Photographs from Skye's Travel Experiences

By Skye Grayson

Paris: Eiffel TowerI snapped this photo when the

Eiffel Tower staff turned on those classic, magical, sparkling

lights. As they did, you could hear "oooh" and "ahhh" from all directions. Funny how just a few

hundred blinking lights can strike a crowd with such awe.

The Top of Vatnajökull:

On our trip, my family and I decided that we would make the famously perilous trip to the top of Vatnajökull, the highest point in Iceland. We drove at an angle of 45 degrees, half of the way up in our rental 4x4. We then snowmobiled the

rest of the way up, always mindful of cliffs and hollow pockets in the ice. This a shot taken from a snowmobile rest-stop on the way up. It reflects Iceland's

inherent character—dangerous, mysterious and beautiful.

Dusk on Jökulsárlón: 

This is actually a smaller, unknown and untouched lake connected to Jökulsárlón. My family and I found it after a

long day on the road. We climbed over the hills of volcanic rock that hide this mini-lake, and watched as rain

quietly pierced the surface

South-Eastern Iceland’s Farmlands:

The rather humorous non-chalantness of the bluntly extreme landscape is what makes this picture. At the bottom, you see typical farm life: an

electric pole, some segmented fence and a couple of grazing horses. And only a few hundred meters away you see a massive, raging waterfall,

barreling thousands of pounds of water down from hundreds of feet above. But this is the essence of Iceland— pure, raw and unguarded—and fun. 

Summer’s Greetings:

This is a close-up of an iceberg in the middle of Jökulsárlón, the only natural iceberg lake in the world. The sun had finally appeared after days of dense fog. The sun had a magical, illuminating effect on the

icebergs—offset by the fact that the icebergs started to melt, causing thunderous ice collapses all around our little zodiac boat.

Brother and Jökulsárlón:

This photo makes active use of unique fore-, middle- and background qualities. Jökulsárlón is the only lake in the world that entraps icebergs

naturally. Jökulsárlón intakes water from the Vatnajökull glacier, seen far in the background. The photo, to me, evokes a natural calm, a rather

tranquil harmony between docile man and extreme nature. It also highlights the scale and vastness of Iceland.

Boating in Jökulsárlón:

Jökulsárlón, the only lake in the world with natural floating icebergs, is host to many tourists—and many film-makers (see Batman Begins, Lara

Croft: Tomb Raider and James Bond: Die Another Day. During our spontaneous trip to Iceland, this was a must-see. We took a small zodiac

boat out into the middle of the lagoon, where the temperature and humidity created an eerie scene that seemed both endless and alien. 

Surfing Therapy:

I was particularly stressed on the day this photo was taken. Driving away from "ground zero" of the events that had occurred that day, I noticed a storm brewing on the

beach of Melbourne. I pulled over and rented a surfboard. This is a shot I took before heading out to sea.

Suburban Rome at Dawn:

This is the view from a villa I stayed at during my brief visit to Rome. On the southwest outskirts of the city

center, one can can see the buildings in the distance, while appreciating the inherently Italian nature in the

foreground.

Pont de l’Archevêché:

I snapped this photo while wandering across both the east and west banks, then into the Spanish Quarter. I stumbled across the famous Pont de

l'Archevêché, where lovers have made it a tradition to leave their mark on a padlock, and attach it to this bridge across the Seine  While the French

do not feel strongly about this heavily tourist-headed tradition, people from around the world come to see this touching tribute to the heart.

“The First Viking Settlement” on the Coastal Horns:

This site is said to be that of one of the first touchdowns in Iceland by the Vikings. If I'm not mistaken, I believe it was "Naddoddr" who arrived ashore and discovered that there

were no other human inhabitants for miles. He settled on the shore with his crew and family, and proceeded to live a simple life. The photo itself is dramatic simply because these massive horns of earth extend right up to the freezing sea, and the surrounding

grass melts right in. The small interruption in the grass below the tallest horn is a house—the scale of this place is enormous.

Winter’s Winning:

While headed to lunch, I spotted this vibrant burst of color among the otherwise grey-ish landscape. A brave rarity among the frigid blues, blacks and whites, this little yellow

buggy was still fighting its way through the brutal winter in New York City.