iceland? asia?

Question

i am really wanting to travel to iceland...any ideas on where to visit? also, i want to visit china or indonesia...any thoughts? tips? thank you!

Answer 1

I've been to both China (lived there for 10 months) and Iceland (visited for a long weekend). Both are incredible, but very very different. (Sorry, I've got nothin' on Indonesia.)

China was exotic and busy and smoggy and completely fascinating. Beijing of course is a must-see, but as city, it doesn't really reflect the rest of China. If you go in the summer, ShanHaiGwan is a charming place on the coast. The food was terrific and the shopping was great.

On the other hand, Iceland was the cleanest place I have ever been, but I wasn't fond of the food. I was there in late October, yet the weather was still mild. The scenery was unique, and the Blue Lagoon itself was worth the trip. You can also go horseback riding or take a tour bus through the lava fields. I stayed in Rekyavik, and I loved it.

If you can, try to go to both (or all three) places.

Answer 2

Iceland's stark, pristine scenery has been shaped by fire and ice: More than 200 volcanoes and numerous glaciers form the country's landscape. It's a frozen land that's always letting off steam. Its U-shaped valleys, jagged lava fields, monstrous icecaps, hot springs and geysers have carved a rugged, bizarre landscape you won't see anywhere else on Earth. But you don't need the fortitude of a Viking to enjoy Iceland. In fact, you can experience many of its extremes in relative comfort. During a recent trip, we swam outdoors in a naturally heated pool just yards/meters away from a glacier.

Despite its relative isolation and untillable terrain, Iceland has one of the highest standards of living in the world (with sky-high prices to match). Tourists began to flock there in the 1990s, realizing that it's actually a destination in its own right rather than just a long layover on connecting Icelandair flights.

Icelanders, like many islanders, are self-confident and reserved, but once you break the ice, so to speak, they are among the friendliest in the world. Of course, they, too, have their extremes. Although weeknights in Reykjavik, the capital city, are usually quite sedate, the wee hours during the weekends (particularly Friday nights) can get downright raucous as stylishly dressed young people observe a rowdy party-on-the-streets ritual known as the runtur, or circuit.

Answer 3

China is fun for a day but it's not somewhere you want to go to relax. Indonesia on the other hand is cheap as China but safer and have beautiful island as Bali.

But you should definitely try them both if you can.

Answer 4

History
Main article: History of Iceland
Iceland was one of the last large islands uninhabited by humans until it was discovered and settled by immigrants from Scandinavia and Ireland during the 9th and 10th centuries. [3] Íslendingabók (Latin: Libellus Islandorum; English: The Book of Icelanders), written in 1122–33, claims that Norwegian Ingólfur Arnarson was the first man to settle in Iceland, in 870. The families were accompanied by servants and slaves, some of whom were Celts or Picts from Scotland and Ireland (known as Westmen to the Norse). Some literary evidence suggests that Papar (Irish monks) may have been living in Iceland before the arrival of Norse settlers, but no archaeological evidence has been found.

Erik the Red, or Eiríkur rauði, was exiled from Iceland for manslaughter in 980, and set sail to explore the lands to the west. He established the first settlements in Greenland around this time, naming the land, according to legend, to attract settlers. Eirikur's son, Leif Ericson (Leifur Eiríksson), finally set foot in the Americas around the year 1000. While some say he was blown off-course, it is most likely that he was deliberately seeking the land spotted by Bjarni Herjólfsson several years earlier. He is believed to have established a colony at L'Anse aux Meadows, Newfoundland in what became Canada, which lasted only a few years. Despite the short stay, a sizable colony with at least eight buildings including a forge and various workshops was built. Two further attempts at colonization by his brother ended in failure.

The Alþingi (English: Althing, literally all-thing (Þing in icelandic means parliament) or general assembly) was founded in 930, marking the beginning of the Icelandic Commonwealth. It was the predecessor to the modern Icelandic legislature. The Althing is the oldest still-standing, parliament in the world that has written documents to prove its age.

Iceland was a free state without a king, until the end of the Sturlungaöld civil war in 1262, when it established a personal union with the Norwegian king with Gamli sáttmáli (English: The Old Covenant). From 1387 on, Iceland was in practice ruled by Denmark, following the union of the two kingdoms. When that union was dissolved in 1814, through the Treaty of Kiel, which saw Norway entering a union with Sweden, Iceland was transferred from the Norwegian throne to the Danish king, and thus became a dominion (or colony) of Denmark. [3] Home rule was granted by the Danish government in 1904, and independence followed in 1918. [3] From 1918 on, Iceland was in a personal union with the Danish king, with foreign relations being carried out by the king, as instructed by the Icelandic government until the World War II military occupation of Denmark by Nazi Germany in 1940. Subsequently, Iceland was occupied by the Allies. The Danish King remained the de jure sovereign of the nation until 1944, when the current republic was founded after the 1918 treaty had lapsed.

The new republic became a charter member of NATO in 1949 and signed a treaty with the United States in 1951 to take responsibility for the defense of Iceland. In September 2006, the U.S. withdrew the Iceland Defense Force from the base in Keflavík [4]. The U.S. has, however, pledged to keep defending Iceland with mobile forces deployed abroad. This has, nonetheless, resulted in a considerable build up and renovation in the Icelandic Coast Guard, which has been neglected since the last Cod War in 1976 and preparations to the forming of security reserve forces under a new Security and Defence authority. [5][6].

The economy of Iceland remained dependent on fisheries in the post-war decades, and the country has had several clashes with its neighbours over this vital resource, most notably the Cod Wars with the British. The economy has become more diverse recently, owing to large investments in heavy industry, such as aluminium smelting and deregulation and privatization in the financial sector. [7] Iceland is a member of the Common market of the European Union through the EEA agreement but has never applied for membership of the EU itself. [7]

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Administrative Divisions

Answer 5

iceland go to the blue lagoon nice warm thermal water go the great divide rift thats seperates europe from north america go to the ice for a sledding experince, china and indonesia too much infro better right up seperate questions for them

Answer 6

i oly can help you with china since im chinese,it's best to go to bei jeng(the capital of china)since you can meet our GREAT WALL OF CHINA!!!

Answer 7

go for it before it melts !!