This is a harsh, rugged country, a land of constant contrast and change. Its glaciers and ice caps, volcanoes and hot springs, rushing streams and spectacular waterfalls were for me an encounter with nature’s splendor and power. This is a wild, unpredictable wonderland of natural phenomena unknown anywhere else on earth.

Because of volcanic activity, the landscape is quite devoid of trees, but what it does have are large expanses of tundra, grassland, and bogs.

When I was there in mid-summer, touring the country’s perimeter, I was pleasantly surprised by the relatively comfortable weather as I visited lava fields, volcanoes, glaciers, geysers, and geothermal areas. I found the rock formations of particular interest - basalt (formed from lava), palagonite (resulting from volcanic eruptions that take place under glaciers), and rhyolite (which occurs from very violent eruptions). Geologically, this was the most fascinating of all the countries I’ve visited.