We had been thinking about a trip to Iceland many times over the years, but never settled on it until this year. Janet found a trip coordinated through the Metropolitan Museum in NYC that included a mix of Art, Architecture and natural wonders, so we decided to try that. We departed on Sept. 13 after usual concerns over who would be giving medications and food to Zoe and Ziggy. Zoe gets a couple special pills each day and anyone who has tried to give pills to cats knows that it can be difficult. We have developed a few methods that usually work, but Zoe is more trusting of us than of strangers. We had found someone who seemed to have the knack, but she has gotten ill for the time being. Finally we decided we had to board Zoe at the Vet office while Ziggy stayed home and a friend took care of his needs.
Our flight to Reykjavik was easy and we arrived about 11:30 PM their time. We arranged to be picked up at the airport and driven to our hotel in the city- The Icelandair Marina Hotel. On the drive to the city Janet and the Driver noticed the "northern lights" so the driver pulled over and let us look. We saw two large batches, but they seemed dim and whitish to Jim but green and brighter to Janet.
This sighting was fortuitous because it turned out to be the only sighting for the two weeks we were in Iceland!
We checked into the hotel- the room was a bit small with a small bathroom- typical of many European hotels. We slept reasonably well as it was fairly quiet. Breakfast was acceptable but their dining area was small and busy due to all the tourists in town.
The weather turned cooler and windier and rainier overnight, so going outside was not as pleasant as our arrival. We first walked toward the Maritime museum, but then went more toward the center of town. The City center is not very large- generally easy to walk all around to the Museums, restaurants, churches, shops. We both decided we needed scarves to keep our neecks warmer! We were told to bring layers of clothes since the weather is highly variable. Jim had a water repellent outer coat with a removable liner and a couple hats and some gloves in addition to longer pants and some long sleeve shirts plus an umbrella. Of these, only the gloves turned out to be unnecessary.
We walked around and visited the Reykjavik Art museum which was small but with some interesting art and some not so interesting art. We looked for the photography museum but it was closed for the month to install a new show. We found a seafood restaurant on Skol-something street on the way to the big church that was quite good. Later, when the MET tour started the Icelandic guide said that was his favorite seafood place. We walked up to the big church but did not enter because we knew it was on the MET itinerary.
We had another day on our own before joining the MET group and both of the lunches and dinners we had in restaurants were Very Good. We were a little surprised as its a small population country ca. 330,000 and they have to import a lot. We were especially surprised at how good the bread was wherever we ate. It did not seem like bread was "natural" to Iceland.
We also visited "HARPA" their new concert hall which can also serve other arts and conventions. We saw the front lighting at night when we can in and the inside is very interesting and photogenic too!
We cam back here with the MET tour and saw more of the interior rooms and halls. It overlooks the harbor. The City has a nice harbor and overlooks mountains too. The mountains had a little snow on them.
In the morning of the 16th we were picked up by our bus for the MET tour- most of the people arrived around 6:30 AM while we and a few other people had come in a day or two earlier. The bust picked up a few others at another location and then headed out of town.
We went to a geothermal power plant which was interesting. They actually circulate hot water from many miles out of the city to the citty center to heat buildings and also many streets to melt snow and ice in the colder months. So, they get heat, hot water and electricity from the volcanic earth under foot!
That night and the next were spent at the ION hotel near another geothermal plant. This was a nice hotel too. We then spent two nights at Hotel Ranga which has a more USA western appearance with big log buildings. It was very good as well- and the rooms were larger and the bathroom actully had a tub!
We saw Thinvellir or Pinvellir (their letter that looks like a P is pronounced more like TH- like in Thor) This area is right on the edge where the European and North American Tectonic Plates meet and the roughness of the earth looks like it too! In addition to this geological heritage it also has cultural importance as the place where various groups would gather each year- starting about 1000 years ago- to settled differences. They liken it to being the first "parliamentary" government. They met here until sometime in the 1700's. We saw "Gulfoss" one day- when it was raining particularly hard, so it was not much fun. Jim' umbrella had broken in the wind in Reykjavik, so that made it worse.
The lava flows all over the countryside and rough rocks attest to the "active" nature of th geology. Fortunately, we did not experience a volcano or noticeable earthquake during our stay.
From the Hotel Ranga we took a "super jeep" ride to the south coast to a black sand beach. This was very impressive. They said we might not go if the wind was too strong. Once there we understood why. Even on this day the wind was strong enough that we have to be careful not to let loose of car doors. They said many car doors have been wrecked on this beach due to wind. We could see the Westman Islands and some remains of a wood shipwreck.
Our Super Jeep took about 12 of us up a river bed to the base of E15 (the name is hard to remember fo when it erupted in 2010 th foreign journalist called it E15- it starts with E and has 15 more letters in the name.) This was the volcano that spewed ash into the air over Europe and caused air traffic to stop. (we were living in India then.) We saw the remains of the glacier that is on top of the mountain and the guide showed us where there was once a lake. It was impressive. The ride in the super jeep was fun and a little suspenseful. There are many water crossing on rock strewn ground with humps up to 2 feet to climb over! We have some short videos on the iPhone. Our Jeep was somewhat special with 6 big wheels- all of which were drive wheels when engaged. So the driver, who has done this for 11 years had little trouble getting us around on things that pretended to be roads. We were amazed to see at least half a dozen regular street cars on the trails. They were wise enough not to go too far and get stuck but they were very close to being there. Jim later found a book in the national gallery book shop titled "cars in rivers" - by a well known Iceland photographer- he gathered about 100 pictures of various cars AND Buses that got stuck in one river or another in Iceland!
Icelanders consider it great short to build these super-jeeps- or perhaps, "monster trucks" and then driving them into the interior where they might get stuck or might not. In any case, well also did a hike of about 1.5 miles that was not too bad - except for the rain! On the ride out we stopped to see 3 very nice waterfalls.
The tour headed back to Reykjavik with stops at a year round green hose that grows about 18% of all the tomatoes used in Iceland- it has geothermal heat and electric provided by the geothermal power plants. We visited a small hot bath that some people enjoyed next to some small geysers and hot springs. We had an excellent lunch at the home of an artist and her husband. We saw a very nice art collection and they also raise Icelandic horses and gave a demonstration of them. Janet like the Icelandic Horse breed very much. They are small horses but very sturdy and able to survive outside in the cold winter.
In Reykjavik we stayed at Hotel Borg, which was quite nice, but we saw evidence that Iceland is being stressed in its ability to handle so many tourists. They are expecting huge numbers this year and more next year, so they have to import labor to keep up. In any case, the hotel was pleasant. We had a couple more lunches and dinners at very good restaurants, tours of several artists studios and the big church and Harpa as well as a trip to an Island that features a sculpture by Richard Serra and another site paid for by Yoko Ono in memory of John Lennon. It was a nice, but cold windy walk. At the island restaurant, the only server had thrown her back out and was in terrible pain so our guide convinced here to call for a replacement and helped her to the ferry to go back to the city.
Our last day with the tour was Sept. 23. We went with the group to the "Blue Lagoon". This is another hot bath near the airport and it has become a well know destination for tourists even if overly pricey. Janet went in the baths while Jim took a taxi to the airport to pick up a rental car for the remainder of our trip. He drove back and joined the group for lunch. Then we said farewell to the group and drove north.
It took about 3 hours to drive from the blue lagoon to "Budir" which has a nice hotel. This is on the "Snaefellness" Peninsula - that spelling is not correct and the pronunciation, is even harder (snipers nest is close). Anyway, this place is spectacular- we were lucky in that this day was sunny and rain free! We were advised to go to "arnistapi" and walk the path to the next town but we had limited daylight left so we did about half and then drove around to see the glacier at the top of the mountain on the end of the peninsula- it was very pretty! We stayed just one night at the Hotel Budir where we had another very good dinner, but in the morning it was raining and very windy... and cold.
We drove much of the day to the east through heavy rain at times- with stops for diesel fuel, snacks and coffee in various places- not many photos due to the rain. We finally arrived at Hotel Laxa at Lake Myvtan near sundown. This hotel is very modern and with small rooms and bathrooms. We had dinner at the hotel which was a buffet that was acceptable, but very expensive- like all food in restaurants, in Iceland.
The next morning we drove to a hot springs area east of the lake it was quite interesting, but windy and chilly. We tried to visit another area, but it was mostly in fog, so we went to town to get hot chocolate. But they didn't have hot chocolate so we had tea. We then drove further east to see the Dettifoss and Selfoss waterfalls- these are both quite spectacular, but it was windy, rainy and cold, so that took a lot of fun out of it. The area is quite desolate too- like a desert.
We ent back to town and had lunch and then took a long walk through and area of natural lava sculptures. It was very pretty but the overcast sky took a lot away from it.
We had dinner at another hotel that night- it was better than our hotel, but we had to beat a bus tour group to the table to get served in a timely way. We just had the 2 nights in this area but got a good over view. Janet went to the hot baths before dinner, so she got to try out 3 different ones around the country.
The next morning started with partial sun so the long drive toward Reykjavik and the airport started out well! However, we got into yet more rain later and some slight concerns that some of the mountain passes might have a little snow or ice, though they did not. Overall, the return trip was more sunny and we got to stop a number of time for photos. We stopped in Reykjavik for dinner, but chose a place that was not so great, but acceptable. Then we drove to the town of Keflavik- near the airport and stayed there for the night.
We returned the rental car and checked in at the airport and our flight got us home only a little late. A car and driver took us to our Vet where we picked up Zoe and we got home in late afternoon to find all is generally as we left it and Zoe and Ziggy are starting to forgive us for leaving them for 2 weeks. We think we have some good pictures- despite the rainy, cloudy weather, but we have not reviewed then yet.
Iceland is well worth a visit, but it is expensive. There are lots of things to do and places to see, but also some dangers. The people told us to feel free to stop along the roads to look and take pictures, but to be careful. Apparently, a Japanese man stopped his car at night to look at the Aurora and was hit by a passing car when he stood out in the road in the dark. And, of course, there are the volcanoes... there are a couple they say are overdue for eruption.
Our flight to Reykjavik was easy and we arrived about 11:30 PM their time. We arranged to be picked up at the airport and driven to our hotel in the city- The Icelandair Marina Hotel. On the drive to the city Janet and the Driver noticed the "northern lights" so the driver pulled over and let us look. We saw two large batches, but they seemed dim and whitish to Jim but green and brighter to Janet.
This sighting was fortuitous because it turned out to be the only sighting for the two weeks we were in Iceland!
We checked into the hotel- the room was a bit small with a small bathroom- typical of many European hotels. We slept reasonably well as it was fairly quiet. Breakfast was acceptable but their dining area was small and busy due to all the tourists in town.
The weather turned cooler and windier and rainier overnight, so going outside was not as pleasant as our arrival. We first walked toward the Maritime museum, but then went more toward the center of town. The City center is not very large- generally easy to walk all around to the Museums, restaurants, churches, shops. We both decided we needed scarves to keep our neecks warmer! We were told to bring layers of clothes since the weather is highly variable. Jim had a water repellent outer coat with a removable liner and a couple hats and some gloves in addition to longer pants and some long sleeve shirts plus an umbrella. Of these, only the gloves turned out to be unnecessary.
We walked around and visited the Reykjavik Art museum which was small but with some interesting art and some not so interesting art. We looked for the photography museum but it was closed for the month to install a new show. We found a seafood restaurant on Skol-something street on the way to the big church that was quite good. Later, when the MET tour started the Icelandic guide said that was his favorite seafood place. We walked up to the big church but did not enter because we knew it was on the MET itinerary.
We had another day on our own before joining the MET group and both of the lunches and dinners we had in restaurants were Very Good. We were a little surprised as its a small population country ca. 330,000 and they have to import a lot. We were especially surprised at how good the bread was wherever we ate. It did not seem like bread was "natural" to Iceland.
We also visited "HARPA" their new concert hall which can also serve other arts and conventions. We saw the front lighting at night when we can in and the inside is very interesting and photogenic too!
We cam back here with the MET tour and saw more of the interior rooms and halls. It overlooks the harbor. The City has a nice harbor and overlooks mountains too. The mountains had a little snow on them.
In the morning of the 16th we were picked up by our bus for the MET tour- most of the people arrived around 6:30 AM while we and a few other people had come in a day or two earlier. The bust picked up a few others at another location and then headed out of town.
We went to a geothermal power plant which was interesting. They actually circulate hot water from many miles out of the city to the citty center to heat buildings and also many streets to melt snow and ice in the colder months. So, they get heat, hot water and electricity from the volcanic earth under foot!
That night and the next were spent at the ION hotel near another geothermal plant. This was a nice hotel too. We then spent two nights at Hotel Ranga which has a more USA western appearance with big log buildings. It was very good as well- and the rooms were larger and the bathroom actully had a tub!
We saw Thinvellir or Pinvellir (their letter that looks like a P is pronounced more like TH- like in Thor) This area is right on the edge where the European and North American Tectonic Plates meet and the roughness of the earth looks like it too! In addition to this geological heritage it also has cultural importance as the place where various groups would gather each year- starting about 1000 years ago- to settled differences. They liken it to being the first "parliamentary" government. They met here until sometime in the 1700's. We saw "Gulfoss" one day- when it was raining particularly hard, so it was not much fun. Jim' umbrella had broken in the wind in Reykjavik, so that made it worse.
The lava flows all over the countryside and rough rocks attest to the "active" nature of th geology. Fortunately, we did not experience a volcano or noticeable earthquake during our stay.
From the Hotel Ranga we took a "super jeep" ride to the south coast to a black sand beach. This was very impressive. They said we might not go if the wind was too strong. Once there we understood why. Even on this day the wind was strong enough that we have to be careful not to let loose of car doors. They said many car doors have been wrecked on this beach due to wind. We could see the Westman Islands and some remains of a wood shipwreck.
Our Super Jeep took about 12 of us up a river bed to the base of E15 (the name is hard to remember fo when it erupted in 2010 th foreign journalist called it E15- it starts with E and has 15 more letters in the name.) This was the volcano that spewed ash into the air over Europe and caused air traffic to stop. (we were living in India then.) We saw the remains of the glacier that is on top of the mountain and the guide showed us where there was once a lake. It was impressive. The ride in the super jeep was fun and a little suspenseful. There are many water crossing on rock strewn ground with humps up to 2 feet to climb over! We have some short videos on the iPhone. Our Jeep was somewhat special with 6 big wheels- all of which were drive wheels when engaged. So the driver, who has done this for 11 years had little trouble getting us around on things that pretended to be roads. We were amazed to see at least half a dozen regular street cars on the trails. They were wise enough not to go too far and get stuck but they were very close to being there. Jim later found a book in the national gallery book shop titled "cars in rivers" - by a well known Iceland photographer- he gathered about 100 pictures of various cars AND Buses that got stuck in one river or another in Iceland!
Icelanders consider it great short to build these super-jeeps- or perhaps, "monster trucks" and then driving them into the interior where they might get stuck or might not. In any case, well also did a hike of about 1.5 miles that was not too bad - except for the rain! On the ride out we stopped to see 3 very nice waterfalls.
The tour headed back to Reykjavik with stops at a year round green hose that grows about 18% of all the tomatoes used in Iceland- it has geothermal heat and electric provided by the geothermal power plants. We visited a small hot bath that some people enjoyed next to some small geysers and hot springs. We had an excellent lunch at the home of an artist and her husband. We saw a very nice art collection and they also raise Icelandic horses and gave a demonstration of them. Janet like the Icelandic Horse breed very much. They are small horses but very sturdy and able to survive outside in the cold winter.
In Reykjavik we stayed at Hotel Borg, which was quite nice, but we saw evidence that Iceland is being stressed in its ability to handle so many tourists. They are expecting huge numbers this year and more next year, so they have to import labor to keep up. In any case, the hotel was pleasant. We had a couple more lunches and dinners at very good restaurants, tours of several artists studios and the big church and Harpa as well as a trip to an Island that features a sculpture by Richard Serra and another site paid for by Yoko Ono in memory of John Lennon. It was a nice, but cold windy walk. At the island restaurant, the only server had thrown her back out and was in terrible pain so our guide convinced here to call for a replacement and helped her to the ferry to go back to the city.
Our last day with the tour was Sept. 23. We went with the group to the "Blue Lagoon". This is another hot bath near the airport and it has become a well know destination for tourists even if overly pricey. Janet went in the baths while Jim took a taxi to the airport to pick up a rental car for the remainder of our trip. He drove back and joined the group for lunch. Then we said farewell to the group and drove north.
It took about 3 hours to drive from the blue lagoon to "Budir" which has a nice hotel. This is on the "Snaefellness" Peninsula - that spelling is not correct and the pronunciation, is even harder (snipers nest is close). Anyway, this place is spectacular- we were lucky in that this day was sunny and rain free! We were advised to go to "arnistapi" and walk the path to the next town but we had limited daylight left so we did about half and then drove around to see the glacier at the top of the mountain on the end of the peninsula- it was very pretty! We stayed just one night at the Hotel Budir where we had another very good dinner, but in the morning it was raining and very windy... and cold.
We drove much of the day to the east through heavy rain at times- with stops for diesel fuel, snacks and coffee in various places- not many photos due to the rain. We finally arrived at Hotel Laxa at Lake Myvtan near sundown. This hotel is very modern and with small rooms and bathrooms. We had dinner at the hotel which was a buffet that was acceptable, but very expensive- like all food in restaurants, in Iceland.
The next morning we drove to a hot springs area east of the lake it was quite interesting, but windy and chilly. We tried to visit another area, but it was mostly in fog, so we went to town to get hot chocolate. But they didn't have hot chocolate so we had tea. We then drove further east to see the Dettifoss and Selfoss waterfalls- these are both quite spectacular, but it was windy, rainy and cold, so that took a lot of fun out of it. The area is quite desolate too- like a desert.
We ent back to town and had lunch and then took a long walk through and area of natural lava sculptures. It was very pretty but the overcast sky took a lot away from it.
We had dinner at another hotel that night- it was better than our hotel, but we had to beat a bus tour group to the table to get served in a timely way. We just had the 2 nights in this area but got a good over view. Janet went to the hot baths before dinner, so she got to try out 3 different ones around the country.
The next morning started with partial sun so the long drive toward Reykjavik and the airport started out well! However, we got into yet more rain later and some slight concerns that some of the mountain passes might have a little snow or ice, though they did not. Overall, the return trip was more sunny and we got to stop a number of time for photos. We stopped in Reykjavik for dinner, but chose a place that was not so great, but acceptable. Then we drove to the town of Keflavik- near the airport and stayed there for the night.
We returned the rental car and checked in at the airport and our flight got us home only a little late. A car and driver took us to our Vet where we picked up Zoe and we got home in late afternoon to find all is generally as we left it and Zoe and Ziggy are starting to forgive us for leaving them for 2 weeks. We think we have some good pictures- despite the rainy, cloudy weather, but we have not reviewed then yet.
Iceland is well worth a visit, but it is expensive. There are lots of things to do and places to see, but also some dangers. The people told us to feel free to stop along the roads to look and take pictures, but to be careful. Apparently, a Japanese man stopped his car at night to look at the Aurora and was hit by a passing car when he stood out in the road in the dark. And, of course, there are the volcanoes... there are a couple they say are overdue for eruption.
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