Archives for August 2014 |

August 12, 2014

A Hidden Gem in Iceland

A few weekends ago H and I headed off early one Sunday morning with H’s mom for a day trip in the South of Iceland. H’s mom is a certified guide here in Iceland so we had our own personal tour guide to show us around for the day.

Our plan was to head towards Landmannalaugar and spend the day hiking. After stopping at a tourist information center along the way and being told of a few new to all of us places we made some changes to our plans, pulled out the map and headed off on a mission to find these recommend stops.

A little tip to anyone traveling in this area, just follow along the river Þjórsá and you will be able to find these beautiful places!

Þjórsá, Iceland’s longest river

Our first stop on our newly updated agenda was the waterfall Hjálparfoss. Look carefully for the sign to this waterfall or you might drive by it and miss it as the waterfall is not visible from the road. When we turned down the bumpy gravel road I was sure we were lost but after the first turn you find yourself right in front of this beautiful view.

Hjálparfoss, Iceland

As soon as the car was parked I was off and running around snapping pictures and giggling like a little girl. Something about waterfalls and stunning landscapes brings out my inner child.

After I wore myself out climbing up rocks to get the perfect picture and having H take a dozen pictures of me jumping in front of the waterfall our stomachs told us it was time to have lunch. And what better place to have a picnic than in front of a waterfall with a beautiful river and mountains around you?

Once our bellies where full (and the wind started to pick up) we packed our bags, took a few more photos and said goodbye to the charming Hjálparfoss.

Our next stop was described to us as “the most beautiful place in Iceland” by the man working at the tourist information center. That statement set the bar quite high and I will be honest, I wasn’t expecting much when we set out on a short hike in search of Gjáin.

The hike takes you along a small river with tasty blueberries and beautiful vegetation along the way. I recommend stopping to snack on the blueberries if they are in season, you need to keep your energy up!

After walking for 15 minutes with nothing in sight but the river next to us my hopes for this amazing place were starting to dwindle. When we saw some waterfalls in the distance I put a little pep in my step to reach the end of the path and see what awaited us.

Not too impressive from a distance but after walking for another 10 minutes and climbing one last small hill we finally arrived at Gjáin. And now I am going to be totally cliche and say my breath was taken away by the view that greeted us.

Does this not look like a place that belongs in a fairytale? This picture doesn’t do Gjáin justice, I fully agree with the tourist information man when I say this is the most beautiful place I have seen in Iceland so far! I am already planning my next trip back to this hidden gem so I can do more exploring of this area.

If you are interested in visiting Gjáin follow the directions to get to the historical Icelandic farm Stöng. From there you walk for about 30 minutes and then you will arrive in your own fairytale!

Question of the Day?
Have you found any hidden gems in your area or while traveling?

Linking up with Travel Tuesday

posted by Kiki 43 Comments
Filed Under: Iceland, Travel, Travel Tuesday Tagged: Iceland, South of Iceland, travel

August 11, 2014

One Hectic Summer

Things around Unlocking Kiki have been a bit slow lately. By a bit slow I mean non-existent. Lately I have been lucky to have enough spare time to scan my Instagram feed let alone write a blog post. I have a feeling the rest of August is going be quite hectic, I am already looking forward to September when things calm down a bit!

And with that little explanation out of the way (because I know you all where so very concerned as to where I have been) here is a little update on what has been going on here in Iceland the past few weeks.

Everyday I wake up wishing I could be back in Croatia! Sigh. Moving on to what is actually happening.

…Last week I started back at work after having five weeks off. You would think I felt nice and refreshed and ready to get back to the grind. Well I think the last word I would use to describe how I felt last week was refreshed. Basically back to reality hit me hard in the face and I barely made it into bed before falling asleep. Hopefully this week will a bit easier and I will start getting back into the swing of things.

…Of course right when H and I have to get back to work is when the summer sun decides to make its debut. We have been taking full advantage of the sunshine though with evening bike rides, trips to the swimming pool, and drinks in the backyard while I dominate in the backyard game Kubbur. H and his brother like to claim it is beginners luck, after a week though I think it is time for them to recognize pure talent.

My favorite pool in Reykjavik, Vesturbæjarlaug. If you are here visiting I recommend spending a few hours at this pool, you may even see Björk lounging in the hot pools next you, I have a few times!

It is always happy hour in our backyard

Is that not the face of a winner right there! I don’t mess around when it comes to backyard games.

….The time has finally came for me to start looking into tickets to fly home for Christmas. This is the first time I will be going back home since I moved to Iceland in October. I am beyond excited to see my ~~family and friends~~ Azora again and have been searching the internet this past week looking for the best deal. Christmas can’t come soon enough!

…After hearing about the awesome Gay Pride Day celebration that Reykjavik has every summer I finally got to experience it for myself. I have never seen so many people in the downtown Reykjavik area, the day was 10 times bigger than Iceland’s Independence Day in June! My favorite part of the celebration was the parade full of colorful floats, fun music, and of course amazing costumes! I really love the equal rights for all Iceland stands for, it is a great place to live. And any parade that has floats shooting purple confetti is amazing in my book!

…As if I don’t have enough going on this month already I have signed myself up to run a women’s club with a friend of mine. I will now be responsible for planning events for the Girls Gone International Reykjavik, Iceland group and I can’t wait to get started and meet some new ladies. If you have never heard of Girls Gone International look them up to see if there is a group in your area! It is an excellent way to meet ladies from all over the world living in your area. Now any ideas for some fun events I should plan?

… H and I are determined to make the most out of the rest of the “summer” we have left. We have hiking trips, blueberry picking, half marathons and outdoor festivals filling up our calendar for the next month, I am not ready for winter to come! Last weekend our plans took us on a 12 hour adventure around the Landmannalaugar area, one of the most beautiful areas I have visited in Iceland. I have lots of wonderful photos to share from that day, including tips to find Iceland’s hidden gem, but for now here is a teaser photo from our hike at Landmannalaugar.

Follow Unlocking Kiki on Instagramfor more beautiful photos of hiking trails in Iceland!

Once I get my feet back under me I have so many wonderful posts lined up to share with you all! And more of the beautiful Croatia is coming your way soon! Stay tuned.

Question of the Day?
Has your summer been crazy busy or nice and relaxing? What are your favorite summertime activities?

posted by Kiki 30 Comments
Filed Under: Blogging, Iceland, Loving Lately, My Thoughts, Travel Tagged: hiking, Iceland, Summer

August 5, 2014

Finding Grk in Croatia

Korcula was the first island H and I visited in Croatia and by far my favorite place we stayed in Croatia. Along with gorgeous beaches and stunning views Korcula is also known for its white wine, Grk. Grk is produced from a white grape called, Grk, and is mainly found on the island of Korcula. As a wine lover that has tasted wine in several different countries I knew my time in Korcula would need to include sampling some (okay a lot) of the local wine.

We had set aside a day to head off for wine tasting at the local vineyards on Korcula, many of which can be found about 7 km away in a small town called Lumbarda. We rented bikes, packed our bags, and headed off nice and early since I couldn’t wait any longer to get the day started!

It is about a 40 minute bike ride to get to Lumbarda but the views along the way make the time fly by.

Stunning right?

Since my eagerness had us arriving a few hours before many of the tasting rooms at the wineries opened we decided to check out one of the local beaches in Lumbarda while we waited. To get to the beach from town we rode our bikes about 2 km into the countryside, and with fields of vineyards along the way I felt like I was in a movie riding my bike through the beautiful fields in Tuscany!

When we arrived at the beach we were hot and sweaty and ready to take a dip in the beautiful blue water. I recommend arriving early, the beaches fill up fast but since we were quite early (we arrived before 10 am) we were able to enjoy a mostly empty beach before it filled up when we left around noon.

And then it was finally time to pack up and head off for some wine tasting! As I was getting on my bike to take off H delivered some terrible news. His bike tire had gone flat! Okay so not that terrible but since his bike tire was flat we needed to get back into town to find a pump meaning my wine tasting plan was off the schedule for the afternoon. I am not going to lie, as we walked our bikes back into town I thought about ducking into a few wineries on my own along the way but I didn’t want to ditch H (okay I couldn’t remember the way back home) so back to Korcula we went.

Fast forward to that evening and H and I had just finished another delicious meal and were wandering the small streets in Korcula before heading in for the night. I was still quite bummed about not being able to go wine tasting but was more than happy wandering the charming streets of Korcula when H and I heard some music coming from the end of a dark small street.

Curiosity got the best of us after we saw a couple walk up this street carrying wine glasses, of course we had to see where they had gotten these wine glasses! Pure joy is the best way to describe how I felt when we rounded the corner at the end of the long street and stumbled upon a local wine festival!

In a small square we found almost 20 wineries offering samples of their best wines. A live band serenaded us while we sipped our wine. Locals greeted their neighbors with loud conversations and hugs, girls dressed in elaborate outfits handing out the most delicious bread, and there was enough wine to keep my happy for a lifetime. You never would have guessed this was a Sunday!

Stumbling on this festival and sipping local wine with those who live on the island was an experience I will never forget. You never know what traveling will bring your way but no matter what things always seem to work out for the best.