Writes Albert V. (L6th)
After an early meet up of 4:30am at Heathrow, and eventually one flight later, we arrived in Iceland. With the trip underway, it was clear that Iceland was an incredibly unique place! Our first stop was scheduled to be in Reykjanesbær, the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Accompanied by Flooglebinder, the sustainable educational travel company the school worked with to organise the adventure, we proceeded to visit variouis Icelandic natural phenomenons, such as thermal springs and volcanic rocks at Grindavík. To end the first day, we all went to go see a lava show in Reykjavik, where most were in awe of the lava (although some were fighting their tiredness from the packed schedule!)
The second day saw us tackle the Golden Circle route. We walked through Þingvellir National Park, all of us struggling to remember the long-winded Icelandic names. Perhaps the biggest challenge on this front came when we drove past the volcano, Eyjafjallajökull. Before visiting the famous Gulfoss waterfall, we also saw immense geysers at Haukadalur, seeing three consecutively! One highlight of the day was going to eat at a tomato farm in Reykholt, where all the tomatoes we ate were grown using local geothermal power!
The third day was my personal favourite. After strapping on our crampons and helmets, we hiked up a glacier in Vík, an experience like no other. Stood atop the glacier sampling fresh, glacial water was a particular highpoint.
Afterwards, we headed to a black sand beach near the Reynisdrangar Cliffs, which heralded a puffin spotting game for some. Later, we relaxed in the naturally heated Secret Lagoon before finishing the day by visiting two more waterfalls: Skógafoss and Seljalandsfoss. We had the opportunity here to walk behind the curtain of water, and obviously got completely soaked from it! These two waterfalls really demonstrated to me just how beautiful Iceland truly is.
On our final day, we visited the Hellisheiði Power Plant Geothermal Exhibition, where we learned how Reykjavík’s homes are heated and powered by the earth itself. Thinking we had reached the end of our itinerary, we managed to squeeze a final activity in last minute! When offere the chance to meet a number of Icelandic companies to discuss how they are using natural resources (such as fish) for solving issues, we jumped at it! Their practice was incredibly innovative, even using fish skin for skin transplants!
In retrospect, the glacier hike was the standout moment for me, and thanks to the amazing Flooglebinder team, we were able to immerse ourselves in the Icelandic culture despite having only a few days there. This trip was a fantastic way for me to relax after GCSEs and eisit a completely different landscape with my friends.
None of this would have been possible without the teachers who organised it. Thank you Mrs Riddleston, Mr Murray-Brown, Mrs Lemoine, and Mrs Maxfield, who all put in immense amounts of work to make the trip fantastic.
