9. Just a bit more

Today was our last day. We had short visits to the Harpa Concert Hall, the Maritime Museum, and the Perlan (the Pearl). All very cool places. The trip was busy and eventful, and we saw many things. Iceland is probably the most unique and different place I have ever been. Highly recommended.

7. Golden Circle

Today we set out to drive around the Golden Circle. Our first stop was at Mosfellskirkja (the church on the mountain with moss). Very near there is Gljúfrasteinn, the home of Nobel Prize-winning author Halldor Laxness, where we stopped to purchase the novel that won him the award.

We drove to Þingvellir National Park, where we were able to walk between the tectonic plates separating North America and Europe. We also visited a cool, interactive museum there. On the way to our next stop, we stopped and had hot dogs (which were average at best).

Not many people seem to know that the English word “geyser” comes from the name of a place, Geysir, which is a large geothermal field with hot springs and geysers. We stayed long enough to see the thing spout a few times, and kept going.

Our next stop was at Gullfoss (which doesn’t sound at all like it looks). The waterfall is very impressive, and we were able to see a really cool rainbow. We also got very wet.

Kerið Crater was a quick stop, but worth seeing.

We returned to Reykjavik, and we were hungry. Wayne used his Triposo app and located the Chuck Norris Grill, where we had burgers. We enjoyed some very tasty gelato around the corner at Valdis. We went toward the water to see the Sun Voyager Sculpture, and then called it a day.

6. Take me to church

We slept late, packed up, and headed toward Reykjavik. We were still quite a ways out on the peninsula, so we took in a bit of scenery on the way. We stopped at Budir Church to take a couple of photos, and were treated to a small tour that included the history of the church and the singing of an Icelandic hymn. (The hymn link is just an example… the whole choir from the video wasn’t there… but it’s the same hymn). From there we went to Rauofeldsgja Gorge, where we were able to walk into a crack in the side of the mountain. We enjoyed lunch at Rjukandi, and continued on.

The drive from the peninsula to the city includes a 6 kilometer long tunnel, which turned out to be much easier than off-roading through the rocks. We found our lodging, and got ready for a night out. We visited the iconic church called Hallgrimskirkja, which included a great view of the city from the church tower (there is an elevator!) We did some shopping, had some dinner at a nearby restaurant called Rok that included “cured reindeer,” and finally turned in for the night.

5. Fresh Fish and (not-so-fresh) Shark

We began our exploration of the Snaefellsness Peninsula by driving to the village of Grundarfjordour. Once again, our GPS chose the creative option, which means we drove across the rocks instead of around them. The town sits next to Kirkjufell (Church Mountain), which we are told, is the most-photographed mountain in Iceland. One of us wasn’t feeling great, so two of us boarded a boat, and spent the morning looking at birds (including puffins) and then fishing.

  • Pronounced “WY-KING”

After our fishing adventure, we drove around the peninsula, making a few stops along the way. Our next stop was in a place called Bjarnarhoen that is famous for its production of fermented shark meat. We looked around the museum, where they taught us about the history of this industry and showed us how they make the stuff. Then, of course, we had to taste it. The critiques from the three of us ranged from “well that’s something I’ll never do again” to “hmm… not bad!”

  • Mmm… ammonia

After “dessert,” we continued our drive, stopping at Hellissandur, which was the first known fishing village in Iceland. There is a great little Maritime Museum there. Since we hadn’t had enough excitement, we climbed up to the top of the Saxholl Volcano Crater before heading back to the house. After a bit of rest, we made a delicious dinner that included fried potatoes, mushy peas, and the fresh cod that we caught that morning.

4: Birthday Road Trip!

Today was mostly driving. The GPS in our rental car decided on the more creative route, which took us nearly off-roading through the  Þingvellir National Park. (That funny looking letter is pronounced “th.”) The road was very narrow and very rocky, and had a speed limit of 80 km/hr, which is about 50 mph. I think I drove at about half that speed, on average.

About halfway through our journey today, we stopped in a town called Borganes to see The Settlement Center. This was a very interesting museum, and we learned a lot about the original Viking settlers of Iceland. We enjoyed lunch in the museum cafe. They had a tasty vegetarian buffet, and I had, believe it or not, a horse filet with vegetables. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t my favorite either.

After lunch we continued on our journey onto the Snaefellsnes Peninsula, where we stayed for two nights in the village of Arnarstapi. It’s called a town, but it’s really just a few houses, a restaurant, and a gas station. Our house was on the water with gorgeous scenery. We went on a nature hike, and we were able to see a whale playing in the water (too far away to get any good photos). We made it about halfway to the next town, Hellnar, which has a population of 9 (no kidding).

After resting a bit, we went to the restaurant for fish and chips. Since one of us was celebrating a birthday, we also enjoyed some delicious chocolate cake before turning in for the evening.

3: A “new” island

Today began with a visit to Skogafoss, which is a very large waterfall. We climbed the steps to the top of the falls, which was not easy, but the view was worth it.

We then took a short drive to Landeyjahofn, where we then took a ferry to the Heimaey island, which is the largest of the Westman Islands off of the south coast. A large portion of this island was formed in 1973 when a volcano eruption increased the size of the island dramatically. We took in the scenery and visited a really great volcano museum. The weather was pretty dreary, so we enjoyed a very tasty dinner and went to bed, since we had a very early return ferry ride in the morning.

2: Ice chips and black sand

Two icebergs run into each other and crash into pieces. What do they say? …… Ice to meet you!

That greeting was from our tour guide today. We drove up the east coast of Iceland, through the Vatnajokul National Park to Jukulsarlon (Glacier Lagoon), where we took a really fun boat ride to see the “ice chips,” as Wayne described them. Our tour guides were excellent and knowledgeable, and we got to see pieces of icebergs up close. After the boat ride, we purchased lunch from the 2 food trucks that were there, and enjoyed lobster soup and fish & chips.

After lunch, we walked on Diamond Beach, which is a black sand beach near the lagoon. Tourists gave it that name because of the iceberg pieces that wash up onto the black sand beach.

On the way home, we took lots of photos of the glacier, the mountains, and the lava fields. We also stopped for some tasty Icelandic snacks.

Dinner was at Strondin Pub in Vik. We enjoyed lamb soup, seafood soup, seafood salad, and local beer.

1: A very long day

Our first day was really two days without sleep between them. We left home at about 4 pm on July 25th, picked up Wayne, and drove to the airport. After we got all checked in, we ate dinner, boarded the plane, and flew to Iceland. The 8:30 pm flight was about 5 1/2 hours, but we changed time zones and ended up 4 hours ahead, and landed around 6 am. We then had a full day of activity before sleeping. I’m not great at math, but we went a long time without sleeping.

The airport is in Keflavik, which is on the southeast of Iceland, and is near Grindavik. Wayne was stationed in Grendavik when he was in the United States Air Force about 60 years ago. We drove through the little town (the Air Force base is no longer there), and then drove west.

Near Grindavik, we stopped for some lunch. Imagine a very low-key, home-grown version of Wawa (a gas station that serves food). We got sandwiches (mine was chicken and egg) and coffee, ate then and hit the road.

  • We are holding up well, considering we haven’t slept in a really long time.
  • Evidently, that long K word means chicken.

Our first official stop as tourists was at the LAVA Centre, which is a museum with information about volcanos, in particular those in Iceland. Really informative and fun to see (and in the middle of nowhere).

Our next stop was at Seljalandsfoss, which is a massive waterfall that you can walk behind. Wayne decided to look at it from the bottom, and Cathy and I put on our wet suits and walked up and behind it. Really impressive.

Finally, we reached our “home” for the next 2 nights, the town of Vik, on the central south coast. There is a beautiful little church on a hill that overlooks the town, and has a lovely view of the iconic Reynisdrangar columns . After taking in the view, we settled into our quaint little apartment, and then found some dinner and refreshment at Smidjan Brugghus, a local brewhouse that is rated the number one restaurant (out of 12!) in Vik.

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