RO: Pfiu, ce zi plina! Cascade, gheizere, campuri de lava, ghetar, monster truck, dardait la 0 grade, trepidatii sacaitoare pe Kaldidalur, Thingvellir, placi tectonice, Reykjavik, si-apoi drumul spre Hella. Planeta Islanda ne surprinde zi de zi cu asa peisaje si asa relief, si adevaru’ e ca ni se intampla cam des sa ne oprim in mijlocul drumului doar ca sa cascam gura in zare. Tara de gheata nu-i deloc de gheata. Stiau ei vikingii de ce voiau sa tina bucatica asta de pamant din mijlocul oceanului numai si numai pentru ei. Cum altfel sa pacalesti o lume intreaga sa evite Islanda daca nu spunandu-i Tara de Gheata? 🙂 Cin’ sa vina in taramul aparent inghetat, cui sa i se para atractiv frigul si gerul si fiordurile facute sloi? Si-atunci bagi o minciunica nevinovata, numai bine cat sa nu vina navala popoarele doritoare de teritorii noi. Si daca tot intri in jocul asta, afli de la vikingi ca Paradisul Verde e in Groenlanda, Tara Verde, chipurile plina de paduri si pasuni intinse. Nooo, nici urma de ghetari in Groenlanda cea verde, mergeti acolo de colonizati!

EN: Phew, what a day! Waterfalls, geysers, lava fields, glacier, monster truck, shivering at zero degrees, our bus annoyingly shaking on Kaldidalur, Thingvellir, tectonic plates, Reykjavik, and in the end, the road to Hella. Planet Island surprises us each and every single day with stunning landscapes and the truth is that we’re frequently stopping in the middle of the road just to take a look in the distance. Ice Land is not icy at all. The vikings knew why they wanted to keep this piece of land in the middle of the ocean just for themselves. How could you convince the entire world to avoid Iceland if not calling it The Land of Ice? Who would come here, in the so called frozen region, who would consider appealing the cold and frost and ice-floe fjords? So why not spread an innocent lie, so that the conquerors will never get to this place? Needless to say that the vikings’ lie did not stop hereThey actually said to the world that the Green Paradise is in Greenland, a place covered in forests and large grass lands. Noo, no ice and glaciers at all in greenish Greenland, go there and colonize those territories!

RO: Si uite c-am ajuns in Hella, zice GPS-ul in parbriz. Inca putin mai in fata, printre campuri de lupini si lava, ajungem la Ranga. O cladire tipic islandeza, intinsa pe un singur etaj, de pare sa fie fix o casa de localnici, nu hotel. Lemn peste tot, o atmosfera rustica si o arhitectura de cabana de munte, cu camere intinse de-a lungul cladirii, cu privelisti dementiale catre peisajul greu de descris in cuvinte din sudul Islandei. Pare o oaza de liniste, si adevaru’ e ca dupa atata cocotat pe stanci si tremurat in fata Langjokullului, e musai nevoie de un pic de relaxare. Iar jacuzzi-ul din fata camerei e-atata de tentant, ca parca am uitat si de foame, si de sete si de orice. Si simplul fapt ca stim ca suntem in mijlocul pustietatii, fara nicio alta cladire in jur pe kilometri intregi, ne face sa ne placa si mai mult la Ranga. Si daca acum este asa, cand este midnight sun-ul in floare, cum o fi oare pe timp de toamna-iarna, cand aurora boreala se joaca pe cer in nestire? Ca pana una alta, cele mai faimoase poze cu Hotel Ranga sunt cele in miez de noapte, cu aurora verde-albastra pe deasupra – si recunoastem si noi ca in prima faza asta ne-a atras atentia la Ranga si de-asta am si ales sa stam aici

EN: But hey, looks like we arrived in Hella, at least that’s what our GPS says. Just a few kilometers ahead, among lupine fields and lava, we finally arrive at Ranga. A typical Icelandic building, with only one floor, makes us think that we arrived in front of a local’s house, not a hotel. Wood everywhere, a rustic atmosphere and a log cabin architecture, with large rooms along the building, with stunning views towards the magnificent southern Iceland landscape. It looks like a tranquility oasis and honestly, after all that climbing on the rocks and shivering in front of Langjokull glacier, we truly need some relaxation. And the jacuzzi in front of the room is so tempting, that we’ve already forgotten about thirst or hunger. Just knowing that we are in the middle of nowhere, with no other building around for kilometers, makes us appreciate Ranga even more. And we’re just thinking… if this is how it looks now, when the midnight sun is up, how is it here during fall or winter, when the Northern Lights are playing on the sky? We actually found Ranga thanks to those famous photos with the greenish-blueish aurora, and we have to admit it, that’s what attracted us in the first place and what made us to come here






RO: Bun, dar inainte de toate, murim de curiozitate sa ne vedem camera. In capat de coridor, undeva pe dreapta, fix in fata jacuzzi-ului din mijlocul curtii! Iar camera, de vis! Si de parca nu ne ajunsesera lectiile de dictie si logopedie de pe drum, in incercarile noastre ratate de a pronunta numele vulcanului Eyjafjallajokull, avem peste tot in camera desenati vulcani, ca sa ni se intipareasca in minte si mai bine numele fiecaruia in parte.

EN: Ok, but first of all, we’re dying to see our room. End of the corridor, somewhere on the right-hand side, just in front of the exterior jacuzzi in the garden! And the room is to die for! As if the diction and pronunciation lessons were not enough in our failed attempts to finally articulate the name of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano, there are plenty of volcano drawings in our room, just to be sure that we’ll eventually remember the name of each and every one of them.




RO: Si peste tot detalii mici la care nici nu te astepti. Pe birou o scrisorica pe care s-o trimitem oricui dorim in lume, platita de hotel, cateva ciocolatele islandeze, cateva detalii turistice despre ce se poate vedea in zona, revista hotelului cu diverse informatii despre Islanda, sa ai tot ce-ti trebuie la un loc

EN: And there are small little details everywhere. On the office we have a postcard that we can send anywhere in the world, and it is paid by the hotel, some Icelandic chocolates, some touristic details about the attractions around, the hotel’s magazine with different information about Iceland, just to have all that you need in one place

RO: Si toate ca toate, dar pe langa camerele frumoase, decorurile interesante, detaliile puse atat de bine la punct,  e atmosfera aceea de… acasa Oamenii iti vorbesc de parca ai fi de-al casei, managerul hotelului petrece timp cu fiecare dintre oaspetii lui, de parca am fi toti o mare familie reunita pe pamanturi islandeze. Unde mai pui ca lounge-ul de la etaj e demential!

EN: All in all, beside the beautiful rooms, the interesting decors and everything perfected down to the smallest details, the atmosphere here feels like being… at home 🙂 People speak to you as if you’re part of this house, the manager spends time to each of his guests as if we are all a big family reunited on Icelandic lands. Needless to say that the upstairs lounge is incredible!



RO: Dar hei, daca tot am vorbit despre mancare, ar fi si pacat sa nu incercam preparatele celor de la Ranga, ca doar nu degeaba sunt cunoscuti in toata Islanda pentru mancarurile lor fancy. Si intre noi fie vorba, cand ai asa o priveliste in timp ce iei cina la ora 11 noaptea, cand afara e inca lumina de parca ar fi miezul zilei, cand vezi prin geamurile de sticla raul Ranga curgand linistit printre campuri de lupini si vulcani in departare (uite ca parca zarim Hekla-ul undeva dupa norul de ceata), ce sa-ti mai trebuiasca? O zi ceva mai lunga de 24 de ore probabil, ca sa te poti bucura mai mult de toate. Si-o sticla de vin rosu, sec de nu se poate. Si cam atat

EN: But hey, speaking about food, why not try the traditional Icelandic dishes at Ranga, as they are famous for their gourmet cuisine. And between you and me, when you have such a stunning view while having dinner at 11PM, when outside it’s still daylight as it would be noon, when you see through the glass windows the Ranga river, flowing quietly through the lupine fields, and the volcanoes (looks like we can spot the Hekla Volcano somewhere beyond the fog cloud), what else do you need? Most probably a day with a bit more than just 24 hours, so that you can enjoy all these more. And a bottle of red wine, extremely red wine. And that’s about it