Reykjavik: Hard to Spell, Easy to Enjoy

Well, the journey has started, and Iceland is unique and beautiful. We landed at around 7:00 AM, went through customs quickly at the small airport outside Reykjavik, and caught the bus to the actual city itself. The landscape is greenish brown with many rocks around. We were very tired (Sarah had slept a little on the plane, Mike not at all) but excited. The grumpy old couple behind us kept us amused though, as they argued about, well, everything!

A half-hour trip took us to the bus terminal, where we purchased “welcome passes” that cover local buses, some museums, and entry to thermal pools. We then lugged our bags about two miles towards our hostel, stopping for breakfast at a place called “Prikid.” We enjoyed ham and cheese omelets, toast, a side salad (interesting breakfast choice) and good strong coffee, or kaffi, (we even used cream) with refills. Great start to the day!

After breakfast, we found our hostel, but check-in was not until 2:00, so we stashed our bags there and headed out to explore. We had no set agenda for the day, except that we both wanted to swim in the thermal pool. We started with a walk along the Atlantic Ocean, Mike’s first time ever seeing this body of water, which was crystal blue and calm; the bay overlooked the mountains, but they were partially hidden in clouds. After a bit, we made our way back into town to find the pool.

Just getting ready to enter the pool was an adventure in itself, one that both of us struggled with at first–shoes off in the hallway, naked shower with soap in the locker room, bathing suit back on, and barefoot walk to the pool. There were many different components of the locker room, and Mike couldn’t comprehend the “don’t showe yourself in the shower” sign until he noticed the razor at the bottom of the picture. Once in the pools, life was easier; we alternated between the swimming pool and the warmer soaking tub. The highlight was the twisty, 3-story water slide that was accessed by climbing a spiral staircase. It looped and looped, with portions of darkness except tiny glowing lights. It was awesome, and we each went several times. By this time, Mike had noticed that Iceland seems to be full of beautiful young blonde women and saggy old men. He was definitely getting the better deal on this part of the trip, but maybe things will change in Iceland.

After swimming, we felt like we needed some culture. Where does one search for culture? Good news: the map lists a “Culture House”! Off we went. It turned out to be a very dry history of early literature in Iceland, which sounds cool, except neither of us had the historical context to understand the information in the museum, so it wasn’t that interesting. It turns out that the earliest written literature were Christian homilies (about 1200 AD, I think), a list of landowners known as the Settlement Book, and most famously, the Sagas–although no actual Sagas were shown. Several preserved books from previous centuries were on display, though, and it was fun to see the intricate printing.

The lack of sleep was catching up, so we checked into the hostel, napped, and showered before searching for dinner. We soon learned that you can’t be picky about both food selection and price, and we passed many, many restaurants because of this conflict. We soon scored though, when we happened upon a “boat shop,” which sold submarine sandwiches. We each got a boat with lamb, ham (bacon), French-fried onions, lettuce, and holli (mayo). With a shared tall-boy Coke, the meal was 2300 Kr (about $21), the cost of many single entrees at other restaurants.

Our stomachs full, we went down to the marina and found the highlight of the day: Harpa, the brand new concert house that had just opened this Spring. The outside is very modern, with reflective glass panels that are designed to resemble the basalt columns known to Iceland’s landscape. The top floor contains a restaurant, and the place settings are visible from the sidewalk four stories below because the ceiling is mirrored and reflects through the glass! Because a concert was going on, we couldn’t go into the auditorium, but it glows under red lights to simulate the lava that flows from Iceland’s volcanoes! It was an amazing building, and really enjoyed checking it out.

Utterly exhausted, we went off to bed after a great first day! It was 10:10 and still as bright as the afternoon, but we both slept like rocks for 10 ½ hours.

We will be hiking for the next 4 days in beautiful Iceland. We’ll update with pictures after we get back to town.

This entry was posted in Iceland. Bookmark the permalink.

5 Responses to Reykjavik: Hard to Spell, Easy to Enjoy

  1. Trung says:

    Is this a real place? Or are you hiding somewhere in SE Portland and making up fake city names that you “visit”?

  2. Steve Heikkila says:

    When are you going to get to the rotten shark?

    • Sarah says:

      We haven’t seen any yet! However, I think it might be offered at the market on Saturday. Not sure we will make it since we fly out that day too. Mike is going to do his best to find it!

  3. Maria says:

    I’ve been waiting in line at VooDoo donuts since 2am and haven’t seen you.

    I love the description of the food and of Harpa. Thank you for sharing your trip details via this blog!!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *