There is a kind of unwritten rule among people who travel a lot, and it is perhaps the most basic one we can think of: do not repeat destinations. Think about it, the world is huge and our time on Earth quite limited, who would repeat a destination for their vacations? Well, this traveler was very clear about it… until she was not anymore, because sometimes you feel love at first sight with a place, and the destination wishlist starts to take a back seat.
Her name is Jamie Davis Smith (@wherejamiegoes) and she has traveled to 90 countries. Her idea was to fill her passport with only one stamp from each country she visited. She wanted to travel to a place only once, she only thought about seeing the world, and when she had seen everything she wanted to see, then she would decide whether to return to any destination or keep looking for new points on the map.
Love at first sight
“I have been three times and it is definitely the only place I would go to again and again”.
Iceland was not “the trip of her life”, it was just another destination on the map that caught her attention, so she packed her bags, took the flight, and set off on her journey. But something happened as soon as she got off the plane, Iceland had just stolen her heart. It was a feeling, a calm, amazement, something was different in those lands that captivated her.
Her first stop was Reykjavik, a small and quiet city with a very marked and creative personality.
Leaving the city
The real love at first sight came when she left the capital. She discovered waterfalls falling from the sky, lava fields, beaches, and glaciers, it was another world.
“I have seen many impressive places, but Iceland is like nothing else”.
What does Iceland have?
She was impressed by how welcoming the country is to the LGTBIQ+ community, where all people are welcome regardless of their sexuality. Then, she was fascinated by the landscapes, she did rituals inspired by traditional Nordic practices, and that brought her back to life.
Another thing she liked, besides the gastronomy, was the local population. She says she felt as if she were at home and that at no point did she want to go back home, but she had to start the return journey, and with great sadness she left the country.
She thought one visit would be enough, but when your soul resonates somewhere you have to go back to find out why. So she embarked on a second adventure, which did not take long to arrive. Three months later, she booked a cruise through the Arctic Circle, and her fascination with this place kept growing. So she ventured to return a third time. This time in winter, with days with barely any light and a night when the sky gave her the most beautiful gift.
Northern lights just for her
Iceland was different, covered in snow, and seeing the northern lights was something incredible, one of those things that makes you fall in love forever.
“For me, it was more proof that there is always something new to discover here”.
Iceland in winter was wilder, more intimate, it was another place that she knew but it still kept the same mystery and the same magic.
But why would she return to Iceland?
Have you ever thought about why people fall in love? It is a mix of sensations that someone gives you, right? Well, when a place makes you fall in love it is the same. It does not matter how many times you go to that place, there is always something that ties you even more, the weather, the light, the roads…
They say that when a place calls you in this way it is because it holds something for you inside. Could it be true? More than 90 countries but only one is the one that lights that flame. And you, do you have a place you would always return to?