Surtsey is an island off the southern coast of Iceland, forming part of the Vestmannaeyjar (Westmann Isles). It is named after Surtr, a fire jötunn or giant from Norse mythology who would set fire to the Earth at the Last Judgement.
Surtsey erupted in 1963 and continued to rumble and spew lava for another three years. Long before the eruption stopped the island was proclaimed a nature preserve and all travel there was restricted to botanists and biologists who could use the unique opportunity to study the gradual development of life on a sterile landmass.
In 2008, Surtsey was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Imagine Peace Tower takes 15 searchlights and condenses their rays, using mirrors that act as prisms, to create a single beam of light that extends 4,000 meters into the air. The prisms reflect the column vertically into the sky from a 10-meter-wide wishing well inscribed with the words “Imagine Peace” in 24 different languages on its base. Buried underneath the light tower are more than 500,000 written wishes that Ono gathered over the years and collected in another project, called “Wish Trees.”
The Tower is located in Vioey Islan, Kollafjorour Bay, in Reykjavik, Iceland. Ono began construction on the site in early 2006 and officially switched the tower on in 2007. The opening ceremony was broadcast internationally to numerous television stations. Ono, her son, Sean Lennon, and Ringo Starr, as well as George Harrison’s widow, Olivia Harrison, and Olivia’s son, Dhani Harrison, attended the ceremony. Former bandmate and songwriting partner Paul McCartney was invited but could not attend.
The Icelandic Horse is a five-gaited breed of horse which means it has your usual walk, trot, canter/gallop it can also perform two others - the skeið/flugskeið (flying pace) and the tölt. The ‘tölt’ is a gait somewhat comparable to a strut, specifically used for long distances. It’s easier than trotting and a lot of Icelandics will opt to tölt rather than trot. Above is a very high speed tölt.
In Iceland, we have 13 Santas. I’m not making this up. They are called the Yule-lads or Yulemen. They are half-troll and half-human. Each one is named after their appearance or skill. Their skills are mainly just pranks or petty crimes. They’re harmless now but in the olden days they used to eat children.
A tuya is a type of distinctive, flat-topped, steep-sided volcano formed when lava erupts through a thick glacier or ice sheet. Herðubreið is located in north-east Iceland in the middle of the Ódáðahraun lava field desert.
This is the stratovolcano, Askja. The Víti explosion crater, seen here, contains a geothermal lake of mineral-rich, sulphurous, intense turquoise coloured water which remains at a steady 27°C. Despite being stinky, it is popular for bathing.
Friðarsúla (Imagine Peace Tower) is a memorial to John Lennon from Yoko Ono located near Reykjavík. Projected from a white stone monument, which has the words ‘Imagine Peace’ carved into it in 24 languages, is a tower of light.
A panel nearby reads:
I dedicate this light tower to John Lennon my love for you is forever yoko ono October 9th 2007
