Plus: Six-toed Key West cats and a Southerner’s Iceland adventure

PHOTO: COURTESY OF WILL JACKSON

Will Jackson works on a gnome at Rock City, just outside Chattanooga.

One of the South’s most spectacular holiday displays, the Enchanted Garden of Lights at Rock City, in Lookout Mountain, Georgia, is celebrating its thirtieth anniversary this year. The millions of glowing bulbs always impress, but the real stars of the show are the hundreds of antique terra-cotta gnomes imported from Europe decades ago, the preservation of which falls to Will Jackson, Rock City’s senior manager of innovation. “I genuinely believe they have magic in them,” says Jackson, who’s worked at the venue since 2006. We chatted with him about the joys and challenges of keeping the fragile statues in good condition for generations to come.

G&G CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

Iceland. Looking for an easy but offbeat fall trip, I chose Iceland upon discovering it was less than six hours away via a direct flight from Washington, D.C. Even with a purposely loose itinerary, the next four days over-delivered on cuisine, hot springs, and relaxation. Some highlights:

Reykjavik. Settled by hardy Norsemen in 874, Iceland’s largest city (population 140,000) is a blend of Old World charm and recent prosperity. After checking into Iceland Parliament Hotel, a Wake Up Iceland food tour was the perfect way to get oriented. Warm eateries fed us hearty cod stew, rye bread ice cream, and a locally beloved hot dog. At the Icelandic Bar, I even sampled shark flesh fermented to keep its toxins from killing me. (A shot of brennivin, the national booze, helped get it down.) The next day, I took in Hallgrims Church, a soaring concrete tower visible from miles away, and strolled along scenic Faxafloi Bay to the modernist Harpa concert hall. Nightlife is vibrant, too. Despite Reykjavik’s status as the northernmost capital of a sovereign state, Southern vibes found me at a coffeehouse where the house band rocked “Sweet Home Alabama” and at Lemmy Bar as the singer delivered a captivatingly accented “Jolene.”
The Blue Lagoon. Next up, pure R&R. Located in a lava field into which an adjacent geothermal plant released an underground reservoir of milky blue seawater in 1976, the sprawling Blue Lagoon has grown into a popular tourist destination and world-class spa. I treated myself to two nights on the luxe Retreat Hotel side, the better to indulge in a sauna-to-cold-plunge routine and an amazing seven-course dinner at Michelin-starred Moss restaurant. Perfect moment? Soaking in steamy geothermal waters after dark and gazing up to witness the Northern Lights shimmering green across the cold night sky.