Iceland – We Explore Reykjavik Day 14
We were down for breakfast at the Reykjavik Lights Hotel dining room just after opening. I had my usual, skyr (Icelandic yogurt) and granola. They have the best berry mix at the Reykjavik Lights, which goes absolutely awesome with the granola and skyr. That and a few cups of their awesome coffee, a couple of pastries and we are ready to hit the road. Our plan for the day was to explore Reykjavik.
Reykjavik is the largest city and capital of Iceland with a population of approximately 237,000 inhabitants. Reykjavík translates to “Bay of Smokes” and was founded in 874 by the Norseman Ingólfur Arnarson. Up until the early 20th century it was just a small fishing village and trading post. It was designated the administrative centre of the island while under Danish rule in 1786 and has been the seat of the Althing (parliament) since 1843. It became the capital of a self-governing Iceland under Danish rule in 1918 and finally, the capital of the independent Republic of Iceland in 1944.
Old Harbour, Reykjavik
Sun Voyager
We headed towards the city center following along the waterfront. Our first stop was at the famous Sun Voyager sculpture or ‘Sólfar’ located right on the waterfront on a small headland. I think everyone who visits Reykjavik stops at this iconic sculpture to grab some photos! Sun Voyager is described as: “A dreamboat, or an ode to the Sun”. The artist intended it to convey the promise of undiscovered territory, a dream of hope, progress and freedom.
Sun Voyager or Sólfar
Old Harbour
We parked in town close to the area that is called the ‘Old Harbour’. If you’re visiting Iceland, make sure to download the ’Parka’ app. You can use it to pay at many of the paid parking lots around Iceland as well the street parking in Reykjavik and other major towns.
Parka Logo
We walked down to the Old Harbour which is quite beautiful, and surprisingly, on this day, calm! The gods must be sleeping! (But I think they’ll have the last laugh! More on that in the next post!) The water was a beautiful aqua colour and the whole area is surrounded by old historical buildings.
Walking down to Old Harbour in Reykjavik
Old Harbour
Old Harbour
Old Harbour
There are a couple of old, but still functional whaling ships tied up in the Old Harbour. Iceland sadly, still hunts whales. There used to be four whaling ships but the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society unbolted the water intakes on the engines on two of them, sinking the vessels while they were anchored in the harbour.
Whaling ships in old Harbour
The weather was a bit chilly as we wandered around, and pretty foggy with a fine drizzle at times. However, when in Iceland you have to dress appropriately! That means layers and most importantly, make sure one of them is windproof and waterproof!
Linda is not convinced by the sign!
Reykjavik Shopping District
From the harbour we wandered up some of the busier shopping district streets that are filled with restaurants, gift shops and galleries. Everything was open so we did a bit of souvenir shopping. Unfortunately most of the stores had exactly the same stuff in them. A lot of it tacky stuff made in China. It was very hard to find anything worthwhile to bring home as gifts.
Reykjavik
Shopping district, Reykjavik
Walking past Tjörnin (Lake) back towards the shopping district
Downtown Reykjavik has a very European look
We wandered up the famous Rainbow Street also known as Skólavörðustígur. Back in 2015, the city of Reykjavik decided to paint one of its streets a rainbow to celebrate Reykjavik Gay Pride which started in 1999. Since then the festival has grown and attracts up to 100,000 visitors each year.
Rainbow street runs from the famous Hallgrímskirkja church down to the main shopping street, Laugavegur. It it lined with charming and picturesque buildings housing a variety of shops, cafes, restaurants, and galleries.
Rainbow Street or Skólavörðustígur
Located at the top of Rainbow Street is the striking Hallgrímskirkja church which towers over the city. Not only is it visible from almost every corner of Reykjavik, it’s also the tallest church in Iceland. Apparently its design was inspired by elements of Icelandic nature, which include glaciers, mountains, and lava formations – particularly the hexagonal basalt columns which are so prevalent.
Hallgrímskirkja
Outside the church stands a huge statue of one of Iceland’s most legendary characters, Leif Eiríksson. Leif was the son of Erik the Red, the founder of the first Norse settlement in Greenland, and Thjodhild (Þjóðhildur) of Iceland. His place of birth is not known, but he is assumed to have been born in Iceland, which had recently been colonized by Norsemen mainly from Norway. Leif Erikson, also known as ‘Leif the Lucky’ was thought to have been the first European to set foot on continental North America, approximately half a millennium before Christopher Columbus!
Leif Eiríksson Sculpture at Hallgrímskirkja
It was getting on to lunch time, so we tried to find somewhere to eat but nothing was really catching our eye. From the crowds waiting to get into many places and the exorbitant cost of a meal, we gave up and decided for a couple of hot dogs (Pylsa) from a local stand.
In downtown Reykjavik, not far from the newly built Harpa Concert and Conference Center is the unassuming Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur hot dog stand (which translates to best hot dogs in town). It has been open since 1937 and its likely that the vast majority of Icelands population has eaten a hot dog from here. Its even had its fair share of famous visitors including Bill Clinton and Metallica – probably many, many other famous people in secret!
They were basically just to fill a hole in our stomachs. They’re ok … not great, but it did the job. Maybe they have to grow on you!
Hot Dogs for lunch!
Grótta Nature Reserve
We wandered around a bit more after lunch then jumped in the car to do a little further exploration of the city. This took us up the peninsula that Reykjavik sits on to Grótta. Grótta is a nature sanctuary and lighthouse, and there has been a lighthouse there since 1897. The one currently standing dates back to 1947 and was only hooked up to electricity in 1956.
Grotta Nature Reserve
The Lighthouse at Grotta
There are a lot of nesting seabirds at Grótta in the summertime and parts of the reserve are closed off to protect them. While we were there, there were quite a few Common Eider ducks with chicks in the tide pools along the shoreline. The dads were keeping watch as the chicks and moms were feeding.
Male Common Eider ducks watching over the their feeding families at Grotta
On the way back to our hotel we stopped at a very intriguing building we saw up on a hill overlooking the city. This turned out to be the Perlan Museum. We drove up and had a look around from the outside and wandered the walking paths that wind through trees and fields of lupin that are part of a parkland that surrounds the museum. It was too late to consider going in, so it was back to the hotel for some rest before dinner. We’ll talk more about the Perlan Museum in our next post.
Lupins at the Perlan Museum
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