Globe Corner Blogs

Iceland is often described as a magical place. And for the average tourist there – as opposed to the average banker these days – I would have to agree with that assessment. The ethereal landscape particularly lends itself to Lord of the Rings-type fantasies. Waterfalls spill down the green hills into valleys of pastel wildflowers and hot springs. Snow-capped volcanoes, seething sulfur pits, and the occasional fjord pop up every now and then. Don’t be ashamed if you envision yourself sporting chain mail and downing flagons of mead after a hard day of discovering North America and slaying dragons. It seems like one could make quite a living offering Viking reenactments or selling Merlin costumes. And apparently they do.

Oh yeah. Plus there’s the huldufolk. You know. The Hidden People. The mysterious race of elves who live inside the rocks and hills and emerge to frolic among the wildflowers, bathe in the hot springs, and whisk away some of the more attractive regular people to enchanted kingdoms in a spritelier dimension.

But the most magical thing of all on my trip to Iceland was the Skyr.  Delicious delicious skyr.  While Iceland may be well-known for its natural beauty and supernatural leanings, it is not famed for its food.  Nor should it be and being a vegetarian made meals doubly difficult for me.  Unless you can afford one of the super-luxe gourmet places in Reykjavik, the menus offer fish almost exclusively, with puffin and whale thrown in for some variety.  Thus my discovery of Skyr one night in a convenience store ended up as the culinary epiphany of the trip.  I bought it as a snack after an unsatisfying dinner of bread and cheese and my trip – my life- was never the same.

What I thought was just plain old yoghurt turned out to be the traditional kind that Icelandic grandmothers have been making since the Vikings.  Again, let me reiterate how delicious it is – more like dessert custard than the American variety.  And nutritious with neigh on twenty grams of protein per cute little cup.  My problems were solved.  I could live on this stuff and pretty much did the rest of the week, packing my bag full of extra cups for the road.  And the bus.  And the hotel room.  And just because.

Read more: Food & Wine, Iceland, Skyr, The Geography of Happiness, Travel, Travel Advice, Travel Tips and Resources, Vegetarian Travel


Nicole -- Nicole hails from metropolian Conway, South Carolina. While she's not busy doing Southern things like eating biscuits and heavily buttered grits (often together), she likes to travel to other countries and eat their food. Her favorite exotic treats include: Icelandic Skyr, South Indian dosa, British Jaffa Cakes, and Austrian strudel.

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