With the second fundraising deadline successfully completed, the trip to Iceland seems more tangible--I am actually going to Iceland! In 3 months! I've been researching online and in the bookstores; places to go and things to do. It seems the country is full of amazingly beautiful "must see" places; I confess I still can't remember most of them--the exotic sounding names (never mind the pronunciation!) are still working their way into my brain...but I have found some very interesting things to do! Did you know you can attend Elf School? "Alfaskolinn" in Reykjavik, run by Magnus Skarphedinsson. Half day courses teach about the hidden people, trolls and elves and how to identify them. You even receive a certificate upon completion. (Put that on your resume!)
CADIP (Canadian Alliance for Development Initiatives and Projects www.cadip.org) is a non-profit organization based in Vancouver, BC whose mission is to promote peace, cooperation, tolerance and understanding through various charity, volunteer and youth initiatives, in multi-cultural, multi-ethnic and international surroundings. The organization also promotes patterns and examples of civil activities focused on serving others, on building social ties and strengthening communities, on supporting civil society development.
And they offer amazing volunteer programs! Here's a few of them:
Living next to a volcano
Eyjafjallajökull --yes, THAT volcano! Part of the volunteer work will be to assist in clean-up.
Creating recreational spaces using Viking crafts skills and traditional materialsThe concept is to use Icelandic, natural and local materials for the landscaping and the interior, i.e. turf, soil, rocks and wood. Volunteers will receive lessons in turf cutting and turf-walling, which is a traditional Icelandic craft, then produce turf material and build a turf wall.
Building hiking trails in the Land of elves and fairies
The area is very famous for stories of elves. Locals even believe that the queen of Icelandic Elves lived in the town. Álfaborg (Elf Rock), a small nature reserve is a tourist highlight of the area until now. Close to the town, you can also find the Islet Hafnarhólmi, a puffin colony with 10,000 pairs.
The lighthouse at the end of the world
Crawling Valley & "Flying balls" Rock festival
(???FLYING BALLS???)
Organic gardening and forestry activities in the Solheimar Eco-village
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Environmental activities at the foot of Trolls’ Headland Mountain
Water, nature and sustainable energy
End of the World, Worlds of Fire, Flying Balls, Trolls, Elves and Fairies; with Organic Gardening and Sustainable Energy--just to balance things out! As well as my two personal favorites:
1) Forestry and gardening activities in the Rehabilitation and Health Clinic in Hveragerdi
This friendly little community sits on top of a highly active geothermal field which provides heat for hundreds of greenhouses where fruit, flowers and vegetables are produced throughout the year. Even bananas grow in these greenhouses! The name Hveragerði means ‘hot springs garden.’ Geothermal energy is Hveragerði’s lifeblood, and you probably won’t find such a natural wonder in the middle of a populated area anywhere else in the world. The whole valley explodes with hot springs, geysers, mud pots, fumaroles and steaming vents. Our host is the Rehabilitation and Health Clinic which is a part of the Nature Health Association of Iceland located in Hveragerdi.
The Clinic does its best to meet the needs of all guests by enhancing their physical as well as mental well being. The basic philosophy is to build up clients’ health and improve their quality of life and well being. The approach builds self-confidence and individual awareness of the fact that only he or she is responsible for his/her own health.
Mud baths, herbal baths, therapeutic massage and lymphatic drainage massage are some of the special therapies used in combination with other treatments. The association has a horticultural and environmental department with forestry and greenhouses.
2)The power of the runes
The aim of the project is to give to the participants the opportunity to learn about the myths and legends of Runes and the old Viking religion. We will create Runes out of Icelandic volcanic magic stones. First you travel around to special sites to collect the stones!
I'M GOING TO LOVE THIS COUNTRY!
Discovered some incredible photos today (including those above) by Trey Ratcliff on his blog:
http://www.stuckincustoms.com/category/travel/iceland/
more of his work to follow!
