My first day in Iceland involved sitting in three different coffee shops as a means to force myself to stay awake and not succumb to the jet lag.
I felt really overwhelmed when I got to Keflavik Airport, because I don't speak Icelandic, couldn't figure out the bus schedule, and ended up wandering around cluelessly for about an hour. I thought I could live like a local and handle public transportation, but realized that's not possible when every bus stop name sounds the same and buses come every 20+ minutes. I ended up taking a FlyBus into the city which still dropped us off in the middle of nowhere, and I spent 25 minutes trying to get to the Hallgrímskirkja Church (like 10 buses passed me by, but I was irrationally determined to walk there...). It was 8am. Nothing is open at 8am on a Saturday in Iceland.
I ended up exploring the small city for a couple hours to kill time until the stores opened, and walked down to the waterfront where I ended up finding the Harpa Concert Hall (totally by accident - please don't ever think that I could navigate a city successfully). At first I was disappointed that I was seeing Harpa on a cloudy day because I had been looking forward to seeing the sunlight reflecting off the panels of the entirely-glass building, but then I realized how beautiful the hall still looks on the greyest day with all the random colourful panels!
I stopped in Te Og Kaffi (which I've established is the Starbucks equivalent in Iceland) to rest and figure out where the heck I was, and learned my first lesson of the Icelandic lifestyle: it's SO. SLOW. PACED. omg. It was stressing me out to watch people order their drinks and take ten minutes to pay. Once I had finally made it to my hostel, I befriended one of my roommates who happened to be Icelandic, and he invited me to get coffee with him and his friend, where I learned a lot about Icelandic culture, like the fact that they're building their first mosque in Reykjavik! I also learned that an Icelandic Christmas tradition is to leave a shoe out a few nights leading up to Christmas, where children find a present every morning!
Reykjavik is an unexpectedly artistic city: the streets are strewn with independent clothing & jewellery designers, unique secondhand shops, and random, eclectic stores, and so many well-known musicians come from not only Iceland, but Reykjavik City, specifically (Of Monsters and Men, Björk, Sigur Rós). On the other hand though, it's exactly what you'd expect it to be: empty, desolate, and bleak, but a stunning juxtaposition to the vibrant buildings.
I know myself enough to know I'd never have survived alone in Reykjavik city for 3 days. The bus system is confusing, street names are way too hard to pronounce, and the cost of visiting one site can be as much as 15,000 ISK (~$170 CAD). I figured it made more sense to sign up for a few tours with Reykjavik Excursions, which cost about the same as a round trip bus ride, but include a tour guide and multiple stops along the way to make the most of the 3+ hours of driving each way (also, almost no chance of me getting lost).
On my second day, I did a 12 hour tour to the Landmannalaugar mountains in the Highlands of Iceland. Along the way we stopped at Ljotipollur, a massive red crater that was formed by a volcanic explosion, Þjóðveldisbærinn, a reconstructed medieval farm, and the Hjalparfoss waterfalls.
We arrived in Landmannalaugar several hours (and bruised bums) later, where we were given directions for a self-guided tour in Laugavegur, one of the shorter trails in the Fjallabak area.
Of course, with my luck we got lost, and our hour-long hike turned into a two hour-long hike. On the plus side, it was a GREAT workout, and eventually we made it back in time to spend the last hour relaxing in the hot springs. Although it was exhausting, hiking through Landmannalaugar was probably one of the most exhilarating things I've ever experienced.
On day 3, I took a tour along Iceland's south shore where we visited sites like Seljalandsfoss, Skogarfoss, Reynisfjara, a black sand beach along the Atlantic Ocean, the small village of Vík, the Skógar Folk Museum, and some glaciers.
The weather was not quite as cooperative on the 3rd day, and it poured on and off throughout, which made the tour a little less enjoyable than the previous one. You can actually walk behind the Seljalandsfoss waterfall, which I would imagine is more exciting on sunny days, and not when you're already drenched.
To top off the day (and my visit to Iceland), I stopped by Babalu, a very small, eclectic restaurant/cheesecake place, specifically to take a picture in their Star Wars-themed bathroom. I then stopped at the Lebowski Bar, which is (pretty self-explanatorily) named after the movie The Big Lebowski. Again, specifically to get a picture, and also to FINALLY try Icelandic beer (can you believe it took me 3 days to finally try it?!).
If I were to sum up my experience in Iceland in one word, I'd say it was introspective. Solo travelling in itself is very conducive to self-awareness, and I think the added vastness of the country makes one realize a) how beautiful nature can be if we leave it alone (especially after having come from Toronto), and b) how small we are in respect to the world. If I were to go back, I'd definitely go with a friend or two, and rent a camper in order to cover the most ground. Guided tours are a great option when you're alone or only there for a few days, but the two+ hours back to the hostel after every tour could have been used more efficiently with the ability to camp at each location.