50 Before 50: Cold Places I Want to Visit
Chill out! I want a cold holiday
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This year, we are going to the Greek island of Santorini. In 2021, we went to Rhodes. In 2019, we went to Malta. In 2017 we went to Crete and in 2016, to Rhodes. These are all warm places. While visiting new places make up several items on my 50 before 50 list, something I’m really keen to do is visit somewhere cold for a holiday.
I’ve been thinking and here are some of the most likely ideas — at least one of which I’d like to explore by 2025 when I turn 50 years old.
Iceland
Iceland is the scene for many films with weird landscapes — Doctor Mann’s world in Interstellar being one of the most recent. It’s also featured in the recent Netflix show Snowpiercer, and in the Black Mirror episode Crocodile.
Reykjavik is Europe’s northernmost capital. I would love to visit those strange moon-like beaches, to see year-round ice, and to swim in a volcanic pool. Also, maybe to see an active volcano in a cold place? I’ve seen several, but both were in Greece, and neither were particularly active at the time.
Norway
A trip up the fjords is an ambition I’ve had for decades. I love the idea of being on a ship, watching a small town emerge on the horizon while towering snow-capped mountains surround us on all sides.
I studied the Vikings at uni but the opportunity to see Viking history firsthand, to visit sites and museums, and to explore this striking coastal landscape is one I really hope to do some day.
Orkney
Orkney is an archipelago off the northern coast of Scotland. There are plenty of historic sites to visit. A little closer to home and once again on the Viking trail — but it is also steeped in Iron Age and early medieval history.
