I was booked to go horseback riding the next morning for a few hours on wonderful Iceland horses. I used to own horses and I love riding and the Icelandic horses have a special run called the Tölt that is kind of like a smooth speed walk that is special to these types of horses. Icelandic horses are super hearty little horses that came over with the Vikings and, as the story goes, they would put a mare out with two stallions and the stallions would fight to death to see who would get to mate with the female - which meant that the strongest baby horses were produced.
It was really fun and very cold (35 degrees) but I was nice and warm with my stupid $200+ jacket I had to buy in Rome.
Early settlers cut many of the trees down in Iceland for sheep herding so only about .5% of Iceland has trees. We rode through a small forest of birch and wild aspens and another tree I couldn’t place. We also rode through a river and geothermal steam.
I had a couple challenges in Iceland: first, I could not figure out how their gas pumping stations worked - my phone would not convert Icelandic króna to Dollars for some reason so I had no idea how much gas I was paying for. I found out after it stopped pumping gas that it wasn't very much and then it wouldn't let me use my card again. I had to go into the rental return office and the guy (although I think he rolled his eyes at me) was very nice and just told me I needed to pay $24 for the unfilled gas. I also realized at some point that I paid over $25 for a burrito...
Early settlers cut many of the trees down in Iceland for sheep herding so only about .5% of Iceland has trees. We rode through a small forest of birch and wild aspens and another tree I couldn’t place. We also rode through a river and geothermal steam.
I had a couple challenges in Iceland: first, I could not figure out how their gas pumping stations worked - my phone would not convert Icelandic króna to Dollars for some reason so I had no idea how much gas I was paying for. I found out after it stopped pumping gas that it wasn't very much and then it wouldn't let me use my card again. I had to go into the rental return office and the guy (although I think he rolled his eyes at me) was very nice and just told me I needed to pay $24 for the unfilled gas. I also realized at some point that I paid over $25 for a burrito...
Although it is VERY expensive, Iceland is a stunning landscape with so many natural wonders. I will definitely go back some day and can't wait to explore more!
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