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sunbellylou · 4 years ago

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ask for writers !!

thank you @tomlinvelvetfics for tagging me! and thank you @soldouthaz for making this tag!

1. describe how you first started writing and when you first posted: i’ve been writing for years now, i started with het (ew!) 1d fics in portuguese back in 2011, it was actually those little imagines we used to write, don’t know if anyone remembers hehe. i posted them on a facebook page i was part of and i remember the first thingy i wrote was something with niall, but i really don’t remember any details (but was probably bad as heck since i was 11).

my first larry fic i probably wrote around 2012 when i found out the gay fanfics world haha, i don’t remember what it was or anything tbh, in my head i always wrote and posted gay fanfic.

my first fanfic in english was a little one shot (like 400 words honestly), it was a translation of a previous work i wrote portuguese. i posted it a year and a half ago and it’s called playground love (please don’t look).

2. which of your characters do you typically resonate most closely with? do you base any characters off of yourself?: i usually write from harry’s pov because i love love l o v e describing louis and how angelic he is, so usually i tend to see louis as this ethereal ish character, cause it’s usually about harry falling in love with him. so whether i like it or no, i tend to be closer to harry’s characters in my fics, i always like to put a bit of myself on him and make the character real, you know?

3. where do you often find inspiration?: honestly? anything! i’ve written fics inspired by tumblr posts, tweets, pictures, songs, movies, things that happened in my real life, books. i literally wrote a pwp because i couldn’t stop thinking about leather pants (go read my robin hood au).

4. has quarantine helped or hindered your writing process?: in the beginning it was really helping me, i’d stay up till 4am everyday just writing like crazy, but then i got into the worst writer’s block and didn’t write shit for months. (and of course right when i started getting new ideas, i started working so i have no free time).

5. do you listen to music/noise while you write or do you prefer silence? always listen to music, all the time. i can’t do anything without music. mostly because my brain is a mess and music helps me concentrate. i usually go for some chill songs, some indie pop and stuff.

6. what is your biggest writing pet peeve in your writing or in general?: oh my god, when i’m writing and two or more paragraphs start with the same word, one after the other. it drives me crazy!!!! and sometimes i spend hours looking for ways to word differently the sentences, just so i don’t have two paragraphs starting with “the”.

also when my paragraphs are two (or one) lines long, i can’t! it has to have three or more lines.

7. describe your ideal writing setup: at the dining table, in the middle of the night, with some soft music playing in the background and some popcorn with me!

8. favorite time of day to write?: well, just said it hehe i like writing at night.

9. favorite genre to write + one you’d like to try writing in the future?: woah, that’s tough because i literally write any genres! i really love writing fantasy and horror stuff, but i feel like it’s not really well accepted in the fandom? (spec horror). and when people like it, they only read from bigger authors so i usually keep myself from writing those. aaand tbh i probably already wrote most of fic genres out there, so there isn’t much left to try.

10. do you struggle with writer’s block? how do you typically overcome it? i’m writer’s block bitch and i do not know how to overcome her

11. what is the easiest part of your writing process and the most difficult? outlining tbh, i usually don’t (and it comes back to kick me in the ass). i always have too many ideas at the same time and can’t stick to one, so outlining and finding the right plot is really hard.

12. how do you come up with original characters? (if applicable): lately i haven’t really had the chance to come up with ocs, but when i wrote original books (not fanfics and stuff), i usually started with the gender and one outstanding personality trait and went from there.

13. what is your favorite and least favorite word? i love the words ethereal and breeze, omg you’ll find them A LOT on my fics. and my least favorite word is growl.

14. what is one thing about your writing that you’re really proud of and one thing you hope to continue working at?: i think i describe the vibez in the scene really well, it’s my favorite thing to do. and i need to work more on building my sentences, because theyre always supermessy.

15. what work of yours has your favorite ‘verse/world building? how did you come up with it?: definitely the fic i’m working on right now! i’m putting so much work on the world building since it’s a fantasy fic, so i’m planning every little detail about it. i hope other people like it too when they read it !!

16. what font and size do you write in? single spaced or double?: comic sans, 12pt, single spaced. don’t come at me.

17. what is a typo(s) you find yourself making consistently?: because english isn’t my first language, i always change like ‘th’ for ‘d’ (because it has a similar sound in portuguese), so catch me typing ‘de’ instead of ‘the’ or ‘dey’ instead of ‘they’.

18. (if applicable) do you separate fic writing from fandom?: i didn’t understand the question so i’m pretending i never read it hehe

19. what emotion is your favorite to write? which is the most difficult?: my favorite to write is probably,,, love/adoration, like harry looking at louis like he’s the whole world and thinking about how amazing he is? i love it.

and the most difficult is probably anger, i find it really hard to write like fights and stuff like that because usually i make the characters sound more sad than angry.

20. what is one thing you hope readers always take away from your works?: i never thought about that but,,, i hope they start finding joy in small things that happen in their day. that’s something i use a lot in my fics and i think it’s very important to bring it to real life. like enjoy that late night tea, showering in the morning, spending a summer day in the house, cleaning, etc.

21. what is the best and worst writing advice you’ve ever received?: i think the best advice is one i got from someone i no longer talk to, they told me this when i first started writing in english and it is to stop trying to write fancy or like native english speakers, because it’s much better to write simple sentences that i’m confident about than write sentences with words i barely know how to use.

and the worst advice is TO OUTLINE! i know i should maybe i dont know but leave me alone, i hate outlining bye

22. which one of your works would you most want to see turned into a film/television show?: ok so,,, it’s a book i wrote like three years ago with original characters. it’s called great evil and i wrote it in portuguese. it’s full of violence and acid humor, about a very evil and sarcastic demon and an angry hunter. (one day i’ll translate that book and turn it into a larry fic)

23. do you write scenes chronologically or out of order?: chronologically. always

24. how do you handle criticism?: really bad. please be careful with what words you use. i’m already really hard on myself when it comes to my writing, so sometimes someone says something and (it might be dramatic but) i feel my world crumbling and i want to stop writing right away.

25. what is the advice you would give to someone who is looking to start writing?: just,,, do it. there’s no right or wrong way to do it. there’s no such thing as too much or too little, bad or good plots. every idea is a good idea. write it for yourself, write something you like. go ahead and just do it. there’s always someone out there who will enjoy your work, no matter what.

26. what kind of feedback on your work always makes your day?: any comments make my day tbh, if you comment on my fic i’ll be forever grateful and will be smiling like a fool the whole day. honestly, even a “omg i loved it” comment can make my day.

27. which fic ‘verse of your own would you most like to exist in? which fic’s characters would you most like to befriend?: the one i’m writing 100%, please i want to live in a fantasy world. i wanna live in the water kingdom and have faerie louis as my king please.

and i’d like to befriend louis from my fic kiss me in your chevrolet, he’s a sweetheart and i must protecc.

28. what do you always enjoy getting asks about/wish people would ask about more?: anything! i rarely get asks so anything is good hehe

29. what has writing added to your life? how has it changed you?: it’s such a big part of my life, i spent all my teenage years writing and it really is what built my personality. it helped me being more creative with all aspects of my life and take life lightly, enjoy little things and moments.

30. why do you write?: i just love having ideas and putting out there, playing with words and finding new ways to describe daily things.

boost yourself + tags!

1a. share the last sentence you wrote:

The path through the dense forest, covered in slippery rocks and burning trees is already difficult enough, but it becomes ten times worse when you’re being pestered by small, demonic creatures.

2a. describe the wip you’re most excited about:

i’m honestly only working on one fic right now and i’m super duper excited about it

3a. share the piece of dialogue from one of your works you’re most proud of:

"I mean, I still don't plan on watching Star Wars, so…"

The boy groans playfully, throwing his head back and Louis' eyes are suddenly really interested in the column of the guy's throat.

"Americans really have no culture." He shoulders Louis slightly, warmth spreading through Louis' dainty shoulder and making him trip to the side lightly. With a faux outraged scoff, Louis waves a dismissing hand.

“What do British people know about culture? All you do is drink tea and talk about the weather all day,” Louis teases with a mischievous gleam in his eyes. “Also, Star Wars is American, just so you know.” He rolled his eyes playfully, feeling surprisingly comfortable in his presence.

Skater Boy sighs comically, shaking his head, his wavy locks falling gracefully on the sides of his face and Louis can’t stop thinking about how soft his hair must be.

“You got me there.”

not posted but i kinda like it (i’m not really good with dialogues, so it was really hard to find one lmao)

4a. share the best first and last lines from your work(s): I will do only those that are already published:

best first lines are from a halloween fic i never finished:

Louis’ blue eyes snap open. His heart pounds fast inside his rib cage, making something as easy as breathing almost impossible. Sweat drenches his body and he feels like drowning. He feels too awake and wary as his breathing calms down, as well as his grips on the sheets under him loosen.

best last lines are from my 2019 BLFF there’s more than one place to call home:

Their life was utter chaos, and they were definitely complete opposites, and sometimes Harry wished Louis would just shut the hell up, but at the same time, Harry wouldn’t change a single thing about his life, because he had Louis, and that was all that mattered to him.

5a. link the last fic you read: it was the devil's in the details by @raspberryoatss

6a. link the last work you published: you could take a lick (but it’s too cold to bite me)

7a. link to your ao3 (if applicable): cinnamons

8a. someone that inspires you: louis hehe

9a. a comfort fic/work that you’ve been grateful for this year: tbh i don’t read a lot of fics, but there’s this work a friend of mine wrote. it was in portuguese and she ended up deleting it but it’s amazing.

10a. other writers that you’d like to tag! @bottomlwt @raspberryoatss

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laceymorganwrites · 4 years ago

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Here is 2nd prompt: 1 to 9, 11 to 14, 16, 17, 21 to 24, 28 to 37, 39, 43 to 45, 52, 55, 56(let me guess MGK?), 64, 67, 69, 70, 72, 73, 75 to 81, 83 to 87, 90 to 92, 94, 98, 106 to 123, 125 to 127, 134, 138, 139, 143 to 151, 154 and 155 (cut it in two/three part we gonna have an headache if not) -Sarah

I´m gonna put a cut here lol this is gonna be a long post

1. Full name

I´m uncomfortable answering that one. My first irl name is Hope though

2. Age

3. 3 fears

spiders, lonliness, death

4. 3 things I love

my friends, my cats, writing

5. 4 turn ons

subs, lip biting, intense eye contant, praise

6. 4 turn offs

degrading, forcing control, belittling me, just being disgusting

7. my best friend

met him in tenth grade, best thing that ever happened to me. platonic soulmate, always there for me. Love him with all my heart

8. sexual orientation

lesbian, on the aro spectrum

9. my best first date

never had any

11. What do I miss?

Being able to get a good night´s sleep

12. What time were I born?

Around 4am

13. favorite color?

since black doesn´t count yellow, dark red, dark purple

14. Do I have a crush?

on irls no. On fictional men yes

16. favorite place?

Dublin (especially the pubs)

17. favorite food?

french toast, homemade burgers, pizza

21. Shoe size

38 in Germany (idk the size system of other countries)

22. Eye color

Dark blue, with a bit of green in the middle. My eyes look like the ocean, so when I say dark blue, I mean really dark.

23. hair color

Natural dirty blonde, but currently washed out dyed purple

24. favorite style of clothing?

grunge with elements of punk

28. favorite movie?

Lord of the rings

29. favorite song?

I can´t choose just one, but the one that really means a lot to me is You´ll Be Fine by Palaye Royale

30. Favorite band?

Used to be Creeper, but is currently Palaye Royale

31. How I feel right now?

Tired and in pain (just started my period)

32. Someone I love

My best friend

33. my current relationship status

single irl, but dating lesbian anon on here

34. my relationship with my parents

good I guess, though we don´t do a lot together

35. favorite holiday

Halloween and Pride

36. Tattoos and piercings I have

none

37. Tattoos and piercings I want

none since I have a low pain tolerance (it´s rlly nonexistent)

39. Do I and my last ex hate each other?

Well, I´m over it but he´s petty and spreading rumors about me so....

43. How long does it take for me to get ready in the morning?

An hour. I take a long time to fully wake up, so I do things very slow.

44. have you shaved your legs in the past three days?

nope. I don´t shave, my mom thinks it´s disgusting but I don´t care. My body, my rules

45. Where am I right now?

In my bed, as always

52. when was the last time I hugged someone?

A few days ago

55. what is something I disliked about today?

starting my period

56. If I could meet anyone on this earth, who would it be?

Nikki Sixx.

64. Do I believe in magic?

Not really, but I´m open to anything

67. What was the last book you´ve read?

I´m currently reading ´The Dirt´

69. Do I have any nicknames?

Lace, Ace, Hopi

70. what was the worst injury I ever had?

my self inflicted one I guess

72. can I touch my nose with a tongue?

sadly no

73. Is there anything pink 10 feets from me?

yup, my pillow

75. what was I doing last night at 12 AM?

listening to Yagami Yato´s audios

76. What do I think Satan´s last name is?

Mine since I´ll marry her when I arrive in hell

77. What´s a song that always makes me happy when I hear it?

Na Na Na by MCR

78. How can you win my heart?

Make me laugh

79. What would I want to be written on my tombstone?

Fucking finally

80. What is my favorite word?

Cunt

81. my top 5 blogs on tumblr

@varia-venus @one-piece-dumpster-fire @miyaniacs @aomineavenue @hoe-imaginess

83. Do I have any relatives in jail?

Not that I know

84. I accidentally eat some radioactive vegetables. They were good, and what’s even cooler is that they endow me with the super-power of my choice! What is that power?

Teleportation

85. What would be a question I´d be afraid to tell the truth on?

Why are you like this?

86. What is my current desktop picture?

It´s an edited Madara one my friend made me

87. had sex?

Voluntarily no

90. failed a class?

Luckily no

91. kissed a boy?

yup, 2 times and both times it was disgusting af

92. kissed a girl?

no, but she kissed me and that was when I realized I was gay. She broke my heart too.

94. Had a job?

no, but hopefully soon

98. played on a sports team?

no, I can´t play sports

106. been to a wedding?

only when I was little, so I don´t remember anything

107. Been on the computer for 5 hours straight?

that´s nothing to me. I spend my whole day on here. That´s why I spam with those prompt thingies, cause I get bored and am always active

108. Watched TV for 5 hours straight?

I´m a fucking hermit, of course I have

109. been outside my home country?

yes, mutliple times

110. gotten my heart broken?

yup and it hurt like a bitch

111. been to a professional sports game?

Me and my class went to a pro ice hockey game and it was amazing

112. broken a bone?

not yet fortunately

113. cut myself?

yup and not proud of it

114. been to prom?

no, got cancelled because of COVID

115. been in an airplane?

yes, but I´m afraid of flying and heights

116. fly by helicopter?

117. what concerts have I been to?

Katy Perry, Halestorm (2 times), The Pretty Reckless, All Time Low, Halsey, Waterparks, Palaye Royale, Kyle Gass Band, Hey Violet, David Guetta, Bring me the horizon, Macklemore (2 times), Rihanna, Panic! At the disco, Fall Out Boy, Twenty One Pilots (2 times), Amy Shark, Hayley Kiyoko

118. had a crush on someone of the same sex?

yes

119. learned another language?

yup. But I failed and can´t speak any of it. The only foreign language that stuck with me is English

120. wore make up?

yeah, a lot actually. I like experimenting with make up

121. lost my virginity before I was 18?

Not voluntarily

122. Had oral sex?

Not voluntarily

123. Dyed my hair?

A lot

125. Rode in am ambulance?

126. had a surgery?

only a minor one

127. met someone famous?

I met a German youtuber at the Halsey concert and I got VIP tickets for Palaye Royale, so I met all of them

134. What do I want for my birthday?

I don´t know. Probably some cosplay supplies

138. what was my favorite toy as a child?

I was a Playmobil kid

139. Favorite TV show?

Can´t choose. Will go with Haikyuu for now

143. Favorite pizza topping?

Ham and mushrooms

144. Am I afraid of the dark?

yes

145. Am I afraid of heights?

yes

146. Have I ever got caught sneaking out or doing anything bad?

no, but I never done any of that

147. Have I ever tried my hardest and then gotten disappointed in the end?

all the time cause I keep comparing myself to others

148. what I´m really bad at

social interaction

149. what my greatest achievements are

graduating and making it into uni

150. the meanest thing somebody has ever said to me

can´t really remember to be honest. People have always been talking behind my back rather than saying it to my face

151. what I´d do if I won in a lottery?

move to Ireland, buy a house, give the rest to charity

154. something I fantasize about

anime men

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mayafish · 8 years ago

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Is Iceland Worth It?

I went to Iceland for a week. Before I left, I called my grandma and she said “Well good for you that you’re going on vacation. But... why the heck are you going to Iceland?” I didn’t really have a good answer for her, and I don’t have one for you. I went to Iceland because everyone has always said that I need to go to Iceland, and my husband and I saw some cheap flights, so we jumped on them. If you’re thinking about going, here’s all the stuff I wish someone had told me!

Iceland is extremely expensive

We took a WOW Airlines flight (sidenote: do not take WOW, it sucks) because it was $450 round trip instead of $1k through Icelandair. This seemed like an amazing deal, until we realized that a) WOW is the Spirit Airlines of Scandinavia, and they will charge you endlessly for everything in sight so that your flight ends up costing the same anyway, and b) everything once you get to Iceland is unavoidably, stupidly expensive. We had a hard time finding a single meal for less than $50, or a hotel room for less than $250/night. Add to that the ridiculous price of gas and one’s desperation when there’s no other restaurant within 100km, and you will start to understand. All in all, we ended up spending about twice what we had hoped to spend there, which is not ideal.

If you’re going, I suggest going into what I call “Disneyland mode” and just acknowledging that you’re going to spend a ton of money, because otherwise you’re just going to be pissed about it the whole time. And hungry. If you do want to try and go on a budget, you should look into staying in hostels or even camping, and you should plan to eat lots of gas station snacks. Or you could eat those terrible hot dogs.

Sidenote on Icelandic money: it’s in Kronor. We did not need to get any cash, we just paid for everything with credit cards. For conversion rate, a dollar is worth slightly less than 100 Kronor, so you can just move the decimal over two to roughly figure out what it costs in USD.

You do not need to buy an entirely new wardrobe to survive

We went at the end of winter (last week of March), and I panicked reading all the survival tips about Iceland in the winter. My husband and I both bought snow boots, thermal underwear, new fleeces, hats, nicer gloves, etc etc.

What I’m glad I bought:

I got these Sorel boots on sale and wore them every single day. They’re extremely warm, they’re waterproof, and they’re comfortable. They allowed me to walk in a river into a cave. I brought 3 pairs of boots in my suitcase and felt dumb because these were all I need. (Believe me when I tell you you do not need a “casual” or nice pair of shoes.)

I was very very happy to have warm gloves that worked with my phone. I basically never took my gloves off when we were outside of the car, so it was handy being able to take photos and look up maps and stuff while we were walking around. These are nice.

Thick, warm socks are your friend. I brought a couple fancy new wool pairs, but really my trusty Bombas socks (same as I wear at home) were just as good.

I wore this thin but warm vest under my jacket most of the days we were there. It was nice that it zipped up all the way to my chin so it kept my neck warm without making me too overheated when we were in the car or inside. As a bonus, it crumpled up into a tiny little ball that was easy to stuff in my very full suitcase.

I wanted to wear these fleece-lined leggings every day, and only didn’t because it started to make me feel gross. They’re super cheap on Amazon so you should just buy like 4 of them and not bring any other pants with you.

I’m obsessed with this lined flannel, which I wore on the couple warm days that didn’t require a winter jacket and which is my new favorite thing to wear at all times when I’m at home.

Polarized sunglasses! Snow blindness is real, y’all.

What I feel dumb for buying:

A ridiculous variety of undershirts and pants, which I never ever used.

A second (fluffier and taller) pair of Sorel boots, which were very cute but I only wore a couple times because I would have been mad if I didn’t wear them at all. But super unnecessary.

Extra hats (I really only needed one).

A new fleece (it was too bulky under my jacket so I ended up just wearing a long sleeved shirt, that vest, and my jacket and was totally comfortable).

...and countless other clothes and accessories. Just like with any other vacation, you’re gonna end up wearing the same comfortable outfit on most of the days.

If you’re getting in on an early flight, make sure you have somewhere to go

Our flight got in around 4am Iceland time (like midnight for us) so we didn’t sleep at all that night. For some reason, it didn’t occur to us that it might be a problem not being able to check in to our airbnb until 2pm - I think I just imagined we’d wander around Reykjavik for a while and find fun stuff to do. But we felt horrible (obviously) and nothing at all opens in Reykjavik until 8am. So we wandered around in the very cold, windy, foggy, empty city for a couple hours until we found a Dunkin Donuts. We posted up there for as long as felt reasonable, and then ended up driving to a mall so we could sleep in our car in the parking lot. It was not our finest hour, and was a pretty shitty start to our time in Iceland. Don’t be dumb like us.

How to read Icelandic

It’s not as weird as it looks. Also, most things are also written in English, so you really don’t have to worry about it. But if you’re getting thrown off by place names in your planning phase, here’s a few tips to help you out:

Pronunciation

ð is pronounced like "th" in "feather", "father" and "that", and if it’s the first letter of a word, it'll be represented as a þ. If you’re trying to google something with a ð in it, you can type it in as a d.

þ is pronounced like the "th" in "thunder", "theatre" and "thong". If you’re trying to google something with a þ in it, you can type it in as th.

Two L’s are pronounced sort of like tl, with a flattened tongue and a click. I cannot do this. But even if you can’t do it right, I think pronouncing something like Seljavallalaug as “sell-ya-vat-la-laug” is better/closer than pronouncing it as “sell-ya-val-a-laug”.

Those were the most helpful few to me, but you can read more here.

Common roots

berg = rock

borg = city

fell = hill or mountain

foss = waterfall

haf / höf = ocean

hellir = cave

hús = house

höfn = port

ís = ice

jökull = glacier

lag = layer

laug = warm spring

lón = lagoon

svartur = black

vatn = lake

vegur = road

vík = bay

þing = meeting

So, if you look now at something like Seljavallalaug, you might not know exactly what it says, but you at least know it’s a hot spring - which is true! Or you might not be able to figure out the whole meaning of Reykjavík, but you do know it’s at least partially called a bay (the full translation is smoky bay). Or here’s a couple good ones: Laugarvatn and Svartifoss. You figure those out! You can read more about Icelandic place names and their meanings here.

Here’s the stuff you should do

Here’s a map I made of all the stuff we did (or at least the stuff I’d recommend doing - I left out a bunch of things that I don’t think were worth it). If you’re going in the summer, you’ll probably want to do things a little differently (like, you should go whale watching and find some puffins) but I think in general the highlights are the same.

If you have about a week there, you have enough time to spend a few days in Reykjavik and then either head up to the northwest (where the fjords are) or the southeast (where the glaciers are). We did the latter and I feel good about it, but if I went back I’d definitely go up to the north because I think there’s a lot of cool things to see up there too.

Here’s the stuff we did

If you want a super detailed list of all the things we did, here it is. I hope this is helpful!

Day 1: Airport & Reykjavik

Good thing I had a Bloody Mary in the airport in NYC because bloodies do not exist on Icelandic planes (or in Iceland, for that matter).

Landed at Keflavik airport and, as I mentioned, drove to Reykjavik and spent most of the morning being essentially homeless and sleeping in our car in a mall parking lot. Felt considerably better after sleeping.

Went to the Icelandic Phallological Museum, which I can’t in good faith recommend, but I also know nothing could have stopped me from going, so just go ahead.

Checked in to our incredible airbnb, which I highly recommend if you’re staying in Reykjavik and it’s available. Central location, beautiful high ceilings, comfy couch, big tv, nice kitchen, the works. They even left us some skyr in the fridge!

Ran around Reykjavik and got drinks at The Lebowski Bar (overpriced and overcrowded, but still cool to see), Bar 7 (a very strange place that’s sort of a museum and gave us super cheap drinks one night and ridiculously overpriced drinks another time), and Monako (a tiny casino bar where everyone stared at us and it was filled with cigarette smoke but we enjoyed it).

The airbnb owners also run an awesome bar/restaurant downstairs called Vitabar, where we had dinner and which we loved. Good burgers and (relatively) cheap drinks. Also one of the few places we found in Reykjavik that wasn’t extremely crowded.

Day 2: Golden Circle

We got coffee at a chain called Kaffitar, which has good coffee but is extremely disorganized and takes forever so I can’t super recommend it. And their food is not good.

Then, we got in the car and drove THE GOLDEN CIRCLE, which is the most popular thing to do in Iceland and probably my favorite thing that we did. You drive a bit outside of Reykjavik and make a bunch of stops around what’s roughly a circle, getting to see a ton of different landmarks and cool things along the way. One of my favorite things we saw was just a big old snowy field that we got to run around in.

First, we drove through þingvellir National Park, which didn’t really do it for me but you can’t really avoid so drive through it I guess.

Then we stopped at the Laugarvatn Fontana which was AMAZING. It’s a small hot spring with a bunch of different pools (as well as a cold lake you can jump in) and fresh hot bread that they bake right in the sand next to you. I loved the hot springs, I loved the food, I even bought some of their lotion. The only downside is that (like with every other hot spring) you have to shower naked with a bunch of strangers, but this actually didn’t bother me as much as I thought it would.

Went to Geysir, which is the geyser after which all other geysers are named. It actually doesn’t go off anymore, but there’s a bunch of other ones right there that do and one in particular rewarded us with a pretty impressive blast every few minutes. Worth seeing for sure. (This may not look big until you notice how tiny all the people are.)

Stopped at Gullfoss Falls (a bit redundant if you’re paying attention), which was very beautiful but probably much more fun in the summer. It was freezing up there.

Went to Kerið Crater Lake, which I loved. I am a sucker for crater lakes. It’s beautiful and you get to walk RIGHT down to the lake, which (like most things in Iceland) is as dangerous as it sounds.

At some point, we also drove by some horses which I got to pet and feed. This was the highlight of my entire week. Icelandic horses are the best.

On our way back to Reykjavik, we stopped at a Vínbúðin (the state-run chain of liquor stores) to stock up on very expensive alcohol for our airbnb. They have very wacky hours (like, 12-4 in some cases) so make sure you plan ahead. We had to race against the clock and got there 2 minutes before they closed.

Had dinner at Icelandic Fish & Chips, which was great but not the best fish & chips I had in Iceland. The cool part though was that I got to order NINE DIPS to eat with my dinner. That was fun.

Got drinks at Gamli Gaukurinn, a cool cocktail bar that wasn’t too crowded, had a relaxed vibe, and good music. Only downside was that they had very sketchy bathrooms that everyone could see into. So I did not pee there.

Wandered over to the Hallgrímskirkja (Hallgrimur’s Church), which is very worth seeing in person.

Day 3: The Road to Vik

We attempted to go to the Laundromat Cafe, which seems cool, but which was incredibly crowded like everything else in Reykjavik. We actually wandered around for like an hour trying to find somewhere to eat breakfast and couldn’t find anywhere without a long line of people already waiting. UNTIL we came across Prikið, which was awesome and I don’t understand why it had open seats. Their Breakfast of Champions was one of the best things I ate in Iceland.

On our way out of Reykjavik, we checked out Perlan (”the pearl”), which used to be a restaurant in a rotating glass building that overlooks all of Reykjavik. The restaurant is closed permanently, but they’re working on turning it into a museum and for now you can still go in and get coffee and walk around. The views were incredible.

We drove to Seljalandsfoss, my absolute favorite nature-y thing in Iceland. It’s a huge gorgeous waterfall and on the day we went there it was sunny and covered in rainbows. You can walk up next to it and get sprayed by the water, and you can walk down around the mountain to find other waterfalls and a cool little cave you can walk right into.

When we got to Vik (a small town in the south coast of Iceland which is right in the middle of Reykjavik and the glacier lagoons to the east), we stopped by Dyrholaey, which has some beautiful and dramatic rock formations, and which is a hot spot for puffins. Sadly, we found out that the puffins don’t show up until spring, so I didn’t get to see any. But we did get to almost die in the strong winds up on the cliffs!

We checked into our hotel (Hotel Edda Vik), which we hated, but luckily we were able to switch to a room in the Icelandair Hotel for our 2nd night in Vik. I would not recommend the Edda, which literally felt like sleeping in a hospital room. We went to a little local restaurant called Halldorskaffi, where we had expensive but delicious fresh fish. Their wine was terrible, but that’s ok, Iceland is not known for its wine.

We also hung out in the Icelandair hotel bar, where they gave us some hákarl (rotten shark) to try. I did not eat it. Erik did. It smelled horrible. We also tried some of the local drinks, like Brennivin (”Wash down the shark with it.” “Oh, will that help the taste?” “No, that actually tastes worse than the shark.”) and birch schnapps. If I were you, I wouldn’t taste any of this stuff, but I know you’ll do it anyway.

Day 4: Skogar & Seljavallalaug

Outside of the Golden Circle, this was my favorite day of the trip. First, we went to the Black Sand Beach outside of Vik, which is incredibly beautiful and where we invented a new sport that involved trying to guess which of the tourists would get swept out by a sneaker wave next. (NEVER TURN YOUR BACK TO THE OCEAN.) We also popped into the Black Sand Restaurant to taste some traditional lamb soup, which I did not enjoy because I felt bad for the lambs.

Then we went to the tiny town of Skogar, which is a delightful spot nestled in between a couple mountains. They have a waterfall there (Skogafoss, predictably) which we didn’t care about seeing because we were sick of waterfalls, BUT they had an amazing museum which I highly, highly recommend stopping for. One part is a transportation museum, which was really cool. But the other part is a “folk museum” with Viking relics and intact houses showing you how the original Icelanders lived. We got to peek into a bunch of houses, a schoolhouse, and lots more. It was great.

We ate at the little food truck in Skogar (”Mia’s Country Grill”) because it was the only thing in town, but it ended up being the best fish & chips I ate in Iceland. (Fish & chips are literally the only thing on the menu.) It was so lovely eating fish & chips outside and watching the waterfall and the mountains, but we got lucky with the weather that day so I don’t know if that’s a normal occurrence.

Then, we went to Seljavallalaug, which is a hidden little pool made out of a hot spring that you have to hike ~20 minutes to get to. (We were previously warned that we had to ford a river to get to it, and that part ended up being a little scary, but otherwise it’s an easy hike.) I think this is worth the trip, but you should know two things: 1) this is less of a hot spring and more of a lukewarm pool, so it’s not the greatest when you’re already cold, and 2) you have to change in some seriously grimy changing rooms that have doors that don’t close all the way, let alone lock in any way. But it’s all part of the adventure, right? We also met a great dog there who seems to live on the road on the way to the pool.

Afterwards we stopped at the restaurant at Hotel Anna a little to the west and I ate the best tomato soup of my entire life. Seriously, if I were you I would drive very far out of my way to eat that tomato soup.

We attempted to get dinner in Vik at the end of the day, but every restaurant was closed, so we ate premade sandwiches they sold in the Icelandair Hotel lobby. Not my favorite dinner.

Day 5: Fosshotel Glacier Lagoon

We got back on the road and drove towards the glacier lagoons in the southeast. On the way there, we drove through Eldhraun (the lava fields), which I had imagined would be red and black but instead were covered in moss and therefore a shocking and beautiful green. We got out and ran around the fields (it’s really fun because the thick moss makes everything so bouncy) and found a tiny little forest to explore. A recommended stop for sure.

We drove out to Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon, which is supposed to be beautiful, but I became incensed when the bathrooms were closed for the winter so we ended up leaving instead of hiking. But what we saw was very nice!

We stopped off for lunch in the little town of Kirkjubæjarklaustur and ate at a restaurant called Systrakaffi, where I had a giant bowl of vegetable soup followed by a giant fish and baked potato that I very much enjoyed.

Unfortunately, a few minutes after this, Erik made me hike up a mountain in Vatnajökull National Park to see Svartifoss (the black waterfall) and I regretted my giant lunch. But the waterfall was very beautiful. The only downside is that, like everything else, the waterfall was totally overrun by rude tourists climbing all over the rocks, so we didn’t enjoy it as much as we might have.

On our way out of the park, we stopped at Svinafellsjokull, a beautiful and bright blue glacier lagoon that was really stunning. (I think most people miss this one on their way to Jokulsarlon, but I thought this one was actually more impressive.)

After this, we continued on our way to our hotel, the Fosshotel Glacier Lagoon, which was my favorite place we stayed in Iceland. It’s nestled under a foggy mountain (very dramatic), has beautiful high-ceilinged rooms, and provided us with a delightful happy hour and a really amazing dinner. We felt no need to leave the hotel once we got there.

Day 6: Glacier Lagoons & Reykjavik

We stopped at the famous Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon and the Diamond Beach right across the street. Both were really beautiful and striking, but I think we had seen so many amazing sights at this point that we were a little underwhelmed. If this is the only thing you’re coming to the southeast for, I’m honestly not sure it’s worth the trip.

We stopped in Vik for lunch on our way back but couldn’t find a table anywhere other than our old stomping grounds, Halldorskoffi, so we just ate there again. I liked it less this time.

We drove all the way through to Reykjavik because we wanted to maximize our remaining time in town. Once we got there, we checked in to the Icelandair Hotel Reykjavik Marina (which we loved) and had a drink in the lobby bar, Slippbarinn, which is definitely the nicest and most varied cocktail bar in Reykjavik.

We stopped into the Punk Rock Museum, where you should absolutely not waste your time.

We had dinner at Old Iceland, which was THE most incredible dinner we had the whole week. I started with shellfish soup which had dill oil (!) on it and was out of this world, and then had a just ridiculous fish and mashed potato entree that was so good I wish I could eat it forever.

Day 7: Reykjavik

On our last morning, we actually had a reservation at the Blue Lagoon (that big famous hot spring everyone will tell you about) but decided not to go because we wanted to spend more time in the city. I don’t regret not going to the Blue Lagoon - the reviews are really mixed, it’s supposed to be incredibly crowded, and I really can’t imagine how it could be better than the experience we’d already had at Laugarvatn.

We spent the morning buying a few presents for friends (and I really seriously considered buying a reindeer rug) and just wandering around enjoying the city (it was another beautiful day) and then headed to the airport. I think a week was the PERFECT amount of time because by the last day I was totally ready to go home.

So: is it worth it or what?

I think that if you have a searing need in your heart to see Iceland, you should go to Iceland. But if you’re just looking for a vacation or an adventure, there are many places you can go which are cheaper and less of a pain. It’s beautiful, and I had a good time, but I’m not sure that I would go again or that I would recommend that anyone else definitely go. Also, we didn’t get to see the Northern Lights even though we were there in the winter, which was a bummer - so definitely don’t go just for that experience.

All that said, if you go, you will have a good time. You will also spend a lot of money and have a lot of inconveniences. So you need to decide if that’s the right vacation for you! For me, it probably wasn’t the right call, but we still had a great time.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

#writing #travel #iceland

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