Photo Ops, or The Reason It Takes So Long To Get AnywherE In Iceland.

Iceland is stunning that is certain but the combination of snow, blue skies and incredible cloud formations mean that every trip takes much longer than you expect.

Whilst fantastic photo opportunities arise constantly, and you will regularly hear cries of "stop the car", remember that there are many blind hills in Iceland, so be careful where you stop, in order to avoid being rear ended!

My travel companion took some great shots,  one that caused some concern, was when he lay down in the middle of the road, the photo was great, although I was a little concerned that a car would appear from nowhere and flatten him.

He also insisted that he only wanted photos of Icelandic horses if they were in a herd, on a small hill, with no buildings nearby and no fence to get in the way of the photo. I cannot tell you how many herds of horses were deemed not good enough.

The above two photos above this text were taken within minutes of each other. There can be pitch black and stormy clouds out to sea and snow capped mountains and blue skies if you look out the other side of the car, it is quite something.

These photos were taken on the coast road from the Silica Hotel, as Barbara said, it was a beautiful day for a drive well, apart from the “White Out”.

If driving the coast road, be sure to turn off to visit Strandarkirkja, a small 12th century church located on a treacherous part of the coastline. The story of the church is fascinating and draws many visitors:

Hundreds of years ago some sailors were caught in rough seas and fought hard to find their way back to land safely. They prayed to God for a safe return and and promised to build a church wherever they landed. At the end of their prayer, a shaft of light appeared, was it an angel? The light guided them away from the dangerous reefs and through the rough seas. They landed safely and kept their promise, building the little church called Strandarkirkja.

You can climb up on to the rocks to see what the sailors were up against.