Iceland Trip Account - Day 8

Day 8

• Okay so the last few nights of bad sleep (whether it be being too warm, random noises from the refrigerator or Alex doing some sort of gymnastics in the neighbouring bed) have finally caught up on me so apologies in advance because this is probably going to read like a 7 seven year old wrote it.
• Today was Reykjavik day. The capital of Iceland holds almost half of the entire country’s population. The throng of people is almost juxtaposing to the normal rural environment that I relate Iceland with - but it was a refreshing change of scenery all the same even if I’m not much of a city person myself.
• The winding dual carriageways are the first indications that you’re off the country roads. It did take a good 30 mins to find somewhere to park without having to take out a small loan just to visit the city for short amount of time as well as a family domestic on map directions. But at last we found a free spot off a main road which we were all very suspicious about actually being free or if we’d get back to find the car had been pulled. Nevertheless we head for the info centre to get the ball rolling.
• The first thing you notice in Reykjavik is the cranes that poke over all the building. I read online how people complain about it ruining the city however renovation is key in a city for people to visit it in the first place. The other thing that stands out - somewhat more positive than cranes - is the insane street art on the walls of buildings. Photos didn’t quite do them justice but on every couple of corners there would be some form of art or mural that was good enough to make crowds stop and look at. I’ll add a couple at the end of course.
• One of the main attractions Reykjavik is the Hallgrimskirkja church which is a beautiful white building that stands at the end of one of the main roads. Standing proudly in front of it is the explorer Leif Eriksson (lived around 970AD and 1012AD) which was a gift from the US in 1930. This makes for a very picturesque scene and you can also go into the church (and the steeple, but it wasn’t open that day unfortunately). It stands at 74.5 meters high and took 41 years to build starting in 1945. Like most churches it is undergoing constant rejuvenating repairs, including when we were there.
• After lunch we stopped off at one of many bakeries (chosen because passed some people eating just outside it and asked “is it good?” and the couple replied with a mouth of “Mhm!”). So we bought a variety of cinnamon bun each and I tucked into mine as we headed to a museum.
• The museum called “The Settlement Exhibition 871 +/- 2” is an exhibition showing the dig site of an actual settlement that dates back to one of the earliest settlements in the history of iceland. Even if it is solely the foundations that remain, along with the odd trinket, it was still fascination to see what archeologists were able to determine and piece together based on a ruin that had even been built on in the 1800s. The basement of this building housed the actual site that you walk around reading and interacting with all the information provided about the site. I did also enjoy using the colouring station to make my own Icelandic warrior colouring in picture… It is relaxing to colour in, okay!
• Tomorrow we are up at 8:00 for a hike… fingers crossed my knees survive it! Pasta and spinach tonight which always goes down well… Good stuff.
• Oh and thanks Derek for the great idea to add map markers!