As I write this I am sitting here in the plane on route to Toronto (and as I post this I’ve already been in Canada for a few days, c’est la vie), after less than three hours of sleep last night (and I use that term lightly as this time of year the sun doesn’t go down, it just dips to the horizon before rising again) feeling excited to go somewhere new, sad to leave Iceland and, of course, tired as hell. I am looking back at my first week abroad pretty contently.
Iceland was great fun. The TLDR / cliffnotes version: the hostel I stayed at was really good, I had good roommates, the weather shifted all the time but was never really bad and the nature of this vulcanic little island was breathtaking.
Now, where to start this tale? Let’s pick the airport, where after over an hour delay I found myself in what had to be first circle of hell: baggage claim. Now I am no stranger to long waits here but by god was this inefficient. They had a few conveyor belts and dropped luggage from multiple flights on one belt. Lots of people waiting for a long time. In contrast though checking in bagage to leave, as well all the security checks, are really fast. Thank you self service.
The first thing I noticed stepping outside was how light it was, even though it was evening. I did know this coming in, but it’s one thing knowing it and another to experience it. I haven’t seen a proper night in a week now. Once you get used to it though it’s actually nice to always have light, but you really need a watch otherwise you completely lose track of time.
Over the past week I have seen pretty beautiful and diverse sites, starting with some striking landscapes right off the bat sitting on the airport shuttle to Reykjavik. Lava rocks, moss, desolation, a perfect entrance into Iceland!
So after about 45 minutes by bus Reykjavik comes into view, the sprawling metropolitan capital of Ice…no wait, that’s not quite right. Let’s try that again, the colorful little city that also happens to be the capital of the country. It has a really nice atmosphere, very welcoming. Even though most people in Iceland live here you never get a crowded feeling.
In fact I’ve seen more tourists downtown than Icelanders. Might also be because about 10% of the entire population of Iceland is in France right now for the football/soccer cup – their team is doing surprisingly well and they are right proud of them.
You really notice that it’s a small and isolated country, but though it’s small their Viking pride is anything but. The writer who won the nobel prize in 1955, the men who won the strongest man contest, the women crossfit winners, they’ll proudly tell you all about them (especially the tour guides). You hear the stereotypes of how nice and laid back the Icelandic people are, and as far my experiences go that’s exactly how they were.
While the outskirts of Reykjavik are more like a modern suburbia, the downtown area has a more small town feel to it, with colorful corrugated steel covering the timber of the houses. From Hallgrimskirkja you can really see just how colorful Reykjavik is.
Another building I really liked was the Harpa building. The whole façade of the building is made up of glass, with a honeycomb structure. When it’s dark it’s lit up like the northern lights – shame it doesn’t get dark this time of year.
The best place to be though was the town square when Iceland was playing in the Euro Cup. The whole square filled up with fans going wild (but never rowdy). The match against Austria was nearing the end when I came back from the Golden Circle tour (more on that later) and it was like all of Reykjavik was there on that square, cheering their team on. When the final goal was made in the final seconds the excitement was palatable. After being there I am rooting for Iceland all the way! And that’s rare for me because I don’t actually care for football/soccer.
While in Reykjavik I stayed in the Loft Hostel, which is smack dab in the center of the downtown area – everything of interest is within easy walking distance. The hostel itself has a large common area and bar at the top floor, as well as an outside patio on the roof. It’s a perfect place to hang out and meet people, one of the best hostels I stayed at. Every bed also had a personal light and a power outlet, which is something that I think is vital, but sadly most hostels don’t seem to feel the same way. I remember a hostel in New Zealand with one outlet for six beds – now that was horrible.
Met some great people at the hostel, some of them who were my roommates. Dragged two of my roommates to a pub crawl on my second to last night in Iceland, Chris from Scotland and Talia from New York. Great night, but I am getting ahead of myself a little bit. If I go back to Iceland I will definitely stay there again.
The staff also had great suggestions on where to go and what tours to do. It speaks for them that they recommend great tours that aren’t immediately the most expensive, unlike some other places I’ve been where upselling was the default.
On their recommendation I ate at a small restaurant, Café Loki, to get a taste of the local cuisine. This was in the neighborhood of Hallgrimskirkja. Here I discovered that I don’t care for Plokkfiskur (mashed potatoes and mashed fish) but fermented shark is actually quite tasty (just don’t smell it, the smell is horrible).
Another thing to try in Reykjavik, and I can’t believe I am saying this, are hotdogs. Yes, hotdogs. You get them from the stall that first starting selling them many years/decades ago and you take two. Not one, since you’ll have to get in line again, but two. They are really good, especially the crispy onion bits. Yum.
Ah, Reykjavik, you were a great homebase from which to explore the surrounding areas. Next time though I’d definitely want to rent a car and drive around the Island.