Reykyavik is like this little winding loop that you keep circling and circling. If you stay too long, you’ll run into the same people over and over and over. In fact, that happened to me. I ran into one same set of people 3 different times over the span of a couple days, while I was walking around town.

Iceland has a beautiful terrain. It’s basically one big volcanic rock. There are giant waterfalls, mountains, and natural hot springs. I tried to sketch everything that I could. I sketched mountains, birds, a geyser, a Viking ship replica, and a church. It never got dark either so I could walk around and sketch at all times of night. One night I even pulled an all nighter walking around Reykyavik sketching random things.

I also received one of my greatest compliments of my trip when I was in Iceland. While sketching at the Blue Lagoon, I met an elderly woman and struck up a conversation. She told me she was from the east coast, had just lost her husband, and decided to travel a bit. We chatted about life, and travelling. I asked her about her husband, and her current outlook on life. Although it was obviously a tough situation, she seemed to have a good perspective, and peace about the whole thing.

We chatted a little more, and laughed. Before parting she said thanks, and told me I was “an ambassador to the world.” I’ve always enjoyed meeting strangers, finding connections, and listening to their stories, so this was quite a compliment. It felt really good.