Some say it looks like a basaltic lava mound, some say it resembles a geyser. In any case the imposing Hallgrimskirkja temple in downtown Reykjavik can’t be overlooked. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Visitors view a rainbow across Seljalandsfoss waterfall in south Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Skogarfoss waterfall in south Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
A chapel in south Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Sod-roofed houses at a folk museum in Skogar, south Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Icelandic horses in south Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
A field of rape in south Iceland. The country produces large quantities of rape-seed oil. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
The notorious Eyjafjallajokull volcano that caused a major air travel setback in the summer of 2010 looked quite peaceful under its snowcap in July. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Kerid Crater in south central Iceland features a lake inside its mouth. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Strokkur geyser in south central Iceland erupts every five minutes or so. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
A rainbow lies next to Gullfoss waterfall in south central Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Vatnajokull Glacier, Iceland’s biggest ice cap, is one of the landmarks of southeast Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
A traveler watches icebergs in Jokulsralon Lagoon in southeast Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
A black mark on top of this iceberg floating in Jokulsarlon Lagoon in southeast Iceland means it was once part of a glacier and in contact with the ground. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
A local guide holds a 5,000-year-old piece of ice in Jokulsarlon Lagoon in southeast Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Sheep walk along the highway in east Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Icelandic horses in east Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
An Icelandic horse in east Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
A new and an old lighthouse on the coast of east Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
A view in east Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Alaskan lupins near a volcanic hill in central Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Lake Myvatn in northwest Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
A natural hot bath near Lake Myvatn in northwest Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Whale watching off the coast of northwest Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Tourists look at photos on their iPhones in the harbor of Husavik in northwest Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
A red ash volcanic landscape in northwest Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
A sunset in northwest Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
A gray whale off the coast of northwest Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Whale watching boats off the coast of northwest Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Alaskan lupins in northwest Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Icelandic horses roam the rugged terrain of northwest Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
A view in north Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Europe’s most powerful waterfall, Dettifoss, in northwest Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Caldera Krafla in northwest Iceland, an area of geothermal activity. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Caldera Krafla in northwest Iceland, a vast area of geothermal activity. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
Godafoss, one of the most beautiful waterfalls in Iceland. (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)
