Their fifth stop was Lake Mývatn.
The itinerary was roughly as follows: Krafla Volcano → Hverir Geothermal Area → Hverfjall Crater.
Before setting off, they checked out of their hotel in Reykjavík. Tonight, they would be staying near Lake Mývatn for the sake of the next day's schedule. They were staying at Berjaya Iceland Hotel. There was also a hot spring nearby, many people who found the Blue Lagoon too crowded would choose to soak here instead. Since they had already visited a hot spring the previous day, they skipped it this time and drove straight to Krafla Volcano.
The active Krafla Volcano has created a diverse volcanic landscape, including Viti Crater Lake.
After parking the car, Lukas led them along a small path toward the lakeside trail. In summer, as the ice began to melt, the lake gradually revealed a clear and brilliant blue-green color, making it especially beautiful.
After walking around the lake, they returned to the parking lot and drove to the next destination. The drive from the crater lake to the geothermal area took about fifteen minutes. As soon as they stepped out of the car, a strong sulfuric smell hit them. it was like rotten eggs. It wasn’t unbearable, but it wasn’t pleasant either.
Zhou Chaosheng wasn’t used to it, and the others were much the same.
Some frowned, some covered their noses. But when he turned to look at Jiang Yuanye beside him, he saw that the man’s expression was completely unchanged, as if he didn’t smell anything at all.
“Doesn’t it stink?” Zhou Chaosheng asked.
Jiang Yuanye blinked. “It’s okay.”
Zhou Chaosheng suddenly remembered the information Wiesen had given him, written in black and white, it detailed Jiang Yuanye’s time in prison and the years of harsh, exhausting labor he had endured. He had likely encountered far filthier and fouler smells in his life. Compared to those, the sulfur here probably wasn’t much at all.
Zhou Chaosheng said nothing. He looked at Jiang Yuanye’s side profile, then suddenly reached out and ruffled his hair. The neatly styled hair from that morning was instantly messed up. When Jiang Yuanye turned to him, his expression was both confused and aggrieved.
“What was that for?” Jiang Yuanye quickly covered his head, trying to prevent further damage.
Zhou Chaosheng smiled. “It looks better this way.”
Jiang Yuanye hesitated. “Really?”
“Really.”
Hearing this, Jiang Yuanye slowly put his hands down, no longer fixing his hair. Instead, he grinned. “Then I’ll leave it like this.”
Zhou Chaosheng chuckled again. His gaze lingered on Jiang Yuanye, framed by the barren, brownish-yellow landscape, taking in everything before him.
Due to the corrosive acids and alkalis produced by geothermal activity, vegetation in this area was almost nonexistent. The ground had a Mars-like appearance, with golden-yellow and pale blue hues interwoven.
The surface was covered in sulfur deposits, steaming fumaroles, and bubbling mud pools. Seeing it up close created a powerful visual impact.
How to describe it? Perhaps this was Iceland’s unique sense of solitude.
From the geothermal area, they drove about 15 to 20 minutes to Hverfjall Crater. This massive tuff ring volcano is one of the largest volcanic craters in the world. Despite its impressive scale, it was an easy climb. The fastest hikers could reach the top in fifteen minutes, while even the slowest would take no more than twenty minutes.
Since they had plenty of time, they walked around the crater before climbing up. As they approached, they could feel the heat from the volcanic rock and see thick, white steam rising.
After admiring the crater’s scenery and Lake Mývatn’s natural landscape, an hour had passed. Along the way, they sat on nearby rocks and took out snacks and bread from their bags for lunch. Most travelers in Iceland ate this way, the best they could manage was ham sandwiches or instant noodles.
Iceland, or rather, all of Northern Europe, had extremely expensive food. A restaurant meal for one person typically cost 300 to 400 RMB and that was on the cheaper side.
For example, food trucks selling burgers, sandwiches, or fish and chips would charge around 150 RMB. A normal restaurant meal ranged from 200 to 400 RMB per person. More expensive Chinese restaurants or high-end dining? A three-course meal could be 600 RMB or more, with the most expensive going up to 1,500 RMB.
That’s why people always say that if you travel to Iceland or Northern Europe, you can forget everything else but you must bring instant noodles. The food prices were simply too high.
After lunch, they began their hike to the summit.
Like the geothermal area, Hverfjall Crater lacked vegetation. It felt as if they had entered a desolate, extraterrestrial world.
When they finally reached the top, all they could see was the endless, silent expanse of dark soil and the deep crater before them.
It was only upon arriving here that they truly felt like they had stepped into a scene from a post-apocalyptic movie.
---
Their sixth stop was Akureyri.
The itinerary was roughly as follows: Akureyri Church → Blaa Kannan Café (a century-old restaurant) → 66°North → The Eye Test Red Church.
Before heading to the church in the morning, they made a detour to visit a famous local photo spot—the heart-shaped traffic lights.
Jiang Yuanye pointed at the traffic light and smiled at Zhou Chaosheng. “That’s my heart too.”
Zhou Chaosheng chuckled and glanced at him. “How many hearts do you have?”
Jiang Yuanye immediately retorted, “Who said that? I just mean that this city is filled with someone’s love for you.”
“What’s that ‘someone’ called?” Zhou Chaosheng asked.
Jiang Yuanye squinted and smiled. “Guess.”
Zhou Chaosheng: “....”
Perhaps the word “love” was too heavy. They both tacitly left it at that and changed the subject.
As everyone took pictures, Lukas dutifully explained, “All of Akureyri’s traffic lights are heart-shaped. It’s said that during the 2008 financial crisis, the government made the change to encourage people. There are also trash cans wearing sweaters, another famous photo spot in town.”
Compared to Reykjavík, Akureyri is Iceland’s second-largest city, with a population of around 15,000. The streets were quite quiet, but that was normal for Iceland—nothing surprising.
Although Akureyri is small, it is full of romantic details. Not only the traffic lights, other objects also had heart-shaped elements, like the large red heart sculptures placed outside shop entrances on the pedestrian street.
After taking pictures, they headed to Akureyri Church.
From a distance, Akureyri Church fit Iceland’s “lonely” aesthetic perfectly. It was entirely gray from top to bottom, and its shape resembled a 1920s American skyscraper.
Inside, the first thing they saw was a grand and magnificent statue of Jesus, alongside a huge pipe organ. According to Lukas, the organ was made up of 3,200 pipes, while the Jesus statue was even more impressive. it was assembled from tens of thousands of acrylic pieces.
Looking up, they noticed a model ship hanging from the ceiling. This model reflected Icelanders’ deep connection to the ocean. It was said that in the past, Icelanders would make offerings to the sea, praying for the safety of their families and loved ones.
After staying in the church for about half an hour, they went to Blaa Kannan Café, a century-old restaurant, for lunch. Afterward, they checked into their hotel and rested until 4 PM, before heading to 66°North and the Red Church.
66°North is an Icelandic brand, considered the Arc'teryx of Europe. It was also the cheapest place to buy their products in all of Iceland. Online reviews specifically warned against visiting the store on the main street, instead they had to navigate to [Skipagata 9, 600 Akureyri] for the correct location.
The men weren’t particularly interested in clothing, leaving only the two women to browse. After a quick look around and deciding they didn’t want to buy anything, the others headed to a nearby café to wait, drinking coffee while the women finished shopping.
At 5:30 PM, they went to their last stop, the Red Church.
This church was in Snæfellsnes Peninsula, in Helgafellssveit, located along a small road. If driving, it was easy to miss, so as they neared it, Lukas slowed down.
The Red Church was essentially just a red house, with the Vík Mountains stretching endlessly behind it, almost at the foot of the mountains.
As for why it was called the “Eye Test” Church, that had to do with vision exams.
First, in an eye test, the device used is called an autorefractor. It emits a ring-shaped infrared light into the eye, which reflects off the retina. By analyzing the angle of refraction, the device determines the eye’s refractive error.
Looking at the Red Church, it resembled the small red house seen in vision tests for farsightedness and astigmatism. The basic principle was similar to the fogging method, when you stare at the sharp red building, it helps fixate the gaze, keeping the eyes straight ahead. At that moment, the optometrist locks onto the pupil and fires infrared light to take measurements.
At this point, Jiang Yuanye asked, “When was the last time you had your vision checked?”
Zhou Chaosheng: “Last month’s health checkup.”
Jiang Yuanye: “....How much?”
Zhou Chaosheng: “Both eyes are 5.1.”
Jiang Yuanye’s eyes widened. “That’s not fair…”
Zhou Chaosheng: “Hmm?”
Jiang Yuanye pointed at himself. “Why is it that both you and I spent years buried in textbooks, studied computer science, started companies and did the same work yet your vision is still perfect?”
Zhou Chaosheng chuckled. “I did my eye exercises properly. Did you?”
Jiang Yuanye fell silent.
A few minutes later, he gave Zhou Chaosheng a long, sulky look and muttered, “Wow… What a good little student you are.”
Zhou Chaosheng: “....”
—
Their seventh stop was Snæfellsnes Peninsula.
The itinerary was roughly: Kirkjufell (Church Mountain) → Black Church → Whale Church.
They spent the whole day sightseeing.
The vibrant Kirkjufell, the Black Church surrounded by snow-capped mountains, and the Whale Church blending with the ocean…
By the evening, after dinner, they didn’t head straight back to the hotel. Instead, they strolled around while chatting, discussing their thoughts on the trip over the past few days, and exchanged contact information.
Tomorrow, they would part ways and return to their home country.
Zhuo Chenyang was reluctant to say goodbye. He held Jiang Yuanye’s hands tightly, unwilling to let go, and passionately expressed his feelings about the past few days. He also formally thanked Jiang Yuanye for appearing in his video.
Because of that viral video, in just one week, his Bilibili followers had skyrocketed from tens of thousands to over five million.
To him, Jiang Yuanye was a rare lucky star.
After expressing his gratitude and hugging Jiang Yuanye, Zhuo Chenyang turned to Zhou Chaosheng and asked,
“President Zhou, can I take a photo with you?”
Jiang Yuanye chuckled from the side, “You’re really taking everything, huh?”
Zhuo Chenyang grinned sheepishly.
Zhou Chaosheng said okay, and Zhuo Chenyang eagerly ran up to him, striking a silly peace sign.
Jiang Yuanye raised his phone and counted down with a smile,
“Three, two…”
“Cheese!”
Click!
Time slipped quietly through their fingers.
The next day arrived in a flash.
After bidding farewell to the tour group, they embarked on a self-driving journey, just the two of them.
They drove slowly along Iceland’s Ring Road.
It was early June, and both sides of the road were lined with colorful lupine flowers, stretching endlessly across the landscape. Beautiful and serene.
Cold wind rushed in through the car window, a little sharp against their faces. But after a while, they got used to it. Instead, it felt fresh and invigorating.
At 5 AM, mist covered the distant sky, partially obscuring the snow-capped mountains, creating a soft, dreamlike beauty.
The road ahead stretched endlessly, as if it had no end.
They didn’t know where they were heading, nor what challenges or surprises lay ahead.
All they knew was they would keep driving.
Even if they reached the end of the world,
Even if this road had no final destination,
They would keep going.
Just like this.
“Chaosheng.”
“Mm?”
Jiang Yuanye, one hand on the steering wheel, the other casually resting on the car window, gazed ahead.
At that moment, his lips curved slightly.
In the wind, his laughter was clear and carefree.
Zhou Chaosheng heard him say,
“Let’s elope.”
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