When I first landed in Iceland, most of the shops and restaurants were closed. I asked someone on the street in Reykjavik as to why, and they told me it was the first day of Icelandic Summer, or sumardagurrin fyrsti, which is a national holiday.

I spent a whole week driving solo across Western and Southern Iceland. The weather was brisk and chaotic. Every drive took twice as long because I kept pulling over or taking detours. I hung out with horses (and rode one), the wind nearly blew my car door off at one point, and I ate lots of pickled herring and Icelandic hot dogs.

April, 2023.