Iceland – Reykjavik

A little history story about Reykjavik

Reykjavik is one of the smallest capitals in Europe (population around 130,000) and is actually the northernmost capital city in the world. That fact will be blissfully apparent if you ever come here in Winter, as I did – it’s a permanent snowy wonderland till Spring hits.

So, when did this city first appear? Well, if you go by legend, it was founded in 870 AD by a Norseman (from Norway) called Ingolfr Arneson. He settled here with his family.

It is probable that he chose this site due to the nearby hot springs which would have kept them warm in Winter. Legend has it, however, that he threw two wooden pillars from his boat when he first saw land and settled where they landed on the coast. A theory much derided due to the currents here but there you have it.

They called the area Reykjarvik (with an extra R). That translates as Smokey Bay (the smoke being the steam from the thermal spring rising into the air).

If you want to be controversial, then another theory has it that Irish Christian Monks landed here before him and settled, but then left when the Pagan Norsemen arrived.

The island was self-governing and a small open-air piece of land was commissioned in 930AD as effectively its first Assembly. The circular area in Thingvellir National Park – more on that later – about 40km from the city, served as a gathering place for dispersed communities. The name Thingvellir translates as “Assembly Field”.

Here they would meet and discuss laws and traditions and was called the Althing in Icelandic (Everybody Field). Thus, Icelanders claim that this is the site of the first “Parliament” in the world.

That self-governing came to an end when, in 1262 Iceland came under the jurisdiction of the Norwegian King and the Althing became more of a consulting chamber for the King.

In 1397 Iceland joined the Kalmar Union, a country forming today’s, Sweden, Norway and Denmark. It remained so until Denmark alone took possession of the island in 1523, when the Union broke up.

No big history to report in Reykjavik until 1786, when, still under Danish rule, Reykjavik was granted a charter and thus officially recognised as a city. Until them it was just a small community, surviving on small time trading, fisheries, mining and shipbuilding.

So, no monumental buildings or big battles to report on, that I usually read about.

The city trundled along, growing gradually and still by far the biggest and most important city on the island. By Royal decree the Althing (or what was left of it democratically) was disbanded in 1800. New Justice Courts and administrative buildings were set up to replace it.

The city was then caught up in the, pretty much, non-violent independence movement of the 19^th century and the Althing was re-established in 1854. However, it was more of a Royal advisory board.

A new Constitution in 1874 gave the island semi-autonomy, although the king could still veto any new proposal.

In 1881 the Althing got a newly purpose-built building (still its present-day Parliament) and things started to move towards independence.

Some quick dates here that are important – I’m not going into the whole political scene of the time – so we can see the events of history

1903 – Home rule given, Parliamentary process adopted, but still owned by Denmark

1918 – Iceland was granted State status and unrestricted self-rule but still loosely tied to the King of Denmark (very loosely it appears).

1940 – Denmark was taken over by German Nazis and thus Iceland cut ties with Denmark and declared itself sovereign.

1944 – the final phase, when the Republic of Iceland was formed and declared itself an independent country.

As everything here, effectively happened in Reykjavik, you see that the city is closely tied with the country’s actions and history. In fact it lead it probably more than most emerging cities in a new country would.

Where to stay in Reykjavik

As usual, I did plenty of research as to which would be the best hotel for us on this trip.

It was great, this time, to be making the trip with a friend instead of just me. It meant that we could share the driving and charges and also each get the chance to stare at the passing scenery without worrying about oncoming traffic.

The hotel room for two beds was the same as for a double so we therefore could get a twin room and split the cost.

This may seem picky but I have to warn you that Iceland (by British standards) is a very expensive country. Car hire (we got a deal however) and hotels costs were way over what I would normally pay, so splitting the cost was very relevant this time round.

Hotels are scattered throughout the city, so there is no big concentration in one area. Reykjavik city centre is small and not geared to massive hotels so the big ones tend to be more out of the centre. There is also a huge system, whereby big office blocks have been converted to hotels – easily apparent by the style and looks. These tend to be near retail parks and other office blocks so is an interesting panorama when looking out of your bedroom window. My hotel fell into this category too.

There is a huge tendency towards saunas, spas and wellbeing here in most hotels – being a Northern European country, that is quite normal. Again my hotel was of this style too.

Having a car also meant that we would be able to get around town better. Walking in snow and the freezing cold is not always a pleasant experience in the dead of winter, and we had chosen to visit Reykjavik in January!

There is no Metro or train system in Reykjavik, although we saw plentiful buses. This again, meant more complicated planning to get around town if we didn’t have a car.

Island Hotel Reykjavik

With all the results in, I found a modern 4 star hotel, not far from the centre, that offered free breakfast, free parking and had a restaurant/bar. The spa was there too but we never used it despite the enticing brochures. It was a great Hotel.

Click here for their website.

Check-in was superb, helped by a receptionist who was very professional and chatty with perfect English. She told us lots about the city and showed us where to park the car in the car park at the side of the hotel.

The reception area was very spacious and stylishly Scandic. With the huge floor-to-ceiling windows it was so bright and airy.

The bedroom was just as spacious as the lobby, again very Scandic in design. Scandinavian hotel rooms are always quite spartan and functional – it’s just a style choice for this part of the world I guess. Our room was no exception. There was a sofa to relax on and plenty of surface area to place all your books, chargers, phones etc so we were happy with that.

The TV was limited in its choice of channels but we found enough on there to entertain us when we needed it. Beds are comfy and the room very warm and comfy despite the minus 15 we experienced overnight outside. The bathroom was just as modern, clean and well designed. Nothing to complain about at all and the price was great considering it was a 4 star hotel.

The self-serve buffet breakfast was superb, in a recntly refurbished breakfast room that was bright and airy. Again Scandic functionality ruled but I liked this.

The food choices were great and I noticed whenever the volume of any item went down it was topped up immediately so nothing was ever unavailable.  There were some clearly Icelandic breakfast food options but mainstream was there. The choice of delicious pastries was the best feature (and I love pastries!).

The restaurant was in a seperate room, so the breakfast room was not re-used in the evening. Situated in the lobby it was very open and visible from the street. The warm brickwork, black leather chairs and booths and crisp Scandic design stood out as very stylish.

Food was good but quite expensive (as is most food in Iceland, as most of it is imported). We ate here once for the experience and enjoyed it but decided to eat at one of the many cheaper, more local restaurants and cafes on the surrounding streets for other evenings, to save on money.

Eateries near the hotel

Just so you know, the local Mexican cafe round the corner was very cheap for Iceland and really good. They also have Thai and Indian restaurants within a few mins walk of the hotel. If you want takeaway, there was two, just in the street behind the hotel and they were busy with locals, so they must be good.

There were also a couple of traditional Icelandic/International style restaurants nearby but their prices were more akin to the hotel’s. We were reduced to scanning the menus outside to see if the prices were within our budget!

This was only the second time in my travels that I have felt like a poor man travelling and had to watch the pennies (the other time was Norway). I say again, Iceland ain’t cheap!

Hire a car in Reykjavik

I looked into how we were going to get around Iceland. Given that, apart from the city sites eg museums, parks, public buildings etc, the sites that most people want to see are well out of the capital.

Iceland has huge panoramic vistas and glorious countryside in any season. In Summer it is full of untouched green fields, mountain views, volcanos, lakes, geysers and of course a few historic sites too.

In Winter they have the same but the landscape is transformed by the winter wonderland of metres of thick snow and ice.

Ever seen a black sand beach covered with snow or a river frozen over with snowy walkways along its edge? You will in Iceland in Winter!

We were going to the huge national park for the lakes, mountains and meeting of the continental land plates and of course the famous Blue Lagoon Resort. We also wanted to catch the northern lights in a light pollution free area away from the city and see the geysers and coastal areas. How could we travel to and from all these places?

There are no trains in Iceland.

Buses are mainly set up for locals so the wait betweens services would be long and not necessarily take us close to where we needed to be.

Tour buses were actually very expensive, but do get you to most places but we would be tied to their schedule – I’m too independent for that. I also hate being in the mass of a tourist gang descending on places, so shuddered at the thought.

So, car was the unusual, for me, other option. I read up and found that even in heavy winter snow-times the roads are still kept snow free – and that was true.

Also driving is very safe in Iceland with one of the best safety and accident records in the world.

The routes were easy to follow – there are not many major roads outside Reykjavik to get lost on and all are well signposted.

All sites had big free car parks, the hotel had free car parking and petrol, though more expensive than the UK, was not horrendously priced.

I looked up many travel companies and they all advise you to do the same – hire a car. The prices vary enormously but they are all reputable. Luckily Avis were doing a special cheapie offer and as a BA Executive Club member (I flew B.A, to Keflavik airport) I even got a deal on that price.

It included insurance, mileage and a full tank that you refill. I could pick it up at the airport after arriving and drop it off there too. It worked out at £70 for three days, which was way below the others … I booked it.

Car was a small Kia hatchback, new, clean, superb. Yes, they did try to sell me excess insurance – apparently, they grit the roads heavily in Iceland in Winter. If this grit damages the underside of the car, you get charged for the damage. That damage is not included in the insurance.

I argued, how can I drive on a road here and avoid the grit damages and they just said it was policy! I did take out excess cover for a few pounds in the UK to cover this so avoided their hefty £50 charge for their own insurance to cover grit damage – big win!

City driving is really easy, but get used to driving on the right if you are from a left-side driving country like the UK.

Parking in REykjavik was really easy, a lot of free street parking but otherwise plentiful car parks or street parking that you pay for by phone app.

There are no real traffic issues here, traffic jams are not common, people drive slowly and carefully. We found it so easy to get about in a car. Even city buses were difficult to work out routes so I feel the car was essential for us to get the most out of our enjoyable trip.

Arrival in Reykjavik

Our flight was to get us into Keflavik (Reykjavik) Airport in the afternoon. Usually I opt for early morning flights so that it gives me an extra day’s worth of sightseeing but the flight options this time were limited.

The descent was superb – looking out of the cabin window all we could see was white snow ahead of us. The terrain was somewhat flat-looking as the snow just seemed to eradicate any variation in ground height.

As we flew over the coast the black lava sand of the beach contrasted with the blue of the sea. You could see the white snow covering any part of the beach that the sea was not washing on to.

That was a surreal view and I had to get a pic of it.

As we approached landing, little snow enveloped craters appeared, dotted everywhere. These were the hot springs that appear in so many places. That  gave an intriguing view, to those of us who have never seen them before, (that’s me by the way!).

We had arranged to pick up the car at the terminal desk and everything went smoothly. The car was ready for us outside – in a winter wonderful scene.

I had expected the cold and snow but now realised that for Icelanders this weather was pretty normal. The car was in a parking lot just outside the terminal (the airport is not huge), so we could walk to it in a few mins.

We loaded up the car, got used to its configuration and reminder to drive on the right and turned on the engine. The dashboard lit up and it was showing minus 5 degrees outside! We knew it was cold but this was much colder than I would usually experience in the UK on a Winter afternoon. We drove out and headed for the city.

As we drove, I decided to turn the headlights on as it was getting dark. Suddenly I realised it was only afternoon but the sun had already set and the sky was just an orangey coloured glow now. Again, the realisation that being in Iceland in Winter, meant sunrise at 10am and sunset at 2pm. this was going to be interesting!

Despite the metres of snow around us, the roads were gritted and clear, ice was minimal, traffic very quiet and careful and all seemed very safe and pleasant.

The £70 for the car for 3 days seemed a bargain when we saw that the shuttle bus to Reykjavik from the terminal was charging £15 one way, per person. That would have been £60 for the two of us just to get to and from the airport alone.

The car suddenly seemed a bargain, but it did worry us that the bus price was that high …… so what would other prices be like.

Day two in Reykjavik

We woke at 8am for breakfast but found it was pitch black outside. Sunrise was claeraly much later than the UK where we had flown from the previous day.

By the time we had eaten, showered and got to the car at 9.30am it was still completly dark. It was weird seeing this as I had never seen darkness in the morning this late. We turned the car lights on and headed out but by the time we reached the park at 10am the sun had still not come up over the horizon!

Thingvellir National Park

Thingvellir National Park is registered as a World Heritage site by UNESCO, such is its importance.

The park is not just a huge open space of moors, mountains, springs, geysers, waterfalls and unique flora and fauna. It has historical importance and geographical wonders that many other places in the world do not have.

You can however camp in the registered sites, takes hikes and trails, go lake diving, horse-riding and fishing here too.

Of course, if like us, you are just here for the day to see the famous sites, then driving through the park and stopping at the many car parks is an easy option..

It’s been a protected natural habitat since 1928

Thingvalla Lake area

Our first stop was at the Lake – or what there was of it, as much of it was frozen over and so looked like a flat piece of land.

Like many others, judging by the number of cars parked up in the car park, we were here to see the sunrise over the lake. People were playing snowballs on the lakeside or walking the crunchy, icy ground underfoot and just admiring the total white-out.

There was a fence that was presumably to stop people actually unwittingly waking onto the frozen edges of the lake. A small waterway could be seen heading to the lake and we presumed this was a pathway that had been broken into the ice for lake access.

The sun was rising gradually, producing yellows, oranges and a luminescent blue/white stratas in the sky. Although the whole horizon was now a glowing mass of colours, the sun did not actually appear until later. Ther was just this kind of bight glow in the sky and the rays started reflecting off the snow.

Luckily the car park area had a map of the local area – we found out later that all the car parks had this helpful info. We could thus see the roads around the lake, the sights to see and the route we would be taking later.

My friend’s phone GPS with map came in handy as we could see where we were en-route. The constant white-out scenery makes everything look the same. You have travelled for 10 mins and the landscape looks like the same white panorama you saw before!

There were a couple of farmsteads in the distance, but in general thearea looked quite isolated. The bareness from the snowy scene, did not help give an occupied feel to the area, but this is a national park of natural beauty.

We were now heading to the next site and whilst there were road signs, the bleakness made us rely on the GPS to ensure we knew where we were.

Riverside walk to Althing Parliament site

The riverside walk here, whilst not important, as far as history goes, was just so beautiful that I had to include it here.

The river runs alongside the Althing area and history says the site was partially chosen to be here due to its proximity to the river.

The frozen parts of the river covered in ice and snow were so Christmas card-like. The snowy walkway crunched underfoot and although I was tempted to slide along it, I was aware a very cold river was only metres from me. One slide too long or a fall and I could end up in there! I resisted the temptation and the child within me!

To my left I could see the brown bluffs of the area I was to visit later. They rose out of the ground like man-made cliffs and the speckled brown of the rock and the white of the snow gave off an almost checkerboard image.

Eventually the pathway reaches where I was headed and a turn in the road to the right took me straight to its entrance.

Althing ancient Parliament site

This is the site of the alleged oldest “Parliament” in the world.

It was formed in 930 AD and lasted  until the last true, independent session was held at Thingvellir in 1798 AD.

Originally all the people of the island were entitled to be present at the gathering to address everyone on matters of law or regulations that affected them all. A Lawspeaker, elected every 3 years, presided over the arrangement. The speaker initially memorised the laws until writing became prevalent.

The Althing was thus Iceland’s legislative and chief judicial authority. In later years seperate Law Councils were formed and eventually an administration system.

There is evidence from the 10th Century of small burrows and bunkers where people sat and deliberated.

Over the centuries the gathering – the area of Thingvellir means “Assembly Plain/Field” – became weaker, as Norwegian, then Danish monarchies took over the running of the country from 1798. It was eventually disbanded in 1800, only to be reintroduced in 1844 and then transferred to the capital in a new purpose-built building in 1881.

Today you can still visit this circular field. It resembles more a bowling green in the summer and in winter is just a snow filled area of ground. It’s simple, plain and almost missable if you didn’t know where it was. However, to the Icelandic nation it is hallowed turf!

Prime Minister’s Summer House

To one side of the Althing is a relatively inconspicuous house. It is wooden in construction and fairly basic in design.

It was built here in 1930 for the 1100^th celebration of the establishment of the Althing and was the park ranger’s residence and home for the local priest.

In 1974, two extra gable roofed extensions were added (making it five gables in total) and reassigned as the Prime Minister of Iceland’s official Summer Residence. It’s often used for official government receptions of visiting dignitaries.

Tellingly, you can almost walk up to the front door and there were no guards in view. I guess that may be a different story if the PM is in residence!

Althing Church

Next to the Althingi site is the smallest church I have ever seen.

It is wooden weatherboarded and painted in green and white, with a small frontal spire.

It doesn’t seem to hold great historical importance and looks like an addition from the 1900s. In fact, there is scant info on it if you look it up on the internet.

I did find out that it is always closed except when a park ranger conducts a tour inside at 10am on booked appointments. I’m unsure if there is a fee but if you really want to go inside, here’s the email address (no website) to enquire about booking a tour in advance – thingvellir@thingvellir.is

Opposite the church is a small graveyard, with what appears to be around 20 people buried here. Am unsure who they are, if they were famous and why they are here. There were virtually no houses for miles around so am unsure how big this churches parish is.

Snow scene from church to Tectonic plates

My next place to see was further away and whilst we could see it in the distance it was not so obvious how to get there. The winter wonderland scenery obscured any clear route so we followed the main route out from the church and followed a sign directing us to the walkway.

Crossing the field and over the river bridge was exciting. Often knee deep in snow, as the child in us encouraged us to jump into the snow drifts on the side of the walkway, we gradually got closer and closer to our destination.

There was an incline, signposted to the place, but out here with no-one around us was surreal. It was so silent, no noise, birds, cars, voices – nothing. It was calming but also somewhat scary for a city-dweller like me who is used to hearing something all the time,

It reminded me of the power of silence and nature at its calmest.

Eventually we saw people up ahead coming our way. They were obviously taking our route in reverse and were on their way to Althing.

Meeting place of the Tectonic Plates

Sad as it may seem, this is the place I was most looking forward to exploring.

The continental drift between the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates can be seen here. Basically, one plate is on one side of the massive gorge/fault-line and the other plate on the other.

The land masses meet here or rather are separating from each other here. The theory is that you can officially place one foot in North America and the other in Europe, in a geological sense.

There are what seems to be cliffs (edges of the tectonic plates) on either side and you walk along a long pathway between them. The crowds here were big and it just shows the pull this location has.

Snow covered many areas and the rocks were blackish, whilst walking inside the gorge, but brownish when viewing them from the outside. I believe the sun’s reflection had something to do with that.

The narrowest part of the gorge walkway is on a supported path and below you can be seen the jagged rocks of the base. There is a point where you can almost touch either side of the two plates, but its just that bit too far for everyone.

Views from atop the Tectonic plates

At one end of the walkway along the gorge the route ends in a wide, open space, If you go to the left there is a big terrace cliff edge viewpoint. This will give you a vista of not only where you walked across the snow from Althing, but of the surrounding panorama and along the cliff edge.

It is stunning and I hope the pics here convey that adequately.

You can see the lay of the land right up to the distant mountains and the river as its winds it way down the plain.

Suddenly, the setting of the Althing next to the river and the surrounding fields, where the ancients would have camped for a few weeks whilst the “Parliament” was in session, all fell into place.

I have seen pics from this view in the Summer, and whilst it is also stunning, the winter wonderland view is my favourite.

Geysir Site

The area is around 3 square kms and contain innumerable boiling mud pits, exploding geysirs and steaming cones, dating from over 1000 years ago.

The original geysir used to explode water up to 170 metres in the air but earthquakes over time have affected its performance. It actually stopped for a long time till another earthquake in 2000 reactivated it to a few times an hour. It is today slowing down.

The area is a quagmire of steam, mud and vapour. There is a proscribed walkway so you don’t inadvertedly walk into one of the hot pools. On the day I visited the area was very active and at times the sun was obliterated by the water vapour rising and spreading over the sky.

There was a feeling that you were in some kind of smelting factory and coal and smoke fumes were all around you – without the smoke smell.

The ground snow had largely melted in the area due to the warm water heating the earth.

The Geysir itself

An anomaly here for everyone.

We often refer to these hot springs that periodically spurt huge columns of water into the air as geysirs or geysers in some versions. Well, the name Geysir comes from this one here. It is simply called the Geysir.

These were probably the first of their type that Europeans ever saw and so the name for this spurting hot spring stuck, as the name for this type of event around the world.

The geyser erupts at roughly equal intervals and so people count the minutes from the last eruption and know when to return to see the next one. The trick is to take a photo when it erupts, but the gush of water and steam is so fast, it took me several attempts to capture it fully.

Strokkur geysir

There is a second geyser here called Strokkur. It’s a bit smaller but erupts more often, around every 15 mins. The spurt will reach between 10 and 30 metres into the air, so hope for a big one for the best pic. It gets less attention, as it is beyond the first one, further away and on an incline.

However, do get to this one as it is less crowded and, in my view, gives just as good a display as the more famous one.

Gulfoss Waterfall

We now had one more place to see to complete our “Golden Circle” route, as it is usually referred to. This was another 20 mins drive away and I am told best seen in the Summer.

This is also one of the most visited sites in Iceland.

The name Gulfoss means “Golden Waterfall” and is supposedly called this because of the golden hue the spray gives off as the water tumbles down the cliff edges. There is also a legend that a local threw his collection of gold into the waterfall to prevent it being acquired by others – I’ll stick with the golden spray theme!

This almighty waterfall is so powerful, that when in flood, the water flow can fill an Olympic sized swimming pool every second. In big floods the 32 metre deep gorge can be totally filled with water

It’s actually a two-tiered waterfall, the biggest tier having a drop of 21 metres, the other being 11 metres tall.

There is a walkway around the top of the fall and you face towards the drop – rather like the Niagara viewpoint.

Today the waterfall was half frozen but the frozen lines gave the image of where the water would gush over. There was enough water to see the flow and path of the waterfall. From that I can see why it is better to see it in the Summer, although it did not fail to impress me in the Winter.

The walkway at the top is quite exposed to the elements and today with a wind at the top it was particularly cold. I would say we were near minus 15.

It was so cold that I could only have the camera of my mobile phone exposed to the elements for around 10 seconds before the cold froze it and it stopped working! I had to keep putting it back inside my jacket, next to my body, to warm it up ready to the next shot.

Today I was so glad I was wearing a hooded knee-length padded winter coat, double padded trousers, boots, thick socks and gloves – it was so, so cold.

Day two

Today was going to be a more leaisurely day.

We had planned to to visit one of the iconic places in Iceland that gives an alternative experience. – almost unique in the world

Blue Lagoon

This amazing place just has to be visited to appreciate it. You can see the pics but its not until you actually get inside and experience it, that you understand what it is all about.

It is a spa, but one with a difference – and this difference was what attracted me. I am by no means a Spa person, in fact I don’t think I’ve knowingly been in one.

The difference here is that the complex is a massive outdoor steaming pool for bathing and luxuriating, that is filled with silica water, full of nutrients and minerals.

The water is pumped from 2000 metres below the surface where salt and fresh water meet under the searing heat and pressure of volcanic climes. The iridescent hot blue water fills the natural rock lined pool and you go bathing, wading, swimming and principally luxuriating in the water. The minerals have health giving properties and the natural silica in the water turns it into an almost milk-like consistency and opaqueness.

You are outside in temperatures of minus 10 in a huge steaming glowing hot tub, laughing, giggling and relaxing. You body is warmed – you nose and ears may feel a chill and the experience of the cold versus hot has to be tried to be believed.

Prices depend on what time of day and which day you want to go in. Cheapest times strart around 7000 ISK (£40) and go up to 20000 ISK (£120). Click here forthe link to their website 

These prices are for the basic package ie pool visit, a silica mud facial pack, towel and a drink at the swim up bar.

You can add on loads of extras eg extra face packs, a reservation at one of the three restaurants, a meal , a stay over at either of the two hotel (these I found were horrendously expensive), in-water massage, spa treatments etc, etc.

The site is out in the middle of nowhere so a car is needed unless you go on a tour package bus.

You must pre-book online for an arrival time and turn up promptly. You walk through incredibly beautiful lava rock lined walkways to get to the futuristic-looking complex.

You go past the overflow silica lake outside and I and many stopped to take pics here in the low light. It was just before 10am and, as you see in the picd, the sun still had not risen yet. It felt like it was 4am back in the UK. We timed our arrival so that we could see the sun rise over the mountains from the pool. It was a cloudy day so really all we got was a brighter glow as the sun appeared behind illuminated clouds of yellow, white and blue – still impressive though.

Once inside the modern building you stand in a queue, ready for your timed entry. There are small info boards that you slowly pass, giving you snippets of info on the site – a great way to entertain the queue for what is a short wait in line.

You hand in your ticket for the towel, go to the changing room where lockers and showers are provided, change into your swim suit and head for the pool,

However, once at the outdoor pool area you have two methods to get into the pool. You can opt to run from the door of the building and jump into the pool to get the full experience of running for 10 seconds, virtually naked through the minus 10 degrees air, and wade into the pool.

Alternatively, there is a slip pool to one side (but you are only semi-inside so you still get the hit of the cold (but not so cold) air. You then wade along to get to the main outdoor pool.

Which did I go for? – my head said “slip pool”, as I’m not a cold weather person and I’m not that adventurous. My heart said “be daring, it’s a once in a lifetime experience and you just have to do it”. 10 seconds later and my heart won. I ran, yelping at the burst of freezing cold air on my body, and splashed in to welcoming warmth of the pool. To quote a cliché, yes, it took my breath away.

The absolutely massive pool is mostly walkable so you don’t need to swim. In fact hardly anyone did. Some areas would be waist high for me – great for kids and shorter people. Another marked area was deeper and even for me would entail swimming as I could not touch the floor.

We spent a few hours in the pool, got our faces plastered in the silica mud/clay and got a drink from one of the two swim up bars.

Here’s a rare pic of me – I hate selfies but it helps give you an idea of what we got up to.

People were standing around shoulder deep in the creamy turquoise-blue water chatting, laughing and just generally having fun.

It’s surreal, as you don’t want to get out because it is so cold outside but after an hour or so you seemed to have done all you want to do in the pool.

There is a café inside and a viewing area over the pool so after we got out, showered and changed, we headed there and watched the masses outside for a while.

The setting among craggy, black lava rocks is strange, you feel like you are on another planet. Mix in with this the white of the snow covering many areas and the bright creamy blue of the pools and it is one heck of a weird panorama!

The walk back to the car is wonderful. If you are on one of the many long walkways back and there is no-one else around you could imagine you are lost on rocky black mountain in some inhospitable climate.

Lagoon done and what an experience – don’t miss it.

Hallgrimskirkja

This huge building is no more than a parish church. The Cathedral, which is actually much smaller, is located in the centre of the city.

It is dedicated to the famous Icelandic poet Hallgrimur Petursson and although it was stated in 1945, it wasn’t finally consecrated until 1986. That date was coincidentally the day before the 312^th anniversary of Hallgrimur’s death and the same year that Reykjavik celebrated 200 years as a city

The shape and design is quite controversial. It is supposed to represent the mountains and glaciers of Iceland’s geography and built out of local stone. I am still in two minds about it. I get its unique design and avant-garde construction but it altogether felt very “heavy” and oppressive to me. What do you think?

Click here for opening times and charges.

We visited here after our time in the lagoon and you can again see the effect of the winter daytime sun (or lack of it). The sun seemed to skim around the horizon, never rising.

The doors were a mixture of art nouvea patterns and plant swirls and bold colour that stood out against the otherwise plain cream of the stonework.

In front of the church is a statue of Leif Ericsson, proclaiming him as discoverer of America (the Spanish may claim that was Columbus, however). The soaring curved sides of the base plinth seemed to match the design of the church tower.

Inside, the church was a pinnacle of Scandic minimalism – there was so little, if any, decoration and everything was in such a functional design. No soaring rococo columns or gothic vaults here!

At first, I wondered if they had not finished the interior or had no money to deck it out – but no, that’s Icelandic minimalism for you!

View from the top

You can ascend the 75 metre tower (by lift only) for 1000 ISK (about £5), from where you will get the best view across Reykjavik of any place here. The views are stupendous, not only taking in virtually all the city but across to the bay and the nearby mountains as well.

Notice how many street and buildings lights were on – it was only 2pm.

Art in the Church

The base of the tower and a small side room, contain an interesting art display area. It was all included so I believe it was a temporary gallery that changes the artworks in time. These paintings caught my eye and I spent a while looking around the gallery.

For a church setting it was very creative and expressive, something I had not expected in such a sacred environment.

Day three

Today was just going to be a day of wanderings.

There were lots of buildings and sights to see in the central area of the city and we wanted to take our last day here easy.

Central Reykjavik area

The innermost area of Reykjavik is small and walkable. In fact, I would go so far as to say cars are more of a hinderance to use here. The streets are narrow and much is pedestrianised. There are plentiful places to park however and the kerbside parking restrictions are quite lenient or non-existent so we found parking quite easy.

Once parked at one end of the central area we walked almost everywhere to see the sights. Many are close together and moving from one end of the centre to the other is probably the easiest way to see them.

Sun Voyager, Reykjavik

This stainless-steel artwork was unveiled in 1990 on what is a street along the city seawall road. It is supposed to symbolise hope, dreams, new discoveries. I didn’t quite get that.

I saw an artistic interpretations of an Icelandic long boat. It seems to semi float on the granite platform it rests on due to the oars becoming the resting pillars.

It’s quite an attractive artwork and even on a snowy cold day, lots of people were here to visit it.

It’s setting beside the grey cold artic water was appropriate, the shiny steel framework glistening in the low sun.

What was also interesting were the tall glass and steel modern apartment blocks across the road from it.

Harpa Concert Hall and Conference Centre Reykjavik

Opened in 2011, this new concert Hall/Conference Centre was to be part of a huge redevelopment of this part of Reykjavik. Unfortunately, almost all of the rest of the project was cancelled due to funding issues and it today stands alone by the water’s edge

The interlocking cubes design with geometric shaped coloured glass window is a great piece of modern architecture

It is free to enter and wander around and this is where its beauty lies.

The glass panelled panes are a soaring masterpiece of artwork in themselves. It even won a European architecture award in 2013

It’s hard to imagine this amount of glass open to the elements would keep a building warm. However, look closely and you’ll see that the glass is very thick and double glazed.

We walked the interior and it is so spacious inside, giving off views across the bay to the grey churning waters and the snow-covered mountains beyond. Its design almost pulls the outside in. I really liked it.

Outside the statue of a celloist set in a flat pond was brought here from the old concert site.

Althing – Parliament building

The Parliament building was built in 1881 from Icelandic stone and took over as the meeting place for the ancient Althing gathering. As mentioned before, Iceland lays claim to the oldest Parliament establishment in the world.

The building surprised me in several ways. It was built of quite dark stone and this gave it a somewhat sombre look. I’m used to the pomp and glory of other country’s parliament buildings and this was very plain.

Its size also surprised me, no more than a large country house from where I am from. Well, the country has a small population and thus don’t need the grandiose buildings of bigger countries.

Also, I could walk right up to its door. There were no guards or barriers, again such is the laid- back nature of the Icelandics and presumably free from threat, as a smaller, less influential nation.

Cafe Paris

We decided to take a break now. We needed a local place for coffee and something to eat. Café Paris caught our eye from the exterior design. It has a definite… well… Parisian 1930s look and so we decided to try it.

It is a real throw back to a proper Parisian café inside too – bentwood and wicker chairs, globe lights, wooden bar work, marble table tops, handwritten French menus etc. We decided to eat a meal rather than just coffee, as we knew that the next stretch of visits would be continuous to make up time. This way we could head back to the hotel early on our last day here.

Food was excellent and service was good and the waitresses English was as good as mine!

Prices were not too high – it was high for us Brits, but was not expensive in comparison to the norm for here.

If you want a bite to eat in an atmospheric cafe, in the centre of Reykjavik, then I would recommend here.

Of course, across the road, was the 5 star Borg Hotel, known as the best hotel in Reykjavik, if you can’t slum it here, It looked gorgeous but I just knew what the price tag would be there!

Reykjavik Cathedral and City Hall

This small, austere and plain Cathedral is about the size of an average parish church elsewhere. It however is the most important church in Iceland and is actually one of the oldest buildings in Reykjavik.

Its white walls contrast with its green tiles and it sits right next to, and I mean a few metres away from, the Parliament building.

That’s actually a good location as every new session of Parliament starts with a service at the church and the Dean leading the assembled politicians into the Parliament building.

Historically important because it was here that the Danish King granted Iceland home rule. It was also the first place that the national anthem was sung.

Its interior is as similarly plain as its exterior.

Just across the square is Reykjavik’s City Hall. A modern concrete building that reminded me more of a sports centre or art centre from its plain design.

Am I getting across the message that much in Reykjavik is plain and unadorned in nature? I actually like this, but at times it can be a bit too samey everywhere.

Tjornin Lake 

Tjornin mean Pond or Lake, so I really shouldn’t be calling it Tjornin lake, just Tjornin! It is bigger than a pond but smaller than a lake so who know what we call it.

The Lake is home to over forty varieties of wildfowl and on our visit that was certainly clear, One of the favourites pastimes of the city dwellers is feeding the birds and again, we saw dozens of people doing just that.

Swans and geese were mostly in view and I suppose being bigger were dominating the feeding frenzy over the smaller ducks. It was fab to see this display of nature in the centre of the city and just across the way from the Parliament and City Hall.

In winter the lake freezes over and you can walk across it – we did just that. However, Reykjavik citizens being bird friendly, always ensure ice is broken up at one end of the lake, so the birds can swim and be fed there.

Prime Minister’s Office Reykjavik

The Prime Minster Office in located near the centre of town and is on an ordinary street with no ceremony. The house is pretty but basic with no guards protecting it. No doubt security cameras are there unseen but it was such a difference to be able to once again almost walk up to the front door unhindered and knock!

At night the building is gloriously lit up, which is probably the only giveaway that this building is important.

In front, on the lawn, stand several statues of past politicians

Culture House Museum

I’m including this pic and explanation, but not only because the building is of great historical importance. Yes, it houses museums etc but it also shows one of the prettiest and possibly most ornate classical buildings in Reykjavik.

You see so many plain wooden weather boarded houses or simple blocks here and every now and again a building stands out, like this one.

Ok, it was opened in 1909 as the National Library and Archives. At various times throughout its history, it was also the National Museum, the Natural History Museum and the National Gallery.

Today it is a mixed-use culture house for exhibitions of many types and is nicknamed the “Culture House” to cover its many roles

The National Theatre of Iceland

Being the architecture buff that I am, again another building caught my eye.

This time a classic 1950s style brick building that reminded of the big Odeon Cinema we used to have in my old hometown.

The National theatre stood out on the street as quite a unique building – I hadn’t seen many of this era, in this style, in Reykjavik. I had to get a pic of it,

The theatre puts on over 20 productions per year of Icelandic and International performances from its cast of around 35 actors. I would have loved to see something here but the performance tonight was of an Icelandic play that I knew nothing about, in Icelandic

Wander the central streets of Reykjavik

For our last part of the trip, we just wanted to take in the city. We wandered around the central area, window shopping, seeing the buildings and getting a feel for this city.

I’m showing random streets and buildings here, to give you the impression that I got of the central area.

The buildings would all have been pretty samey if it was not for one thing, they were painted in often bright differing colours and this really lifted the area.

It was great to see loud yellows, bright reds and pastel greens on various buildings. The feel, for me, was that this had a more small town feel than a capital city – no building in the centre was more than 4 storeys high.

Old buildings blend in well with newer ones and the tidiness and cuteness of it all was beautiful. I was expecting something more grandiose and louder from the centre but it gave me a calm, affluent, organised, artisan feel to most of the areas.

It just felt so liveable and community based.

Walking around we came across some fun things. One was this Icelandic/Viking troll – putting out the northern vibe. In another shop I saw this t-shirt displayed. I got the idea from it, that I have often heard, that Icelandics don’t show their emotions facially much. It’s fun but not what I found, the people were polite and friendly, not cold

What did I think of Reykjavik?

The visit left me wanting to see Reykjavik, and indeed Iceland, in the Summer. I had experienced the bitter cold and white-out of Winter and still immensely enjoyed seeing everything.

Winter wonderland gave it a magical and often, surreal for me, feel. I now wanted to see it on the opposite spectrum in Summer and see if I would enjoy it as much.

Iceland is expensive, and alcohol is exorbitant, but there are restaurants and hotels etc that are cheaper if you look for them.

The Icelandic affinity with nature is clear. Their countryside is beautiful and the city was organised, tidy and very artisan/local – more than I was expecting.

Everything is on a much smaller scale than countries in eg Europe with 20 times the population. A Parliament the size of a country house, a Cathedral the size of a parish church and a National Museum the size of an apartment block.

Contrastingly, the Concert Hall and Hallgrimskirkja stood out as being maybe too big for their use.

One of the weird things for me was car hire, I have never hired a car while staying in a city. Our hotel was not in the centre (hence the great deal we got), so we needed transport to get around the city and country. With no Mero or train system in the city or indeed whole country, and obscure bus info, car (or taxi) was the only option

Flights from the UK to Iceland are now very cheap, as budget airlines take over the routes, so getting there saves you the money you will need to spend on arrival! There is now an expanding US network of flights to Iceland too. From the US, you can easily book a stopover of a few days on your way to mainland Europe, and vice-versa, with many airlines that fly these routes – Buy Europe/USA get Iceland free type of deals.

I know there were places that I missed, as they were low priority, so on my next visit, which I hope will be sooner rather than later, I shall be visiting them.

Jan 2018

Below are some related posts on nearby places to visit. Click on the pic to view.