Today – Canada Day – the stormy weather struck Iceland like a fist. Lots of rain and high winds. Oddly, we managed to have a terrific day in spite of (or because of?) the weather.
But back to our last evening in Reykjavik. We ate at another amazing restaurant, Snaps. Lovely space on the inside, and delicious food, all locally sourced. Here is something that continues to amaze us. There are only 320,000 people living on this entire island. And yet they manage to be so self-sufficient and sustaining. Heck, they even grow their own tomatoes, and I can say with some authority that they taste really good. Had a beautiful grilled veggie salad with homemade ricotta, followed by red fish, which she described as “ocean perch.” Husband thought maybe red snapper?
Son, who is 2 years away from Iceland’s prohibitive drinking age of 20, does not seem to have any problems getting served here. Is it because they’re pretty lax, or because of that gorgeous red Nordic beard he’s growing?
Yesterday morning we were picked up at our hotel and brought to the rental car agency so we could start our journey around the Ring Road. Though technically yesterday wasn’t around the Ring Road, it was to the famous Golden Circle. On the way to our first stop at “Thingvellir” (I can’t get Icelandic letters on my computer or at least I don’t know how), we stopped by Halldor Laxness’s house! This is not in our guide book, but a local told us about it. We took an audio tour. Here’s the boys with Halldor’s Bentley.
Thingvellir is the location of Iceland’s open air parliament many many moons ago. Picture Viking types doling out justice. Interesting fact, guess what the number one crime (punishable by execution) was? If you guessed “incest,” you’d be right.
Thingvellir is also famous because it sits between two tectonic plates, North America and Eurasia, and the no-man’s land in between is expanding by 2 cm every year. Hence why Iceland has so many earthquakes. The ridge of rock you see below is the ridge of the North American tectonic plate (I hope I have that right – Iceland would be a geologist’s wet dream).
We went for a long hike in Thingvellir to the site of an old farmstead and tried to imagine who would be crazy enough to have tried to farm here back in the day (well, the guy from Halldor Laxness’s “Independent People” did). Then we drove on to Geysir and saw – yes – a geyser!
You stand there with all the other tourists for about 8 minutes, just waiting … watching … but you know what, it’s worth it. The area is full of geothermal activity. And when you’re in these areas it’s a great excuse to fart because you can just blame the sulphurous smell on the steam.
Next we went to Gulfoss, a gorgeous two-tiered waterfall, which completes the Golden Circle. Saw some pretty flowers too.
And then we went back to our cabin, where we’re staying for two nights, and got into our geothermally-heated hot tub! Dinner was cheese and crackers and smoked Atlantic salmon and some of those tomatoes I mentioned. Oh, and beer. And wine. Thank-you Duty Free.
Today we headed back to “Thingvellir” to do a super-fun thing: Snorkel between the tectonic plates. On the way we passed a big film set. They even waved at us.
We were, of course, convinced it was Game of Thrones. Even where they were shooting – it was a perfect GOT location. But when we asked at the park’s information center, we were told they were shooting part of the new “Halo” video game. Pooh, says I.
So I don’t have any photos of US snorkelling, but this is another group that went out ahead of us. Basically you snorkel – in full dry suits – between all these fissures that are full of glacial water. Crystal, crystal clear, and THREE degrees!
Here we are, getting on our gear.
It was seriously very very cool. And surprisingly warm with all the gear. A once in a lifetime experience. When we were done, our guide told us we were going to jump off a cliff. We thought he was joking. He wasn’t. We jumped off a (not very big) cliff into the icy waters. I was first to go and terrified but with a line up of people behind me I had no choice but to jump. And then I did it again because it was so much fun.
We had lunch afterward and it included these bars, which I’d never seen before. I give them a thumbs-down. Then a short hike in the downpour – this is what Canada Day looked like in Iceland.
On our way home we stopped at the Laugarvatn Fontana. Our first Icelandic geothermal pool/spa experience. Oh god, it was wonderful! All these geothermally heated pools, right by the edge of the lake. Again I couldn’t bring in my camera, but here’s a photo from the web – it was like that, but with rain.
I did manage to take this photo though, back in the change room. And yes, I washed all those bits before entering the pools! Soon we will go to dinner at Lindin, which is owned by the Icelandic parliament’s official caterer. It’s supposed to be yummy. I’ll report back. Till next time, I will close with an Icelandic joke. All you need to know is that what trees they have here (most were felled for lumber years ago) are very short.
“How do you find your way out if you get lost in an Icelandic forest? … Stand up.”
I just came across this when I was trying to settle a bet with someone about what we saw filming when we were there! We drove by the film crew on the same day as you…must be Halo! Never would have guessed! Great read. I miss Iceland. Had a great 2 weeks there touring Ring Road.
That’s so funny, Sandra. We were disappointed it wasn’t GOT! We, too, loved Iceland. I would love to go back. Amazing country.