The town of Húsavík along the North-Eastern coast has long been known as the ‘whale watching capital of Europe’. One could also visit the Whale Museum at Húsavík, which is a non-profit that forms the educational component of the whale-watching trips.
This little town was also featured in the Netflix movie “Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga” starring Rachel McAdams and Will Ferrell.
Someone Tried Selling the Northern Lights
Icelandic poet and lawyer Einar Benediktsson, born in 1864, was editor of Iceland’s first daily newspaper and tried to sell the northern lights.
Benediktsson believed foreign investment could better utilize Iceland's natural resources, so he spent years touring Europe to try to find a buyer and hopefully raise some capital for Iceland.
Snowland?
The first known Viking to reach Iceland in the ninth century was named Naddodur. He was actually swept off course and dragged westwards from the Faroes when he discovered a large country with no sign of civilization.
According to legend, he was surprised by the snow in September and decided to name the island 'Snowland.'
The Midnight Sun
During the summer, an annual event happens called the ‘midnight sun.’ For a few days, the sun can be seen at midnight, and this invites many golfers from all around the world to grab their clubs and make for the course.
This group of golfers was playing at midnight in The Arctic Open at the Akureyri Golf Club in Iceland.
The Smallest Nation in the World Cup
This fact is a little more recent, plus, it could be one that you might know already: Iceland is the smallest nation ever to qualify for the World Cup.
Many of the players actually have regular day jobs, from a filmmaker to a dentist! Despite being such a small country, Iceland's team is actually pretty good.