Pingvellir National Park

The Thingvellir National Park was established in 1930, the first national park in Iceland. Then in 2004, it became the first UNESCO World Heritage Site in Iceland for its cultural heritage from the Viking era and the significance of its history and nature. Þingvellir (e. Parliament Grounds) is a fracture zone situated on the tectonic plates of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, the North-American and the Eurasian continents, which runs through Iceland from its NE corner to the SW corner, forming a great depression of about 40 km in length and 10 km in width. These boundaries are only visible above ground in very few locations in Iceland. Alþingi (e. General Assembly) is the Icelandic parliament, established in AD 930 by the Vikings, and is the oldest parliament in the world. Every summer, Icelanders assembled there till 1798 to set laws, settle disputes, trade goods, and carry out punishments and executions.

Site de Geysir

The Geysir hot springs geothermal area, situated in Haukadalur (e. Hawks' Valley), is a high-temperature area with colorful hot springs and mud pools. Its main attraction is Strokkur (e. Churner), the only currently spouting hot spring in this area, which makes this the only place in Europe with a spouting hot spring. Every 5-8 minutes, Strokkur spouts scalding geothermal water up to 30 meters into the air, so try staying upwind of it to avoid the hot water and steam blowing over you when it spouts. Geysir (e. Spouter) is the most renowned geological phenomenon in Iceland, giving its collective name geyser to all other hot springs in the world. It is currently dormant and hasn't spouted since 2016, but earthquakes in the area and volcanic activity in our country may cause Geysir to awaken someday and the other hot springs in this geothermal area to show changes in behavior.