Reykjavik, Iceland

 On the road again….

It has been a long three years since Covid suspended travel and brought us back home from Australia in March, 2020 so this is the beginning of our first big trip since then…

Here is one of our last pictures from the Great Ocean Road tour which took us to Melbourne and then back home, a great memory….

This trip will see us through Iceland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Finland with a short side trip to Estonia so a lot of ground to cover in 52 days….let’s see how well we do with this

We began this trip with an overnight flight from Toronto to Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland. The airport is located about 45 minutes from the city so we took a bus in and our first impressions of the landscape was of volcanic rock and little vegetation…

By the time we arrived in to the city it was 3 degrees but the sun was shining so that was a bonus! We are staying in a cute little apartment in the centre of the city for a week and will tour parts of the country from here.

Iceland is an island country at the confluence of the North Atlantic and Arctic oceans, east of Greenland and immediately south of the Arctic Circle, atop the boundary of the northern Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The island country is the world's 18th largest in area and one of the most sparsely populated. In comparison Newfoundland and Labrador is the 15th largest island in the world.

Reykjavik is the capital city of Iceland and it is where most of the population lives…the country has about 350,000 people and about 180,000 live here. It is a very walkable city and in a few days we saw most of it! 

One of the main landmarks in the city is Halligrimis Kirkja…The Church of Halligrimur. It is the largest church in Iceland and towers over the centre of the city…

The church can been seen at the end of one of the pedestrian streets in the centre of the city. Up close it is massive…

It was built as a national monument to honour a sacred poet of Iceland, Halligrimur Petursson and is part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Iceland. This is the predominant religion of the country which accounts for 90% of the population. 

Inside it was beautiful in its simplicity…

We went to the top for a view of the city which shows a compact city on the edge of the ocean…

One day we decided to walk the Sculpture and Shore walk around the edge of the water. It was about 5 km and started out as a chilly morning walk but soon warmed up as the day went along. The walk gave us great views of the fjord and mountains that are across the bay.

There were lots of interesting sculptures along the route including this one called The Sun Voyager which resembles a Viking ship but was intended by the artist to be a dream vessel and an ode to the sun. 

This one was a memorial to all the seafaring folks of Iceland…

One of the most interesting art installations was a grassy hill overlooking the harbour with a fish drying shack at the top. These shacks are very traditional and used throughout the country as a means to dry fish which is a mainstay in the diet here….

Also beautiful buildings including the Harpa Concert Hall which is made of glass prisms, this is one of the most amazing buildings we have seen on our travels…

The harbour part of the walk reminded us a lot of the waterfront in Halifax with many of the original buildings now converted to food halls and shops, though it is still a working harbour…

The currency of Iceland is the Icelandic Kroner which at the present day currency exchanges buys 100 for every 1 CAD,. Sounds like a lot but your kroners don’t go far in this country which is often at the top of the list for the most expensive country in the world. A coffee costs 8-10 CAD, a sandwich 15 dollars, a bowl of soup 20 dollars and a draft beer 13-16 dollars a glass, so it is no wonder that there are Happy Hours everywhere…

We laughed when we saw this sign but true enough as the Icelanders come out in droves to sit in the sun and enjoy a beverage. The English Pub was our choice while here in the city….

Don enjoying his Guiness…

Crowds enjoying the sun even though it was only 5 degrees! 

Another popular pastime in Reykjavík and across the country is regular visits to public baths which are heated by geothermal energy. 

Because Iceland sits on one of the world’s “ hot spots” there is naturally produced hot water. It is used to heat homes here as well, for example in the place we are staying when you turn on the hot water it comes out boiling and smelling of minerals. However, the cold water is very pure and good to drink.

In Reykjavík alone there are many public pools which are visited on a regular basis by people of all ages. These pools usually consist of an outdoor lane pool, various hot tubs and a steam room. We visited the one near us twice in the week we were here and loved it…

Before you enter you have to shower naked before putting on your swimsuit so that the pools remain as clean as possible. No photos available! 

 The various hot tubs ranged from 38C to 44C and then a cold plunge that was 11 degrees, plus a steam room to be used at the end.

  The water is tested 3 times a day and the place was spotless.

As we explored Reykjavik it was easy to see the relationship to the Vikings as they were everywhere…

On most every corner….

Standing at the end of Skólavörðustígur street and in front of Hallgrímskirkja church is one of the best-known landmarks in Reykjavik, the statue of Leifur Eiríksson. Leifur is probably the best known hero of Viking age Iceland, the first European to arrive in America: Leifur’s voyage to America in the year 1000 preceded the Christopher Columbus’ voyage by roughly half a millennia.

And outside a lot of shops…

 Ingolfr Arnarson was the first Scandinavian settler in Iceland. He established a settlement here in AD 874 and named Reykjavík which means “ Steamy Bay”.

Icelanders are the descendants of the Vikings who came from Scandinavia in the 9th century and within 60 years had inhabited the island. They were known to be raiders and thieves but also became farmers and fishermen as they settled here. Icelanders are very proud of their Viking heritage, so references to the Vikings are everywhere.

As we walked around the city we also saw many examples of street art on various buildings which always interests us…

When we visit a city we often take a walking tour to learn about the history and culture of the place. Our guide was Martin and we were in a group from around the world. He told us that tourism here is growing quickly and this year they expect over 2 million visitors. Even though it is colder this time of year we were happy not to be here in high season as he said that the place was crazy that time of year. 

Parliament House, which stands on Austurvöllur square in the middle of the city was built in 1880–81. At that time Iceland was ruled by Denmark but received its’ independence in 1944. It is a founding member of NATO but does not have an Armed Forces.

 

Another interesting fact is that there are 63 members with 30 of them being female…

City Hall is built on a natural pond in the middle of the city…

Some typical houses in the city…many of them are built of wood which has to be imported and then covered with corrugated metal to preserve them…

Since there are so many tourists there are shops everywhere…

Some of the most popular are shops selling Icelandic sweaters…

Wool shops, though I bought some Icelandic wool from the source at a farm we stopped by on one of our day trips…

Of course the farm dog was a border collie…

The sheep are in lambing season now and by the end of the season there will be 1.2 million sheep in Iceland…

The farm also had some Icelandic horses which are native to the country. Regulations do not permit any other horses to be imported so the breed remains as it was when they were imported by the Vikings…

Icelanders love their hotdogs that are boiled in Pilsner beer and supposedly made of organic meat, there are hotdog stands everywhere…

Don enjoying his 9 dollar hotdog which is served with fried onions, mustard and an Icelandic sauce…

Icelanders eat a lot of black licorice which is often salty, chocolate covered with many favours. I think we had some every day…

Skyr yogurt was my favourite which originated in Iceland and they say it is really a cheese…

Since it was so expensive to eat out we cooked most of our meals which we bought at a budget grocery chain called Bonus that can be identified by the pink pig…

Even groceries are so much more expensive than what we buy at home especially meats, however fruits and vegetables are reasonably priced and fresh.

We did enjoy some traditional Icelandic fish stew which tasted like our fishermans brewis made with salt cod…

Lamb is the most popular food here, particularly in stews and soups…

To give an idea of cost…these two bowls and two beers cost 86 dollars! 

Since taxi prices are outrageous most people get around using these scooters…

Or walking as we did, often doing 20,000 steps a day…

Reykjavik has many museums and exhibits, but we only visited one called Perlan which is on a hill overlooking the city and is built on the city’s water tanks holding geothermal water. It is a museum of Iceland’s geology that has been the most fascinating part of this trip. 

 It has a planetarium that has a northern lights show…

A lava film showing the actual eruption of a volcano a couple of years ago just outside Reykjavik…

And an Ice Cave that replicates the insides of a glacier…

A photo op inside a glacier and yes I’m cold…

Fascinating ice formations…

Our final day here we visited the Sky Lagoon which is located just outside the city. It features a geothermal lagoon on the edge of the ocean. 

It is quite lovely and also has a Cleansing Ritual where you dip in a cold plunge pool…

Enter through this door and…

Warm up in a sauna and steam room with a view…

As well as rubbing yourself with a salt scrub, but afterwards your skin feels awesome! 

This experience topped off our time in Iceland as it reminded us of how the people here love their public baths and how the geology of this country has provided them with so much warmth in a land of ice.

We are happy we came here to see the beauty of this place, not just in Reykjavik but elsewhere in the country which I highlight in another blog post. If anyone is thinking of a visit here we would certainly recommend it, only be aware that your pockets need to be deep, so plan accordingly!