NEWLYWEDS IN THE GREAT OUTDOORS

Steve and Angela Scicluna are no strangers to travel. Having experienced culture and adventure in every corner of the globe, they hoped for a honeymoon that would tick all the boxes while bringing them even closer together. A three-week trip across Iceland and the Faroe Islands was just the ticket, as Teri Spiteri finds out.

Like many other couples, Steve and Angela’s plans for a 2020 wedding and a honeymoon in British Columbia, Canada, were dashed by the pandemic ‒ but these two aren’t the type to dwell on what should have been. Once they had finally tied the knot on 12th June 2021, they spent a couple of nights in Gozo to decompress. That’s when the real planning started.

“We didn’t want to plan too far ahead because of the ever-changing COVID situation, so we put the whole honeymoon together in just three weeks. We only bought the flights five days before take-off!” they reveal.

Angela is a school teacher, and was finishing off the scholastic year while reading travel blogs and brainstorming ideas with her husband. “We both love the outdoors and wanted a honeymoon that offered a mix of adventure and relaxing luxury. We settled on the Faroe Islands and Iceland because they’re close to home,” she explains.

Steve, a freelance architect, fidgets in his seat. Five months after returning home, he’s still bursting with enthusiasm about their experience and is eager to share every detail and photo of the trip. “We flew into Denmark and spent the overnight layover in Billund, which is the home of Lego. Acting like kids at all the attractions was a great way to get into the holiday mood,” he grins.

The next morning, they kicked off their one-week stay in the Faroe Islands – a remote archipelago connected by underwater tunnels – that are home to 30,000 people and 70,000 sheep. Their first stop was Gasadalur, the most uninhabited of the islands, but it turns out that they needed a little help to get there. “There are only 30 houses on the island, it’s super remote, and the bus route we had banked on using to get there wasn’t working. Luckily, we met two locals at the airport who offered us a lift to our accommodation,” says Angela with a sigh of relief.

“We didn’t want to plan too far ahead because of the everchanging COVID situation, so we put the whole honeymoon together in just three weeks.”

They spent the next two days taking in the magical simplicity of the islands, hiking around silky waterfalls and getting to know the friendly locals. “We took a ferry out to Mykines Island, known as Puffin Island, and hiked up the mountain in thick fog which cleared just as we reached the pinnacle. The view was out of this world,” Steve recalls. Another highlight was the Trælanípa trek, which offered dramatic, Daliesque views of Lake Sørvágsvatn which appears to be perched high above the Atlantic Ocean.

Their next stop was Tórshavn, one of the smallest capital cities in the world that’s brimming with colourful houses and quaint restaurants serving excellent food. On a ‘Hook & Cook’ fishing experience, Angela struggled to reel in a six-kilo cod – one of 12 caught by the honeymooners, to the tour guide’s surprise. “You’re meant to cook and eat the fish you catch on the day, but we had so many that we gave most of them to our guide to share with his family,” she smiled.

They did keep an extra portion for themselves though, and it made for the perfect home-cooked dinner the following night in their secluded cottage in Vidareidi. “It’s the northernmost part of the islands, and we spent our last

“We took a ferry out to Mykines Island, known as Puffin Island, and hiked up the mountain in thick fog which cleared just as we reached the pinnacle.”

day trekking the highest peak in the area: Villingardalsfjall. Once we got to the top, Angela was quite nervous because I kept taking photos while teetering on the edge. It was totally worth it though. The views were breath-taking,” says Steve, as Angela nods in reluctant agreement.

With their first week over, they made their way to Iceland, starting with two days in the coastal capital of Reykjavik. “We fell in love with this city,” they gush, adding that they’re both avid foodies. “It’s cool and refined, packed with excellent gastrobars offering a range of international cuisines. We never stopped eating, and everything was divine. Everything except the fermented shark, that is,” Angela scowls, referring to the local hákarl delicacy that’s known for its acquired taste.

Their gastronomic experiences in the city varied from Michelin star restaurants to a popular street food which quickly became a staple during their two-week stay: the famous Icelandic hot dog. “You have to order ‘one with everything’ – they’re delicious and addictive,” they explain, “we even packed some to cook ourselves on the next leg of the trip.”

That next leg would be their rugged and highly recommended approach to seeing the country: driving the Ring Road in a campervan. Their trusty steed came equipped with a kitchen, fridge, heating system and a bench that converts into a double bed.

“It’s the best way to see Iceland. If you only stay in hotels, you’ll not only spend a lot more money, but you’ll also miss out on a lot of what the country has to offer. We would wake up right next to the most beautiful lakes and waterfalls, and being already so close to nature meant that we didn’t have to leave the hotel early to start our day,” Steve reasons, confirming that the designated campsites were fully equipped with comfortable toilets and showers.

They started with the Golden Circle, visiting Geysir and stopping in Silfra for one of the coolest experiences of the trip (pun intended). “Silfra is the only place in the world where two tectonic plates meet above sea level. It’s called a fissure, a crevice in the ground that widens by one metre every year. We’re scuba divers, so when we heard that you could dive in the fissure, we just had to go,” says Angela.

Steve interjects, “this was a crazy story actually: we found out quite late that you need both open water and drysuit certifications to dive in Silfra, so we were clamouring to complete the courses just a couple of days before we left Malta. We’re so glad we managed! These glacier waters are ice cold at 2°C and among the clearest in the world, with visibility of 120 metres. It’s like watching TV in 8K. To put

this into perspective, Malta’s underwater visibility is 20-30 metres on a good day,” he explains.

Their next stop was the West Fjords, a stop that most tourists bypass due to the long drive with disastrous road conditions. Nevertheless, Steve and Angela insist that it was worth every mile of sheer panoramic beauty. “It’s quite something to drive on a road with the ocean on one side and a lake on the other. Plus, we got to see the most magnificent waterfall, known as the ‘bridal dress’.”

Their road trip continued up North to the fishing village of Husavik, where the couple enjoyed some whale watching before driving Eastward to Studfall Canyon. Steve is emphatic: “I can’t recommend this National Park enough. We trekked through unique volcanic rock formations, waterfalls and caves which you can even view from a skywalk. The scenery is beyond words.”

Further south, the pair was mesmerised by Diamond Beach, a black sand shore dotted with hunks of glacier ice that were carried downstream. They then followed that stream up to the source, getting a front-row seat to the tragic effects of climate change on a guided glacier hike.

Their carefully planned road trip culminated in the honeymoon experience they had been looking forward to: a night in the Buubble, known as the ‘5 Million Star Hotel’. “You sleep in a transparent inflatable bubble in the middle of the forest, completely cut off from anyone else. It’s just you and nature, but with a hint of luxury,” Angela explains. “We were lucky to experience some rain while we were there, and being amidst all those sights and sounds while you cosy up with champagne and strawberries was magical.”

After a cosy night under the stars, they extended their indulgent experience in Grindavik, home of the famous geothermal seawater pool called The Blue Lagoon. After three weeks of outdoorsy adventure, the newlyweds treated themselves to a luxurious spa day followed by a delectable Michelin star meal.

Just when they thought their trip was over, they were given one last opportunity of a lifetime. “We thought we were done for the night, but suddenly realised that the volcano nearby was erupting! We had hoped to see this

“[The campervan is] the best way to see Iceland. If you only stay in hotels, you’ll not only spend a lot more money, but you’ll also miss out on a lot of what the country has to offer.”

“We thought we were done for the night, but suddenly realised that the volcano nearby was erupting!”

phenomenon up close the day before but had no such luck. So, with skin covered in essential oils and bellies stuffed with food, we quickly changed back into our hiking gear and set off up the mountain,” Angela beams.

At that time of year, the sun never quite sets on Iceland, so it turns out that 10pm is as good a time as any to hike up a volcano. While Steve made an effort to truly enjoy the experience with a full stomach, Angela was exhilarated. “Being so close to the bright red eruption and hearing the lava bubbling and sloshing around under your feet has got to be the highlight of the trip for me. I was blown away,” she says.

Looking back on three weeks of adventure, the couple have certainly collected some wonderful memories to cherish. The best part, however, was banking plenty of quality time. The couple share a sweet smile as they explain, “we’re so busy with work back home that we love any opportunity to spend time together, and this trip was perfect for that. All that driving meant that we had lots of time to connect and sharing such cramped quarters in the campervan made for a very intimate few weeks.”