September 12th, 2015
Destination? Iceland, The Golden Circle, Pingvellir National Park, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Tectonic Plates, Southwest Iceland, First Stop
Arriving in Reykjavik so early in the morning, and, a bit comatosed. All I could think of was when will I be able to hit the pillow. I had the whole day ahead. My son said “Mom, you look tired”. You think? First a little sustenance to keep us going….Did I tell you I met my youngest son there? Yes, I would be in good company for sure. So out from the Alda Hotel we went, stopping at this little comfortable eatery in town.
My son had salmon with rice, sweet potatoes, veggies, salad and sauce.
I decided on the fish stew, which was different from what you would consider a stew to be. So good!! It also came with sweet potatoes, veggies and fruit salad. This is exactly what I needed, more so since we were going on a 6 1/2 hour tour.
Pingvellir National Park is the most important site in Iceland in terms of history, culture, and geology. It is a UNESCO world heritage site. It is home of Iceland’s largest natural lake and the place where the tectonic plates of North America and Eurasia split and drift apart.
The property includes Pingvellir Church and adjacent farm.
It is also where the Althing, an open-air assembly representing the whole of Iceland was established in 930 and continued to meet until 1798. Two weeks a year to set laws, seen as a covenant between free men, and settle disputes.
A small hill marked by the Icelandic flag seems to be the location where these meetings took place. A rock outcropping called the Law Rock, or Logberg. The law speaker recited the laws. Public speeches and announcements were also made here.
The rock cliff behind the speaker directed his voice, allowing him to be heard. Laws and legal procedures varied from one Norse land to another. They changed and evolved throughout the Norse period. We know more about law in Iceland during this period than other lands because more was written about it.
Iceland is probably the only place in the world where the effects of two major tectonic plates drifting apart can easily be observed above sea level. The tectonic plates which formed Iceland, are the Eurasian tectonic plate and the North Amrican tectonic plate. We were on the North American tectonic plate and after walking we drove with our tour guide and Gray Line to the other side.
Please note that as the plates move apart, excessive eruptions of lava constructed volcanoes and filled rift valleys. Iceland is the largest island on the ridge because of the additonal volcanism caused by the hot spot beneath the country, which slowly moves towards the northwest. As we were driving back and the end of the evening, we saw orange lights and the guide told us that those were small eruptions which happen all the time.
This national park shows evidence of the way the landscape was over 1,000 years.
Next stop? The Geyser
Note: Information for this post was taken from UNESCO and Icelandic on the Web.
Traveling to Iceland? Do not forget your outerwear. Talk to you later.
Tags: Activities, Destination Reykjavik, Iceland, Pingvellir National Park, Southwest Iceland, Tectonic Plates, The Golden Circle Tour, Travel Iceland, UNESCO, UNESCO Word Heritage Site, Visit Reykjavik
