Bird on a Fire wrote: ↑Sat Jun 19, 2021 11:18 pm
I've been trying to get some fieldwork funded for three years, and finally I managed. Going to Iceland in about a month.
I have to quarantine for 5 days and pass two tests. The government has free hotels to quarantine and I expect better conditions than this.
I might pack some extra food though.
As noted it is expensive, for food, transport and accommodation. But they do have strict restrictions on bringing food in, both in terms of total quantity and bio-security. But the main issue is for people arriving by ferry in campervans, who are often searched. Chocolate snacks, etc, are worth bringing.
If your fieldwork is in a remote location, such that it will no be convenient for you to regularly visit foodshops for fresh food (which may not be very remote at all given the scantiness of settlements of sufficient size for a reasonable food shop), than you might want to take a supply of dried milk with you. It is very difficult to get locally. Having done several long interior crossings by bicycle, such that we had no food-shopping for extended periods, I was often grateful to have dried milk wih me for tea, cereal etc.
I would suggest doing some careful research on what are the names of the various idiosyncratic milk products in Iceland. Various things which look like milk in terms of both their name and packaging, turn out to be some kind of buttermilk or yogurt. Also bear in mind that imported long-shelf-life products, like porage oats, are often labelled in Danish. It took me a long time to find porage oats before I worked that out.
If you are wanting to take the opportunity to see the charismatic sea-birds, like puffins, razorbills and guillemots, then be aware that they have substantially gone out to sea from their breeding sites by about 7-10 days into August. The weather is also often turning notably worse towards the end of August - there's a good reason "summer" tourist activities are winding up by around 20 August.