Iceland New Year’s Eve 2017

We have recently returned from our annual trip to Iceland for the New Year celebration and what a great trip!  I have posted a few videos on YouTube; search for “Kaiyote Snow” and you will find my channel.  Below you will find photos from the trip.  The weather this year was warmer than usual, but much more snowy than in past years and it was beautiful.  One evening as we walked from dinner, along the edge of the marina to see a show at the Harpa Performing Arts Center, within the 10 minute walk we were covered in snow, it was wonderful.  Part of the group was from Florida and they were so very happy to be outside in the midst of a heavy snow squall and to experience an Icelandic snow storm. 

 This year we had several new activities added to the schedule, we did more indoor things than usual.  There were two great comedic performances at the Harpa.  One was “How to Become Icelandic in 60 Minutes”.  This one man show is hilarious and teaches you all the small details and idiosyncrasies of the Icelandic people.  The other show, “The Greatest Hits of the Icelandic Sagas” is also a comedy and condenses the many volumes of Icelandic history into 75 minutes of theatrics performed by a tag team couple.  The show moves fast and often includes members of the audience to help complete the stories.

New to the schedule was a visit to the Fákasel Horse Park for a performance by Icelandic horses and staff that showed the importance of the Icelandic horse to the history and culture of the Icelandic people.  After the show we had a tour of the barn and got to meet all the horses and staff, including the barn cats and herding dog.    After the show was a great dinner.  Everyone really enjoyed this excursion and it will definitely be included in next year’s winter tours.  The night we were there it was cloudy, but on clear sky night, it is an excellent place to see the northern lights.

Speaking of northern lights, we had one of the best sightings in Reykjavik on New Year’s Eve.  After dinner we went to the university bonfire for the start of the New Year’s celebration and of course, there were a lot of fireworks going off at the same time and then out of nowhere, streaking across the sky, came a beautiful green ribbon of the aurora borealis.  It was incredible to have everything happening at once.  It was really amazing to see the northern lights, while standing next to a 30 foot bonfire in the city of Reykjavík, while fireworks are going off all around, I will never forget it. 

Birds!!  We always go birding and this year we added a few new species to our winter list.  Reykjavik harbor is very large and there are always winter sea birds like Common Eiders, Shags, Great Cormorant, Little Auks, Long-tailed Ducks and many species of gulls.  On the shore there are a few shore birds that stay for the winter; Eurasian Oyster Catchers and Purple Sandpipers.  Even Redwing Thrushes and Eurasian Common Blackbirds stay the winter. You can check our complete list of winter birds by clicking here:  Winter Bird List

Another addition to our winter activity schedule was a visit to the Golden Circle to visit Þingvellir National Park, Gullfoss and to the Geyser area.  These areas in the winter landscape with much snow and ice are very beautiful and we will be adding this activity again next winter. 

Included in our winter tours are activities such as visits to the Saga Museum, the Northern Lights Center, the National Museum, the Whales of Iceland Exhibit, the John Lennon Imagine Peace Monument, the Maritime Museum and a tour of the coastguard ship Odin.  There are always outside activities such as hiking, walks to the lighthouse, Super-Jeep tours, horseback riding and much time spent swimming and soaking in geo-thermal pools. 

There is no way to explain how amazing the firework display is in Iceland.  You have to see it for yourself.  Every year, the search and rescue teams across the country sell fireworks to raise money to support the crews and equipment.  This past year they sold 600 tons of fireworks and while most of these are lit on New Year’s Eve, many are saved for the week that follows.  January 6^th is the last day of celebration and then there are more bonfires and more fireworks on that day to close the holiday season.  Iceland is truly amazing.