Who goes to
Iceland? Isn’t it near Greenland?
It wasn’t until
recently that Iceland has become a general tourist attraction. It’s in the
sub-arctic, sandwiched between England and Greenland. I had been told by people
who have been there that it is a land of geysers, waterfalls, and lava fields. Although
the pictures they showed me were amazing, I was still hesitant to go. I love
trees, but Iceland lost its trees when Viking settlers cut down the forests
that covered one-quarter of the countryside. But after being grounded by Covid
for two years, and after finding that there were kosher tours of Iceland, I
decided to visit two countries in one summer, first Iceland and then
Switzerland. I had a vague sense that Iceland, even if it left me breathless,
would leave me feeling empty.
Flying from Tel
Aviv to Zurich takes four hours and 20 minutes. In contrast, it takes seven
hours and 25 minutes to fly to Reykjavik. Icelandair has non-stops from Israel.
Our flight left at 11:10 a.m. and arrived at 3:30 p.m., Iceland time. (Israel
is three hours ahead of Iceland.) I took with me Shloimy, 20 years old, as a
companion. I have been taking him and his brothers on tiyulim throughout Israel since they were in cheder. I am friendly with their father, the head of a large, poor chareidi family, who tells his kids to
call me Dode (Uncle) Sam. This was the first time Shloimy ever flew in
an airplane. Just observing the excitement in his eyes enhanced the trip!
Icelandair comes
across to me as a grade-B airline – even the business class seemed wanting. But
it was the only direct route to Reykjavik. Shloimy was thrilled to see the
world for the first time from above the clouds, where the sun is always
shining.
We unpacked in the
hotel and joined the group to take a chartered bus to our attraction called “Fly Over Iceland.”* As the website
states:
You will hang suspended, feet dangling,
before a 20-meter spherical screen while our film whisks you away on an
exhilarating journey across Iceland. Special effects, including wind, mist, and
scents, combine with the ride’s motion to create an unforgettable experience.
And that is not an
exaggeration. A definite must see.
It was August, and
the weather was chilly. Throughout our trip the highest temperatures we
encountered ranged from 12 to 14 degrees Celsius (53 to 57 degrees Fahrenheit).
That was a welcome change from the 90 degrees-plus sweltering heat in Israel.
The weather was exceptionally good for Iceland – that is, it was sunny. The
Scandinavian barebones architecture seemed to match the barrenness of the
landscape. And when it gets cloudy – which I read happens quite often – then
you have a really drab scene to make your eyes sore.
The days are very
long. Sunrise was at 4:20 a.m., and sunset was around 10:20 p.m. Shabbos got
out at 11:45 p.m. Looking out the window at 11:20 pm and still seeing light on
the horizon was a marvel!
Every day, it was
the same routine. First Shacharis, then breakfast, then we packed for lunch,
then met in the lobby for the bus to take us to the sights. The advantage of a
group is that you have an abundance of kosher food, so you don’t have to
prepare or cook. You have a minyan and a clearly thought-out itinerary – no small
things. The disadvantage – you are the mercy of the itinerary and timing of the
tour organizer.
* * *
The beauty in
Iceland is in its starkness. There are very few trees there. There are
interesting rock formations, other-worldly lava fields from extinct and not-so-extinct
volcanoes, and grass covered mountains. But no trees, except for a few patches
here and there. It’s like going back in time to the days of Creation, before
the earth gave forth trees. The barrenness was hauntingly beautiful and awe
inspiring, but it did not rejuvenate
me.
One of the main
tourist attractions is the south coast of Iceland. There we saw, among other
things, the Seljalandsfoss
waterfalls – stunning, but no match for Niagara. We also visited the Dyrhólaey Peninsula, where we got a
glimpse of a cute bird connected to Iceland, the puffin. Eighty percent of the
world’s puffins are found in Iceland. You need a camera with a telescopic lens
to really get a close up of the creature.
I tried to impress
on Shloimy that this wasn’t a break from yeshiva (he learns in Bnei Brak) but part of yeshiva. He was
experiencing G-d through His magnificent creations. On the day we saw both a
geyser and a distant glacier, I asked him what verse comes to mind. He gave me
the standard verse from Tehilim 104: “How
great are Your works, O Lord!”
I said, “Shloimy,
you can do better than that!”
He asked, “Like
what?”
I said, “Fire and hail, snow and steam, a storm wind, performing His word.”
(Tehilim 148)
It was in the
stunning Vatnajökull National Park
in the southeast area of Iceland that I felt the special mystique of the island
country. If you have only two or three days to be in Iceland, that’s where I
would recommend that you go. Jökulsárlón
is in the southern area of the park – an eight-square-kilometer glacial lagoon
with many floating icebergs. There’s an amphibian boat ride that takes you past
the glaciers. The mountains are also stunning. It is far away from Reykjavik.
The distance from Reykjavik to the outskirts of Vatnajökull National Park is
about 320 km (200 miles), and the drive can take anywhere between four and
seven hours, depending on the weather, conditions, and time of year. Best bet
if you are very limited for time is to go by plane.
* * *
I was looking
forward to Shabbos. But as it turned out, Shabbos was not so simple. We were
supposed to daven and eat at Chabad, about a 10 minute walk from the hotel. My
room was on the eighth floor. I assumed that there would be no problem with
sensors turning on lights. We were, after all, a shomer Shabbos group, and
so was the tour operator. Of course, he must have taken care of this!
The electronic
door to the hotel room was not an issue, because we left the keycard in the
slot the whole Shabbos, and covered the latch so that the door would not lock
when it was closed. An hour before Shabbos, it dawned on me that there were
lights activated by sensors in the floor corridor as well as in the stairwell
going to the lobby. I panicked. I had heard the day before from a rabbi from
Lakewood who was not part of our group that there was a leniency for the floor
corridor if some light was coming in from the outside – which was the case. But
that did not extend to the emergency stairway which was pitch black. Of course,
the Iceland hotel did not have a Shabbos elevator. After texting the tour
operator, I tried calling him, but he hung up on me. (Even if he was busy, he
should have gotten back to me.) The thought of spending 25 hours in my room and
starving scared me. I went down the hallway to the stairwell, and when I opened
the door the lights went on. Oy vey! Frantically, I ran down the other half of
the hallway and saw a door with a handicap sign on it. Curious, I opened the
door, and instead of a room, I found another stairwell where the lights were
always on. I walked down eight flights and came to a door with a rusty lock. I
opened it and found myself at the side of the building. The door would not
close behind me completely. There was a security breach, but the Shabbos issue
was solved. Even the main entrance to the hotel was controlled electronically.
So I discovered a way to enter the building and get up to my room. I was lucky,
but other travelers might not be. Before signing up on a tour, ask the operator
the Shabbos questions. Maybe even ask for the contact info of a previous
client. And speak to your rav before
you go.
A week later, I
spoke to Rav Asher Weiss and asked him what I should have done if there had
been no second stairwell with the lights always on. He told me that he had no
easy or simple answers for me. He even said that he was asked to preside over a
din Torah initiated by a tour
operator who got an apartment for a client somewhere in Europe. The client, who
was shomer Shabbos, didn’t want to
pay him because of the problem with the lights. He claimed that the tour
operator should have known better. The tour operator claimed that the client should have known
better, because in Europe it is very difficult to find a place without the
lights problem.
* * *
One of the
highlights for me in Iceland was meeting with and seeing the work of the local
Chabad shaliach. Until Chabad came to
Iceland a few years ago, there was no place a traveler could get a hot kosher
meal. Now, nearly all the kosher tour groups rely on them. There are about 400
assimilated Jews on the island. They never built a synagogue. But some of them
would get together on Tu B’Av! (For more about Chabad’s important work and to
book meals with them, go to www.jewishiceland.com.) The
Chabad House looks very dilapidated, but it was brimming with visitors from all
over the world. I was very moved by the dedication of the Chabad emissary,
Rabbi Avi Feldman and his family. Besides the catering they did for visitors
and the shul services, they ran a summer camp for the local Jewish children and
did a host of educational activities. The Shabbos meals they served were
delicious!
While I found
Iceland a land of geological wonders, I really missed the trees of Switzerland.
The lack of trees made me feel empty inside. One lesson I took out of Iceland:
What makes the island unique is that so much of what we observe above is caused
by forces that are hidden far below. The “solid” continents are really moving
on tectonic plates. Thingvellir
National Park is where you can see how the Eurasian and North American
tectonic plates are colliding. Deildartunguhver,
the most powerful hot spring in Europe, is caused by thermal heat from deep
within the ground. Lava fields come from volcanic eruptions of molten or
partially molten rock (magma) that has been expelled from the deep interior. We
only saw the tips of the icebergs floating in the water. The biggest part of
icebergs lies beneath the water’s surface. I took from all that how we can’t
really judge people, even by their actions. Beneath the visible action lies so
many “underground,” hidden forces, such as DNA, family environment, and past experiences.
Who am I to judge whether a person should have acted differently? This is
especially true as we approach the Days of Awe and realize that only G-d has
the ability to judge our actions.
To
sum up my personal feelings about this trip: While the hot thermal springs,
geysers, and waterfalls were beautiful and impressive, I didn’t like to shlepping on a bus for two or more hours
to spend 30 minutes in each place, including 10 minutes for the restroom stops.
And none of the waterfalls matches Niagara or Victoria Falls. And if you want
geysers – better go to Yellowstone National park in Wyoming and enjoy “Old
Faithful,” rather than shlep to the
northern fringe of the world.
If
you want to experience a place that’s different, go to Iceland. But if you want
to reinvigorate yourself with the beauty of nature, you’re better off going to
Switzerland. It’s expensive but far cheaper than Iceland, and you’ll have your
fair share of waterfalls.
