Dear jdurg,
If you have access to iodine crystals, do the following. Dip in a small stainless steel spatula. Hold the little heap of crystals over a Bunsen burner. You will get some sublimated into a red vapor at first, but after just a few seconds, lo and behold, the iodine will quickly melt all over the blade of your spatula and almost immediately begin to boil. If you take the spatula out before it all boils away you will have lots of time to see the iodine as a liquid, on an "open" surface, at room pressure. It will discolor your nice shiny stainless steel spatula (turn it black), but it is worth it, to feel that emotion of being "stunned". How often do you get that feeling?
