The world media has for the last weeks been reporting on volcanic eruptions in Iceland and the consequences it has had on air traffic around Europe. Among the accounts there are several written by people that seemingly have little or no idea what´s going on. Pictures of people shovelling ash from roof tops with their faces covered by masks have been published all round, making it look like it is part of everyday life in Iceland. This is far from the truth. Everyday life in Iceland is as normal as can be, considering the circumstances. The airplanes are flying again and the airports are open. Spring is tiptoeing nearby and migrating birds like the arctic tern and the golden plover have already come over for their summer habitat. Daffodils are blooming in parks and gardens and multicoloured crocuses flourish, a little late for all standards, but admired and loved by onlookers. The blue colour of the mountains surrounding the capital is slowly taking over the white crust of winter´s snow. The volcano is however still spouting ash and fumes, but not to the extent that it did before. Experts say that it could stop tomorrow, after a month or in a year.
As of May 1, 2010 Kynnisferðir/Reykjavik Excursions will be operated separately – the bus and coach part of the company will from now on be known as Kynnisferðir and the travel agency part will be run under the Reykjavik Excursions logo. The management of the company will be the same as before the separation.
In Iceland we look forward to spring and summer, hoping the aftermaths of the eruption will be minimal. We also look forward to GPN´s meeting in Reykjavík in the early fall and we´ll do our best to make the stay a memorable one.
Business as Usual as Spring Comes to Iceland
The Global Passenger Network (GPN) have launched both Day Tours and Coach Tours in 5 countries with more to follow in the coming weeks and months.
GPN Tours and Online Booking
At the moment you can view tours in:
1) Denmark
2) Germany
3) Iceland
4) Ireland and
5) Poland
Looking forward to hearing your feedback.
Regards,
GPN Team
**We’re also looking for resellers, email info@gpn.travel to express your interest in working with leading Bus and Coach Tour operators in GPN
When tourists come to Iceland for the first time they sometimes complain about our bus drivers´ lack of smiling. It therefore comes as a pleasant surprise when they learn that these - most of the time – solemn and grave looking individuals are usually soft spoken and highly service minded. Being serious is for them being normal, not a statement of being grumpy or sour. An old Icelandic idiom states that a fool laughs at own joke and in Iceland nobody wants to be considered a fool. Living on the outskirts of Europe is a serious matter and quite different from the frivolous rest of the world. Being descendants of the Vikings also counts in being serious, the said probably didn´t smile a lot when they raided Lindisfarne in the eighth century. Winters in Iceland are long and dark, in Mid-December the daylight lasts less than 4 hours. Thanks to the Gulf Stream Icelandic winters are not as cold as one might think. All in all the Icelanders are a serious people, bus drivers no exception. The grave appearance is only skin deep though – once you start communicating, the barriers are easily broken and the real Icelander appears: Helpful, caring, warm-hearted and proud. Proud of being an Icelander and proud to work for a company that cares. Visit our web site www.re.is
Sour-faced descendants of the vikings?
For some years Reykjavik Excursions has offered guided tours for tourists who want to have a glimpse of the Northern Lights, also called the Aurora Borealis. The mysterious Northern Lights are a natural phenomenon which occurs when highly charged electrons from the sun interact with elements in the earth’s atmosphere, especially near the magnetic poles. The Northern Lights are seen as lambent lights on a dark winter’s sky, changing colors from brilliant green to a reddish-violet flame. The lights dance vertically around the dark sky, leaving viewers stunned and even mesmerized, having experienced something spectacular and wonder shroud. Scientists discovered early that when the electrons crash into the magnetized poles, they produce millions of megawatts of electrical power.
At the beginning of the twentieth century, a well known and respected Icelandic poet was a strong advocate of inward foreign investment to utilize Iceland´s natural resources. He founded a company with the purpose of harnessing the power of glacial rivers to produce electricity. He was mocked for trying to “sell the Northern Lights” to simple minded foreigners. Nowadays well informed tourists flock to see the Northern Lights, fascinated by their beauty and brilliance. They are visible whenever the sky is clear and unclouded in the months of September to March each year. For further information visit www.re.is
