Iceland review - 2016, Page 6

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Standing beside Dettifoss waterfall, three
minutes past one in the morning in mid-July,
was one of the highlights of the summer. I
was not quite alone: a woman from France (who
took the above photo) was there, too, witnessing
the best of Icelandic nature.
I had also been at Dettifoss 12 hours earlier.
What a difference in half a day. Then, hundreds of
tourists lined the banks on both sides of this most
powerful waterfall in Europe, enjoying the scenery
at high noon. Falling in love with Icelandic nature. A
few years ago, even on a sunny day in the middle of
July, you would only have seen a handful of visitors
at Dettifoss. Now, more and more of the 1.73
million who are estimated to visit Iceland this year
are ‘discovering’ the destination. Tourist numbers
are up by more than one million in just five short
years.
Even so, you can always find spots to enjoy in
peace and quiet. Like the island of Hrísey in North
Iceland (page 52), where time has a different rhythm
than the rest of the country.
Or, if you love being among people, just stay in
Reykjavík. No part of Iceland has changed as much
as the capital in the last few years. On Laugavegur,
the main shopping street, I sometimes feel that I’m
on another planet. Tourists fill the street, the
souvenir shops, the cafés—and Icelanders seem
few and far between. Among the languages you
hear are Mandarin, Schweizerdeutsch, Swedish, and
all forms of English.
During Reykjavík Pride in early August, you will find
thousands of Icelanders in the city center. This
summer, 60,000 people watched the Pride Parade
(page 6), on August 6. They were from all walks of life
and all sexual identities, and among them the newly-
elected president (page 18). You could feel the love.
Talking about love… Eygló writes about an old love
triangle from the sagas (page 42) and the hidden
history of Icelandic women, who fished commercially
for their love of the sea (page 78). Also in this issue,
Zoë goes driving (page 76), meets Heimir Hallgrímsson
(page 32), one of the two coaches who propelled the
much-loved Icelandic men’s football team to historic
success at Euro 2016 in France, and visits a local
farmers’ market (page 46). We also meet four great
but different artists: Egill Sæbjörnsson (page 12), who
is headed for the 2017 Venice Biennale, actress
Brynhildur Guðjónsdóttir (page 14), young New York-
based electronic musician Úlfur Hansson (page 38)
and Chinese photographer Shu Yi (page 62), who now
calls Iceland her home.
But are all visitors welcomed to Iceland?
What about the polar bears? (page 72).
Páll Stefánsson
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