Posted by When we hear the name “Iceland,” what comes first to mind is the “ice” and the freezing cold that it implies. But as what we witnessed when we visited this place, it was more than that.
We went in September, which in Iceland marks the transition from warm summer months to cold winter season. However the weather changes so quickly that you can experience all four seasons in a day. In fact they have a saying, that if you don’t like the weather, just wait 5 minutes, for it will change.
Iceland is famously known as the “land of fire and ice.” The reason is that massive glaciers and active volcanoes exist side by side across the island. So it could be as hot as it is cold.
Below is a lake where the water is fed by the melting glacier around it. You would not enjoy swimming here unless you are a polar bear, or you are plain crazy. (Though there are no polar bears in Iceland).
However, the lagoon below is totally different. You would definitely enjoy soaking in this water, which is warm and cozy even when the weather is awful and the temperature outside is freezing.
This is known as the Blue Lagoon. It is a world-famous geothermal spa in southwest Iceland known for its milky-blue, mineral-rich warm water set inside a black lava field. This lagoon was man-made when it was formed accidentally in the 1970’s as an industrial byproduct from the nearby Svartsengi Geothermal Power Plant.
Speaking of geothermal heat, Iceland sits directly atop the Mid-Atlantic Ridge where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates pull apart, and the rifting fractures allow water to seep deep into the Earth’s crust, where magma heats it to over 250°C before it returns to the surface as high-pressure steam and hot water.
Below is an example of this high pressure steam and a pool of hot water. You definitely would not dare swim here or you would be scalded to death. It may also have a milky-blue waters, but unlike the Blue Lagoon, this is a Doom Lagoon. I just made that name up.
There are several geothermal power plants in Iceland, including the one near the Blue Lagoon, and they generate roughly 25% to 31% of Iceland’s electricity and heats about 85% to 90% of all homes.
On our last couple of nights in Iceland, we stayed in a hotel that sits directly inside an ancient, volcanic lava fields on the Reykjanes Peninsula. When we checked in, one of the information we were provided was that we can be instructed to evacuate in such a short notice, if they determine that there is a danger of volcanic eruption in the area.
The last volcanic eruption near this hotel that required the evacuation of hotel guests and visitors was as recent as July 2025, which was a little unnerving, but we took our chances to stay. We like living on the edge, plus we like the smell of sulfur. Not!
Here is a short video of the many high pressure steams in a geothermal area.
By the way, the Philippines, the country where I am from, also has a lot of geothermal energy. In fact, I was surprised to read that it is the third-largest producer of geothermal energy in the world.
The Philippines sits at the convergence zone of three major tectonic plates: the Philippine Sea Plate, the Eurasian Plate, and the Indo-Australian Plate. The intense grinding interaction of these massive plates cause melting in the Earth’s mantle which feeds numerous volcanoes across the islands, and creating high heat close to the surface generating rich geothermal reservoirs.
Though cynics think that the Ring of Fire that the Philippines sits on is actually the gates of hell, where our many corrupt politicians and government officials will go someday. Sorry, I digress.
Back to Iceland, here’s a video of boiling hot pool of water in a geothermal field we visited. They have shooting geysers here also.
From the Land of Fire and Ice,
Pinoytransplant
(*videos and photos taken with an iPhone)