Combo

sophie_deschanelles

ALL THE HOT TUBS ARE BELONG TO US!!!

But seriously, I wasn't planning to get into a single pool during our trip and didn't even take swimwear ,but I got a combo of one each night! (sometimes 2 and sometimes in the morning hehe). Didn't risk going down the 2 cave hot springs we found in pitch darkness, though I did dip a toe in one of them, so I suppose that counts.

Thank you @theanswerisrpm for supporting me on my crazy endeavors and even pushing me forward when I feel like chickening out

#hotsprings #laugur #ísland #iceland #roadtrip #adventure #nightphotography #auroraborealis #naturalhotsprings #venividivici

There's not much current affairs for the Icelandic soakers.

Only Reykjavik Grapevine (Jul. 19) has something recent: an article concerning a bath wear incident at the new Sky Lagoon. The complainant notes that the actions applied contradict Icelands law:

'Visir reports that Diljá Sigurðardóttir and her boyfriend paid a visit to Sky Lagoon last Saturday to celebrate their anniversary. As she frequently swims topless, and has done so for the past five years, she intended to do the same at Sky Lagoon, but took caution and read the spa’s rules of conduct first. Nowhere did it mention any requirement for covering one’s breasts while there; only that a swimsuit is required, which she wore.

Despite this, shortly after they were in the lagoon, an employee approached the couple and told Diljá that she needed to wear a bikini top. She refused, and so the employee retrieved a manager, who repeated the order, explaining that “people of different cultures” use the facility, or she would otherwise be escorted out of the lagoon. Diljá opted to leave voluntarily.

An update was added:

'Sky Lagoon has now decided that they will allow topless bathing for all guests, regardless of gender. Dagný Pétursdóttir, the managing director of Sky Lagoon, thanked the guest in question for pointing out the legal framework'.

And while on the costume subject, there's this experience by Hihostels who shares (Jul. 2) :

'It made sense that Icelanders would be so comfortable in their own skin that nudity among the same sex wouldn’t be a big deal. For the locals, showering while naked in communal, gender-segregated changing rooms was a routine, everyday matter.

Not for me.

...

As soon as the warm water ran down my hair and back, I closed my eyes and began to relax. The soothing force of the water drowned out the voice in my head that told me I needed to be ashamed of my body. Taking my time, I thoroughly scrubbed myself clean.

I can’t explain why or how, but it began to feel like the most natural thing in the world. The other bodies around me didn’t matter. Though there were no curtains separating us, it didn’t feel like we were in each other’s spaces. I turned off the shower, wiped myself dry and put on my bathing suit with no particular urgency'.

It's actually quite a readable account, she then continues with this subject and her experience in Sweden. Sorry a bit off-track:

'As the skies turned rosy, Katharina, one of our two local guides, suggested that we relax in the sauna before dinner in a few hours. “You know, it’s an important part of Swedish culture, and the sauna has an amazing view,” she said, “We have some beers to share,” she added with a wink. While some in the group wore bathing suits, this time, I decided to follow the example of the Swedes. Was I really over feeling ashamed of my body? It was time to find out.

Sweeping aside the initial, tiny bit of hesitation, I got naked, showered, then wrapped a towel around myself, and stepped into the sauna. Inside, a panoramic window overlooked Lake Langas, a pretty expanse of blue surrounded by slopes bursting with bright reds, oranges and yellows.

We passed around bottles of beer, shared life stories and laughed until the tears came. “The bond of the sauna,” someone said. With my towel now spread out below me on the bench, I realized how comfortable I felt in just my skin—love handles, bulging belly, body hair, stretch marks and all. I closed my eyes for a few minutes and felt the sweat trickle down my skin, happy, empowered and grateful for the long way I’d come'.

ellithor

Hot spring days ... @sparklejensen

Now back on track please. TotalIceland (Oct. 26) notes

'It seems the age old custom of bathing and enjoying a swim in anything other than your bare skin has in just ten years given way to horrible looking Speedo´s and various forms of hideous designer bathing suits.

You can no longer bathe naked anywhere here without difficulty; loud screams from Japanese tourists and constant pointing and whispering among people from the United States. And some fancy places as the very expensive Blue Lagoon or Fontana steam baths in Laugarvatn explicitly forbid any kind of nudity.

This is a shame indeed and entirely the fault of the growing number of foreign tourists making demands about civility'.

Blame the foreigners, though there might be some truth in this (see first reference in this blog). Overall it seems societies are becoming more squeamish with how we look like. Thanks also to the so-called social media which enables a body-shaming culture with reference to the north american context. Anything out of this context needs to be tackled so it seems.

The post does note that the further you are away from the tourist trail, the more acceptable your birthday suit practice becomes.

Milky
Looking at what else has been published, let's focus on the more personal accounts.

Two Wandering Soles (Oct. 13) looked at cost cutting while visiting in Iceland. They have an insane amount of suggestions, but at no. 35 comes:

'Bathe where the locals do

...

Simply type “hot spring” into Google Maps and you’ll be astounded at how many there are around the country. With a bit of digging, you’ll surely have a long list of free hot springs around the country that fit into your itinerary'.

Viola and the world (Mar. 7, 2020):

Szybka kąpiel w studzience

Tym razem na pierwszy ogień poszedł mój towarzysz. Ja byłam jeszcze zbyt zajęta badaniem sytuacji. Przerażało mnie zimno, ale też nieznana głębokość tej siarkowej studni. No i oczywiście wyobraźnia podpowiadała mi, że w takiej dziurze mogą skrywać się najdziwniejsze rzeczy, które wciągną mnie w dół. Tak więc badanie terenu pozostawiłam partnerowi, który był po prostu odważniejszy.

Ale niebezpieczeństw nie było. Pozostało mi tylko uporać się z myślami, które już same zmieniały mnie w kostki lodu.

Nie chciałam się jednak im poddać. Zmotywowana wszystkimi filmikami przekonujących zwykłych śmiertelników o tym, że wszystko jest możliwe dzięki sile myśli, próbowałam skierować moje na właściwy tor. I chyba zaczęło działać, bo gdy partner wyszedł z wody i uporał się z ubieraniem, ja w mgnieniu oka weszłam do studzienki. Choć z rozbieraniem poszło nawet nieźle, to o zakładaniu stroju kąpielowego, który mieliśmy przy sobie, nie było mowy. Zresztą panowała taka ciemność, że szkoda byłoby nie skorzystać, z tych kilku minut nieskrępowanej niczym wolności. W wodzie, mimo niewysokiej temperatury, było nawet przyjemnie.

Nawet udało się zrobić kilka zdjęć. A po nich przyszedł czas na najgorsze. Wyjście! To była prawdziwa tortura. Usiadłam na zamarzniętym ręczniku, a drugim równie sztywnym próbowałam powierzchownie otrzeć moje ciało.

WakeupReykjavik notes in a what's to do in November post (Oct. 12):

'Go on a hot spring adventure

...

November is the perfect time to go on a natural hot spring hunt and you also have high chances of catching glimpses of them northern lights while in the water!'

Beyondthemoments (Sep. 16) visits Seljavallalaug and gives hints concerning other pools nearby. Shallow though, but hotter.

bellaskova

What a treasure. I still can't believe we actually found this place. When I leave Iceland, this is the one place that I will never forget. Discovered out of pure luck, we found a natural pool in the middle of no where--with this view. After every few hours we contemplated getting out but it was so incredibly difficult to leave this place. Somehow we managed to gather 8 hours in this hot springs and I don't regret a second of it. 

Marinatravel (Aug 17) has a good overview of the hot springs of the Westfjords:

'Hot springs can be found all over Iceland and most of them have a perfect temperature for diving in and relaxing. Also, they are well maintained and for some of the people built facilities like showers and changing rooms. You will find many hot springs in the Westfjords in western Iceland with breathtaking views over the fjords. Not many people know about those hot springs as they are quite hidden from the tourist’s eye and are located in remote areas. But that doesn’t mean you cannot go there and relax your mind and body in a quiet place'.

Bubble.com has a Top 10 of Icelandic hot springs you must visit:

'No hot spring list would be complete without the addition of a swimming hole inside an actual volcano crater. Askja is a central highland favorite near the Dyngjufjöll mountains

...

To reach the crater, you’ll find yourself trekking through places of year-round snow, colorful lava fields, and many geological reminders of how alive the earth underneath your feet once was, and still may be.

Wondrous though these sights are, they pale in comparison to the milky blue lake at the bottom of the caldera. If the weather is fair, you can attempt the path down into the crater to bathe in the 24°C sulfuric waters. There are no facilities out here, so don’t forget your towels!

Though Askja sleeps for now, you can spin and float in her opaque teal waters and know that she yet lives, bubbling away far under the earth. A swim truly unlike any other'.

moreal

Lake Viti, Askja. Iceland. You win again Earth. Don’t give up on us.

Strict

Then on to the international press, there's been quite a bit of attention been brought to Iceland.

No less than for instance Vogue (Oct. 20) have published an overview on Icelandic swimming pools.

'This is a bathing culture unlike any other. There are a host of unspoken intricacies, rituals, and specific rules around hygiene and etiquette, which is refreshingly strict around shoe removal, use of electronic devices, and a soapy shower sans swimsuit prior to entering the water'.

Pretentious?

Washington Post (Aug. 19) has a very readable article. A snippet:

'Near my riverside camp spot in Heydalur, a Westfjords farm with a campground, cabins, riding stables and restaurant, water gushed from below ground into steaming tubs just outside a greenhouse. Inside, fruit trees overhung a small, warm pool; saddles and bridles stored nearby gave the humid room a pleasantly horsy smell.

In the 12th century, Bishop Gudmundur Arason had blessed these hot springs, said Stella Gudmundsdottir, Heydalur’s tiny, white-haired matriarch. “He was blessing everything, really — cliffs, ponds, whatever,” Gudmundsdottir said. “But he blessed the hot pool, too, so people believed it was holy.”

After dinner and a swim in the greenhouse, I walked across a shallow river and flower-filled meadow to a simple hot spring ringed by stones. Blossoms bobbled on thin stalks at the edge of the possibly holy pool. I floated with eyes closed against the midnight sun'.

Salon Privé Magazine (Oct.) has 4 amazing hot springs in Iceland to visit.

Travel and Leisure (Nov. 6) has 7 of the best hot springs in Iceland. Most of course fee paying, but also including Seljavallalaug:

'Don't let Seljavallalaug's low-frills digs fool you — this pool in southern Iceland is one of the area's most calming natural gems. At 30 by 82 feet, Seljavallalaug is among the country's largest swimming pools. It's free and open to the public, but unlike most hot springs, it's a swim-at-your-own-risk kind of place. Seljavallalaug is not regularly cleaned, and therefore, algae can accumulate. It also has no lifeguards or facilities — and for many, that's the draw. The location, tucked between mountains on the rugged southern coast, promises dramatic mountain-meets-ocean scenery'.

Lastly, National Geographic (Aug 17):

'While the Blue Lagoon, just outside Reykjavík, is world-famous for its warm, milky waters, you'll find plenty more idyllic swimming spots around the country, from a modern spa with a swim-up bar to remote hot springs reached via a countryside hike'.

gummoli

@yarahelviti and I taking out morning bath in warm geothermal pool