ICELAND THE ICY DRIVE WITH VOLVO XC 90

ICELAND – The name sends an icy chill up your spine. Driving across the Nordic island nation,we were a group of five, covering over 2000 kilometers in 8 days, cocooned in a SUV offering colossal comfort, off-roading capabilities to help up conquer the extreme driving conditions, and a boot to stock up six medium-sized bags along with vegetarian ammunition.

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Because we were in a country where veggies don’t grow and don’t reach places easily. 356 liters gets converted to 1000 liters with the third row of seats tucked away. Driving a minivan then? Rather, a tank crafted by Volvo. The XC90, our comrade for the ICY DRIVE.

The plan was simple, to drive every day for two to three hours, starting from Reykjavik, checking in and out of hotels, every night. Yes, painful, but the only way to do justice to the mystical landscapes of Iceland.We landed in Reykjavik at 10 in the morning. First stop was the BLUE LAGOON, which is a mere 25-minute drive from the airport, and can take away the worst of jetlags, fatigue, maybe depression and on a serious note, skin diseases like Psoriasis. It’s a preternatural place with snowcapped mountains all around and a geothermal hot water in a blue-tinged pool. Your mind and body are so invigoratingly confused as it relaxes every nerve and senses with -5 degrees’ Celcius temperature above your neck while the remaining part is soaking in warm soothing water rich in salts, algae and silica. The feeling is surreal, an experience which can not be worded. Gorgeous bikini-clad women around you with friendly smiles, but your mind has already transported into the trance of nature with deep questions of life, death, nature, afterlife and life. Even the staunchest of atheist will start feeling mystical.