Now I agree leaving Idaho Falls in the summer is not optimal as it’s the best time of year to be here. But, it turns out Iceland is worth the adventure. It’s beautiful, and we spent hours standing at sites with no other humans in view. With a population less than that of Wyoming, there’s a quiet peace about the country that is matched only by its exquisite beauty. We saw the oldest crucifix in Iceland carved into a cave, baby puffins learning to fly, glaciers that will take your breath away, and so many other things we will never forget. The kind of scenery that makes you go quiet for a second, which, if you know me, is a genuine miracle.
Of course, I also discovered another country where my humor is misunderstood.
Katie: We’ve been on this boat for an hour! When are you going to let the whales out of their cages?
The horrified look from the crewman told me I should let him know I was joking. I chose to double down instead.
Katie: I mean, in the States, we keep all animals locked up until we’re ready to use them. It keeps the tourists happier.
Crewman: In Iceland, we value the animals and their journey.
Katie: Well, I’m glad I’m from America.
He did not laugh. I am not sure he ever recovered.
When we toured the caves of Hella, the caveman was talking about how the “America TikTok” can take small things, such as a minor volcano, and make the world believe that Iceland is completely lost to the ashes, never to be seen again.
Katie: We like things exciting in America. It’s how we keep the passion for life.
Caveman: Even if it’s not true?
Katie: Well, that’s not optimal. But I don’t make the rules. I will take my news served with a side of drama.
And don’t even get me started on the 16-year-old who handed me a bike-rental contract that said helmets were mandatory. I was forced to cross that line out before I signed. On principle.
Bikeman: Helmets in Iceland are mandatory.
Katie: That’s so strange.
Bikeman: Do you want to fall and feel what it’s like to not wear a helmet?
Katie: Oh no, I will be wearing a helmet. I just can’t be told that I have to.
At this point, I heard my sister mutter under her breath, “Don’t ask her about seatbelt laws.”
Katie: Give me your number, I’ll text you some info on the constitution. You can read it at your leisure and then we can discuss.
Bikeman: This is weird.
Katie: You’re weird.
Here’s the part I didn’t expect: for all my grand American theater, Iceland kept quietly winning. Every time I opened my mouth to be a nuisance, the country handed me something impossibly beautiful and I’d forget my whole bit. Hard to keep up the tough-guy routine when you’re standing in front of a glacier that’s older than every argument humans have ever had. For everything great Idaho has to offer, and there’s a lot, traveling adds an appreciation for home.
We laughed so hard that my weak bladder was tested multiple times, which, at my age, counts as an extreme sport. We ate black pizza, which sounds like a dare, but tasted like a delight. We soaked in natural springs until we were pruny and content. We did everything we thought sounded fun, and a few things that sounded questionable but turned out fun anyway.
But more than the puffins and the glaciers and the deeply confused locals, hanging out with some of my favorite people in the world in a beautiful country was everything to me. These are the people who look at a plan involving a latrine, three lap-bags, and a stranger’s grandchild and say, “Yes, obviously.” You don’t find that twice in a lifetime. So I’ll cross out every helmet clause they put in front of me, as long as it’s next to them.