My Internal Compass Points North

My Scholarship entry - A 'place' I have visited

ICELAND | Sunday, 30 June 2013 | Views [279] | View Larger Image

Reaching the biggest glacier in Europe is at first, a shock. To be face to face with such a monstrous and beautiful creature. You can almost feel it living and breathing on you. It feels like the only living creature for miles. This camper had parked next to a lake filled with calved icebergs and apparently spent the night in their company, and their company alone.

The strange, vast, lonely, emptiness of Iceland is sometimes interrupted by a strange sign of human life, resulting in a surreal image of nature subtly stamped by the footprint of mankind.The precariously placed single glove on top of this warning meant to discourage unattended glacier climbing is both humorous and creepy. Especially after speaking to locals who all seem to have a story to share about an over-confident tourist who went out exploring in the land of fire and ice, to never be seen alive again.

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In Vatnajokull National Park, Iceland, one can go many kilometers without seeing a single soul. A sign on the side of the road tells the story of a massive flood that occurred from a volcanic eruption underneath a glacier which sent water pouring through the valley. This is all that remains of a bridge that once functioned many kilometers upland from where its pieces are now strewn in desolate, isolation. The graffiti and vivid red was stunning against the stark landscape.

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My Internal Compass Points North

My Scholarship entry - A 'place' I have visited

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