The Icelandic people by culture attach great importance to independence and self-sufficiency.

Icelanders are proud of their Viking and Icelandic heritage and are very careful to preserve their traditions and language.

Most Icelanders believe in elves or are unwilling to exclude their existence.

There are a number of evidences of roads that have been diverted and construction projects modified or abandoned to avoid disturbing the rocks where the elves are believed to live.

This is very interesting and connotative.

About heritage was the visit to Saga Museum  about Iceland history.The visit  shows the  key moments in Icelandic early history, moments that have determined the fate of Icelandic people. It was  useful for my understanding  how Icelanders have lived for more than a millennium. 
 I noticed how strong is the attachment of the Icelandic people to their land and how deep is their roots in their territory. Icelanders know they live in a unique environmental context, for better or for worse, and they are proud of it.  Iceland and the Icelanders are a happy example of how humans can adapt to  adverse
environmental contexts, not only taking sustenance but also prosperity.

Visiting the museum I discovered that only in 870 d.c. there was the first man in Iceland and then I met the most important stages in Icelandic history.

I was amazed by the importance that women have had in the history of Iceland, as the woman who took the sword opened her tunic and leaned the blade against her naked breast and with this gesture put her opponents to flight.

I reflected on some historical aspects such as the plague and heresy that caused many deaths in Italy as in Iceland.

I have learned that heritage is not only what comes from the past, but is something that lives in my present and that will continue after. Heritage involves tangible aspects, such as monuments, buildings and historic places, intangible aspects like music, skills, crafts but also natural elements.

My first impression of Iceland is that this country is permeated by intangible culture. Its astonishing landscape, the force of nature, the unpredictable weather conditions influence the life of its inhabitants and the course of their history.

It was very interesting to visit the Saga museum and discover how the first inhabitants settled in this land and managed to invent new crafts, such as iron making, and new traditions. I reflected on the vicissitudes of the Vikings and their cruel battles, and I thought of how war leads destruction and changes in the lives of the people involved. Finally I have thought that we learn in different ways, but learning by experience is much more exciting and effective because what we get through practice is really capable of changing us.

I was struck by the ancient political organization of Iceland, not very structured and very democratic, different from that of Europe and Italy where great empires or powerful families reigned for centuries.

Before entering the museum, Rita asked us to answer the following question: "How is it that even today most Icelanders believe in supernatural beings like trolls?" Faced with an extreme nature that can kill him, Man feels the need to ask for help from imaginary beings; moreover, Icelandic citizens have always been allowed religious freedom, so they have not been forced to abandon their traditional beliefs even after the advent of the Christian religion.

At the end of the lesson I ate a lot of fish cooked so well!

For a long time no one has been able to rationally explain the overbearing and unpredictable phenomena such as volcanic eruptions under glaciers, geysers or thermal pools. Iceland was for a long time isolated from the rest of the world, for the inhabitants who spent dark winters it was comforting the idea of ​​living with other invisible beings.

It was very impressive today to hear the ancient stories about elves told by a modern storyteller on the streets of Hafnarfjordur. In the silence the wind blew tree branches, grass and moss on the rocks. The Icelandic natural environment is mystical, there is an ancient magic between stones and caves, where small invisible creatures live: elves. Every element of nature is alive and must be respected, even the rocks have a history and a soul that the Icelanders still know how to feel thanks to their close connection with the environment in which they live. In fact, in 2016 the Reykjavik road department decided to divert the construction of a road because the population has asked to protect the rocks where, according to ancient beliefs, the elves live. To take a road to protect a rock: a great lesson of civilization, humility and respect for the environment.