to the popularity of the place, it was refurbished in 1999, adding a spa, hotel, restaurants, and a retreat center.

We took a tour, and it takes about 45-minute drive from Reykjavik to the blue lagoon, US $ 290. Once you arrive you need, once again, to take a shower while naked in a common shower room, or in one of the private showers, as there is no chlorine here either. Many signs are saying to use plenty of conditioners and to leave it on your hair, then you can put on your bathing suit and proceed to the lagoon.

The lava that shapes the pool and the surrounding is natural and the pool is excellent. There is a mud bar, where you can get a silica mud mask for your face which is included on the entry price. They also have Algae Masks that you can purchase. Anyway, you put the mud mask on your face, and once is dry you rinse it off. I did it by submerging myself in the waters, and it worked great.

The average temperature of the water is 39°C = 102°F all year round; however, it did not feel that hot to me. You can walk around the pool or sit at the cave and relax while listening to music or taking with the other people sitting there.
There is also an in-water bar, and an in-water massage too, which I don't know how comfortable would be.

After relaxing for couple hours in those invigorating waters, it was time to shower and leave.
And we felt great, our bodies were soft and smooth; however, our hair was not. A week later my hair still felt like straw. My granddaughter’s hair was terrible for over two weeks. We put what I thought was plenty of conditioners, needless to say, it wasn’t. They have conditioner in all the rooms and showers; however, I don’t think it matters how much of it you put on, the minerals in the water will dry your hair immensely, and our hair got about 10 shades lighter.
I know I submerged myself in the waters a few times, but my granddaughter did not, so that wasn’t it. We saw couple ladies with shower caps, and at the time we thought it was funny, but it is not. I would recommend everybody to wear a shower cap, it is better to look ridiculous for a couple of hours, than for a couple weeks.

All in all, the place was fantastic; however, there are many natural hot springs that you can visit for a fraction of the cost.

Needless to say, to me being in Iceland and not going to the blue lagoon was inconceivable, so, I pay, and we went.

And I am glad we did.

Iceland landscape consists of lava formation cover in moss

Iceland

Iceland

Ísland

Iceland is a small Nordic island in the North Atlantic just south of the Arctic Circle. It measures 40000 sq. miles = 103.000 sq. Km and it has a population of 329.000. Most of the people live in Reykjavík. As you can imagine the rest of the island is vast open spaces which are formed by the lava from the 130 volcanoes on the island.

When I visited the Arctic Circle in the Scandinavian countries, I was at a higher latitude than here, and I was wearing short sleeves shirts during the day, in the mornings, and at night I needed a light sweater, so I figure that here will be the same. How wrong I was. It is freezing in here. I read about Iceland weather before coming here, and it said that despite the high latitude Iceland is warmed by the Gulf Stream and that the summers are chilly. Well, this is not chilly, this is freezing. In the Arctic Circle in the Scandinavian countries, the landscape is green, here is tundra, so of course it is cold.

Oh well… live and learn.

I arrived at Keflavik International Airport two days before my granddaughter’s arrival. There is no public transport outside of Reykjavík, so I took a shuttle bus to Bus Hostel which is located at the bus terminal and an easy 15-minute walk to the center.

I visited the city, but I did not want to do much as I wanted to do it all with Hailey, so I went to visit one of many swimming pools. I went to Sundhöll Reykjavíkur which is located at Barónsstígur 45a, 101 Reykjavík, Iceland, which is a couple block from Hallgrímskirkja church, besides it was recommended by the hostel. Great place, all the swimming pools are thermal waters at different temperatures. There is also a couple of saunas and three hot tubs. You pay at the entrance and receive a bracelet. First thing is to get naked and shower in a typical women shower, meaning no partitions. There es a big poster signaling the essential parts you need to wash more carefully, and there is also a woman watching to make sure everybody showers with soap. If for some reason the woman is not there for a minute or two, the other ladies showering keeps a watch on each other, and if somebody doesn’t shower the proper way, they tell on you. I did not witness this, but I have been told that it happens. The reason for this is that there's a very low level of chlorine in the swimming pools, so, everyone is required to wash thoroughly before going in.

I love the hot springs and saunas, so I enjoyed myself very much, especially when, due to my age, I did not have to pay the 900 ISK = U$S 8.17 to get in. And if felt even better when they card me to make sure I was the age I claimed to be. 

When you are having fun, or you are late, time goes so fast; however, when you are waiting, time doesn't move. And here I am, seating at the Keflavik Airport waiting for her to arrive and to start our year together.

As she walked through the doors, at 6 am, my heart skipped a beat and tears flowed down my cheeks, and once she was in my arms everything felt right. 

So, here we commence our adventure.