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Reykjavik, Iceland - 09/20/17

Finally, we reached what for most of us is the apex of the entire journey, the most urban you can get in Iceland, the northernmost capital of the world, Reykjavik.

As expected, the range of sights and activities here is enourmous; museums, galleries, landscapes, historical places and many memorable sights.
The city, which now has over 123.3 thousand inhabitants, is believed to be the first permenent settlement in Iceland, being established in AD874.

Reykjavik was founded in 1786, officially as a trading town, growing steadily over the decades, later becoming the national center of commerce, population and governmental activities in the country.

Interesting Facts:

• Reyjavik (and Iceland overall) is among the cleanest, greenest and safest cities in the world.

• The settlement of Reykjavik, believed to be the first in Iceland, is described in the Book of Settlement, Landnamabok. The name means Bay of Smoke, or Smokey Bay, and is said to be inspired by the steam from hot springs in the area.

• Reykjavik Golf Club has the largst and oldest golf course in Iceland, the Korpa, opened in 1963. The club, also the oldest in the country was opened in 1934.

Austurvollur park

We always like to spend some time at regional parks, specially at places such as Reykjavik, a beautiful capital full of energy and interesting visuals. Just upon arriving at the city center we went to Austurvollur park.

After a long 142 miles journey, we couldn't enjoy this stop more,  a very quiet and pretty place next to the Icelandic House of Parliament, where we couldn think and discuss our next stops.

Höfði house

• Intersting Fact: In the middle of the park is the statue of Jon Sigurdsson, leader of Iceland's independence movement. Iceland's Independence Day is in June 17

We passed by Hofdi on our way to Hallgrimskirkja, the place where Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev met in an important step to end the cold war.

Can you remember the last time we visited a church? -There are many imponent cathedrals and churches in England and the surrounding areas, so a church/cathedral visit was very common there. But in Iceland there are not nearly as many interesting churches to visit. Of these exceptions is Hallgrimskirkja, a Lutheran parish church, named after the Icelandic poet and clergyman Hallgrimur Petursson (1614-1674), author of the Passion Hymns, a collection of 50 religious poetic texts.

At 74.5 meters (244 ft), it is the largest church in Iceland and among the tallest structures in Iceland.

The church is in the center of the city, being visible throughout the whole of Reykjavik, and is one of it's best known landmarks.

Hallgrimskirkja took 41 years to be completed, from 1945 to 1986, the design of the church was done by Architect Gudjon Samuelsson in 1937, who said to have inspired it in the trap rocks, mountains and glaciers of Iceland. -Which is a felling we totally get-

View from the top of Hallgrimskirkja

Interesting Facts:

• The church is also used as an observation tower. There is a lift to a viewing deck with open views from the city and the surrounding mountains.

• In front of the church is a stutue of the explorer Leif Eriksson, who we learned about in Eiriksstadir. The statue predates the construction of the church and was done by Alexander Stirling Calder and sent as a gift by the United States commemorating the 1000th anniversary of Iceland's parliament, in 1930.

The tower was completed long before the church, in 1974.

Kringlan shopping mall

After visiting the church we went to the main street in Reykjavik, Laugarvegur, and got ourselves in a shopping mall called Kringlan, the second largest in Iceland. Though we didn't spend much time there, our time in the shopping helped us understand more about the life in the city; not a lot of local stores but many international, global brands.

• Interesting fact: The name is derived from the Kringla Marsh (Kringlumyri) meaning 'circle' or 'pretzel', although the mall has nothing to do with any of those things.

The shoping also has a supermarket, a library, a theater and a cinema.
It is of course a big shopping, but small compared to the ones we saw in Ireland for example.

Perlan

The next stop is a very important multi-purpose complex, a remarkable landmark with 360° views of the city, enabled by it's glass dome design. It's name is Perlan, "The Perl".
Not only is it an exellent viewing deck, but also a huge hot water storage facillity which supplys the city with regional geothermal water, through six large tanks pilled on top of each other creating decks. Each tank has a capacity of 4 million liters (1 million gallons). The space between the decks (over 10.000m³) is used for many different events such as concerts, as well as housing several museums and exhibitions.

The current arrangement of the museum includes;

Viking Saga Museum: Maritime Museum
&;Glacier Exhibition; Icelandic Natural Wonders: 

Many top notch attractions are on the way; on May 1 2018 Perlan Museum will open a new cutting edge planetarium with the best quality available in the world today - Sadly we came to early! but now at least we now about it in advance. We will surelly hear about it again, maybe even visit it when it's finished.

Interesting Facts:

• The viewing deck das panoramic telescopes at each six corners of the deck, it is from here that MT. Snaefellsjokll can be seen with frequency in Reykjavik, (which we learned about while in Olafsvik)

• There is a rotating restaurant on the top of the dome, it takes 2 hours for a full rotation. A cafeteria is located under the restaurant.

We were very excited to see a man-made version of two small geysers, one of which we assumed was Strokkur, imitating the sprouting action we saw in Haukadalur on our way to Eirikstadir.

The building was designed by Igimundur Sveinsson and is situated on a hill, Öskjullid. The project was completed in 1991, largely at the behest of mayor David Oddson.

Aerbajasafn

Lake Tjornin

• From the observation deck we checked some future stops off our list, including the lake Tjörnin in the city center, next to the city hall and Reykjavik Airport, and Arbaejasafn; an open air museum. We also located our next stop, the National Museum of Iceland, right next to Tjornin.

National Museum of Iceland

As an ending to our journey in Iceland, we visited the National Museum of Iceland.
We came here expecting to leave fully enlightened about the making of Iceland and it's history. We were not mistaken, but also not entirely right. Although the premise is good, the practice seems to disappoint.
The many exhibitions and displays richely illustrate the story of Iceland's past, from the Viking settlements to currently culture. With over 2000 items in it's main exhibition, there was no little doubt that we couldn't erase regarding the history of Iceland. Some of those doubts were answered by interactive displays, including touch screens and phone calls with historic figures.

The Valþjófsstaður door in
the National Museum of Iceland

Amongst the museum's many treasures, the Valthjofsstadur door stands out, featuring unique elaborate engravings depicting scenes from the 12th century knight's tale 'Le Chavalier au Lion' , where a knight slays a dragon, thus freeing a lion that becomes his companion.

Our jorney through time started in the permenanent exhibition; Making of a Nation: Heritage and History in Iceland, with the ships in wich medieval settles crossed the oceans to get to the island, and progressed with the help of over 1.000 photographs and 2.000 artifacts from various periods, ending in a modern airport.
 Along with the permanent exhibition, there are currently 4 more:
Points of view: A collaboration of 6 different cultural institutions
Bundled up in blue: Investigation of a viking grave
Iceland in the world, the world in Iceland: Centered in transnationalism
Thoughts of Home -Inga Lisa Middletion: Photographs by Inga Lisa.

The Musuem also has a restaurant and a gift shop.

Our Next Stop is to be decided! -

Olafsvik, Snaefellsbaer, Iceland - 09/01/17

Olafsvik

Guide To Iceland

This time we are exploring West Iceland, before we leave for another country, which we'll soon decide as a group.

Our exploration took us to Olafsvik, the westernmost sizable settlement in Europe.
Olafsvik is a small town with a notable trading history, specially with Denmark. The town is on the western end of Snaefellsnes Peninsula, in Snaefellsbaer, which has been named 'Iceland in Miniature', because many national sites can be found there, including: Snaefellsjokul volcano, with 1.446m/4.744ft and a glacier on top, which can be seen from as far as 120 km (74 mi) away in Reykjavik. The mountain is also known as the setting for the novel "Journey to the center of the Earth" by Jules Verne.

Interesting Fact:

• Nearby, in Hellissandur, one of the two other towns in the region, is the tallest structure in Western Europe, the Gufuskalar radio mast, 412m (1.351ft) high.

• The population was 1.010 in 2010

Our only cultural visit in the area was Pakkhus Museum, the regional museum of Snaefellsbaer, located on the second and third floors of an old building from 1844 which then served as a trading store.

Honestly, we have no concrete memories from the displays in the museum, only memories of an old cozy house, with frozen memories from the past, as if held the past in a bubble, and a deep respect for the locals which were making handcraft items.

• Now during summer it is open from 12:00 to 17:00 pm, but during the Winter it's only open on request. 

• A general store and a shop selling handicrafts are on the ground floor.

Next we continued walking, planning to visit the regional Park, the notorious Snaefellsjökull National Park. 

The park is replete of landscapes, including volcanoes, caves and waterfalls, which such diversity that we made it a personal decision to visit everything by choice: Some decided to stop at Anadarstapi, a small village close-by, (which was in our route at some point) and take a small, but rather dangerous, 2.5 km (1.55 mi) hike to Hellnar on the cliffside, others headed to the glacier on the top of the mountain, while others went to see the lave on the volcano site.

When we regrouped, we were finally ready to visit our next and probably last destination in Iceland, the capital Reykjavik, 142 miles away.

Reykjavík, the capital and largest city of Iceland. The world's northernmost capital.

Eiriksstadir, Búðardalur, Iceland - 08/21/17

We are already in our 12th stop in Iceland yet we keep discovering interesting things about it.
It seems our surprises are far from over, and we underestimated what the country had to offer.

At the hands of destiny, our will has taken us to Eiriksstadir, a city of great historical value, named after a generation of explorers; Erik Thorvaldsson (Erik the Red), and his son Laif Eriksson.

By popular culture (but disputed by the Icelandic Sagas), Erik the Red was the first to discover the land in Vinland (Wineland) which today includes Greenland, in 982, during a 3 year exile from his homestead Eiriksstadir for avenging the death of his slaves.

 Upon returning from his exile, Erik spread stories of a "Greenland", (a name more appealing than 'Iceland')luring potential settlers to the area. His salesmanship proved successful and in 985 he headed back to Greenland with a huge number of colonists, out of 25 ships 14 survived the trip.
 Later, his son Leif Eriksson dicovered Vinland and part of North America before Colombus, after being blown off course on his way to Greenland in 999.

Interesting fact:

• This saga is recognized in North America and the day 9 of October was made Leif Eriksson's day.

• In the center of the village is a recreation of Erik's house, which serves as a heritage museum.

Strokkur Geyser(video) - (aerial)

On our way here we went by Haukadalur, following along Haukadalsvegur route, capturing many memorable sights.

Haukadalur is a prominent geothermal site, and place to ancient geyser 'Geysir' and Strokkur Geyser, which erupts reliably every 10-15 minutes. As well as other smaller geysers, mineral springs and mud pots.
Geysir hasn't been erupting recently, but it's eruption in 2000, of over 400ft/122m holds the record for the highest geyser blast in known history.

The westernmost settlement in Europe, and setting for the novel "Journey to the center of the Earth" by Jules Verne.

Isafjordur, Isafjardabaer, Iceland - 08/11/2017

Isafjardabaer COA

After our small stop at Hvammstangi, we reached another pinnacle in our adventure in Iceland, Isafjördur, the largest town in Vestfirdir(Westfjords) with over 2.600 inhabitants and the capital of Isafjardabaer.

The town gets it's name from the fjörd Ísafjarðardjúp, which translates to "Ice fjord deep", but is located in Skutulsfjordur, a fjord which meets the waters of Isafjardardjup.
The Westfjords is the coolest area in Iceland, the highest temperature of the, actual, summer season is 9.9 °C, considering that the climate has warmed significantly in the last 100 years. In addition to the cold, the town experiences high winds and high precipitation.
Isafjordur has an airport with regular flights to Reykjavik, as well as ferries to nearby settlements (and also offers cruise ships), specially to Hornstrandir Peninsula, which has an uninhabited wilderness area, currently a nature reserve.





Important personalities:

• Reykjavik! - Band
• Ólafur Ragnar Grimsson - President of Iceland
• Agnes M. Sigurdardottir - Bishop of Iceland
• Mugison - Musician

Events taking place in the city:

• Sky Week, Aldrei for ég suder (I Never Went South), Fossavtn, Ski Marathon, Vid Djupid music festival, European Swampsoccer championship, Act Alone; a theatre festival dedicated to the art of acting alone.

Despite it's small population and historical isolation from the rest of the country, the town has an urban atmosphere; having a school of music, a hospital, a university center and many cultural centers. The town has also become known as a center for alternative music, hosting several music festivals, such as:

Aldrei for ég suder: A yearly festival begun in 2002 as an initiative from Örn Elias Gudmundsson (Mugison) and his father to support the growing music community in Isafjordur.

The name means "I never went south", and is taken from a Bubbi Morthens song. It may refer to a movement to establish cultural events outside the capital, Reykjavik, and draw attention back to the roots and away from the center.

The festival's subtitle is "Rokkhátíð alþýðunnar" - "Rock festival for the people"

Vid Djupid: Offers master classes and concerts with nationwide and worldwide known artists.


Our only cultural visit in the town was Westfjords Heritage Museum. It is based on maritime heritage, giving insight of the local fisheries and fishing industry, as well as the life of the fishermen and the coastal culture.

Interesting Facts:

• The museum was opened on the 5th of June, a day dedicated to seamen; Sjómannadagurinn(Seamen's day) in 1988. The house keeping the museum was built in 1784.

• The museum also has a policy concerning preservation of boats, making sure to maintain the knowledge of ship repair and maintenance alive within the community.

Among the fishing objects of all sorts, we found a collection of 190 accordions, a collection of valuable old boats, and most interestingly, a collection of different things recovered by divers around the fjörds.
We were lucky to arrive here at this time, as there is a play by a local group about the daily life in Iceland in the beginning of the 19th century. In the play we saw them sing and dance and prepare fish, putting what seemed like codfish (called 'bacalau') to dry.

Land of viking explorers, Eriksstadir

Hvammstangi, Húnaþing vestra, Iceland - 07/23/17

As we near another highly anticipated stop, in northeast Iceland, we reach Hvammstangi, the most densely populated area in Hunaphing, with about 580 inhabitants.
Hvammstangi is an important service provider for the area, specially education and trading. Tourism, administration and fishing industries (providing mainly shrimp) are important parts of the town's economy. Interestingly, Hvammstangi owns Iceland's largest textile factory, let's see if we can find it here.

Telling the story of the city's businesses and development, which dates back to 1856, Trade Museum Bardusa, in the city center next to the harbor, was the first place we stopped after we arrived.

After learning about the town, but not much about the textile factories we where looking for, we went to the Icelandic Seal Center, which we learned serves as an information booth in the city, and stayed for the information about seals.

The building, aside from serving as an information booth, also directs visitors to nature and seal watching and sea angling trips.

Hvammstangi is well-known for it's support for camping and camping culture, providing many rewarding views, so we decided to venture out and go camping ourselves. 

 As a habit, we repeated our list of places to visit before sleeping: - (Japan, Germany, France, Russia, Italy, Brazil (x5)) -

After a was-to-be-hard night, (thankfully we had our mages with their pyromancies ready for this occasion) we went nature-hunting, for 4 structures in particular, which hopefully wont take too long to find; Ánaðastapi, Hvitserkur, Stapar and the local fjörd; Midfjördur, which can be seen from the local restaurant: Sjavarbog

The first one we found was the Fjord, by chance, looking through the windows at Sjavarborg restaurant, presumably the best in the region. Well, a fjörd is basically just a little valley with water from the ocean filling the space in the middle. In fact, it wasn't until we reached Ánaðastapi that we realized we had already seen the Fjord.

Our hike has earned us many amazing views, definitely worth all the trouble.

Despite having to actually swim across masses of water to get here, we are still satisfied to get to know Ánaðastapi in person!

Still exploring in Vatnsnes Peninsula, over 3 km(1.86 mi) away from Hvammstangi by sea through Midfjördur, we sighted Hvitserkur, a 15 m/49 ft tall rock formation. At this point we were already dry from the swimming, and it was getting dark, so we decided to stay for the high chances to witness the Northern Lights, (which is very common in Iceland) and we got very lucky! what an awesome sight.

Our last report is from Vatnsnes Peninsula as a whole, of which we have seen very little of. Our nature-hunting here finished in walking across green lands, where we saw the local wild life and vegetation (weirdly, in all of our exploration we saw very little to no trees) and also visited an important event location, the farm "Hamarsbúð" where the traditional Icelandic Food Festival, “Fjöruhlaðborð” (Fun buffet), is celebrated every year. We also found horse and cattle pens and old abandoned farms.

Time to go "Ice fjord deep" in Iceland

Dalvik, Dalvikurbyggd, Iceland - 07/10/17

Dalvikurbyggd COA

Going further north in Iceland we discovered a river, which we later learned is called "Sverfadardalsa river", and began to follow along the waters in hopes to get to our next location.

Our suspicions were right, and by the mouth of the river was Dalvik, a regional port for import and fishing with 1.454 inhabitants as of 2011. Dalvik means "Valley Bay" in Icelandic, and the valley which it refers to is Svarfadardallur.

Like Akureyri, Dalvik also has ferry services to Grimsey island, which we learned about while in our last stop, Akureyri. Grimsey was amalgamated with Akureyri in 2009, and is the northernmost inhabited Icelandic territory.

Interesting Fact:

The festival Fiskidagurinn mikli (The Great Fish Day) is celebrated here in August, and is attended by up to 30.000 people. The festival is consisted of a free fish buffet which is sponsored by the local fishing industry.

- The programmers among us were intrigued by the name of the town, it was not in vain. Dalvik used to be a virtual machine in the Android operating system. The open source software was replaced by Android Run Time (ART) from Android 4.4 (KitKat) to all further versions.

For our first activity here in Dalvik we decided to take the opportunity to finally go whale watching, after two lost opportunities in Djupivogur an Husavik,

The expeditions are realized by Arctic Sea Tours, a rated five stars service offering Rhib boat and whale boat whale watching. In addition to seeing whales, porpoises and dolphins (with 99% success rate) for up to three hours, we also enjoyed some hot chocolate, fresh cooked and barbecued fish, which were caught by the crew and grilled upon our arrival on land. They also guaranteed us that if we didn't cross paths with whales we could ride again free of charge.

After the rewarding whale watching expedition, we nostalgically remembered our experience in Dalvik Folk Museum in Akureyri, and how we almost mixed up the places, and remembered that the 'Viking Giant' was born and buried here.

(Interesting Fact:

In addition to being a circus performer (and sadly being seem as an abomination) Johann the Great starred in the movie Prehistoric Women(1950) where we played the role of a giant cave man.
He was buried in Dalvik after dying in consequence of a falling accident.)


We found out where he was buried in the town, so we made a special pilgrimage to the cemetery after the museum.
We split into groups and started searching, after about 3 minutes we actually found his grave! - The party gains 3 points to Perception.



Now, it might be seen as inconsiderate, but we decided to visit a local pool and gym next, to enjoy life while we can.



From what we have seen, Icelanders are very clean and organized people, as well as friendly. Our experience in Dalvik Swimming Pool reassured that expectation.
One of the habits Icelanders have which helps to keep the pools clean is showering (often times naked) before getting it. In the end we saw more nature than we could expect in a swimming club.

The features of the facility are just as impressive: geothermically heated pools with different temperatures, a cooler main pool with swimming lanes, a water slide and a gym.

As we near important stops in the country, we make a few essential stops.