Reykjavik and the start of our Icelandic sojourn

By Glen Bruels
This is part of a series called Nordic Sojourn 2022
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Today, we started the third phase of our Nordic journey — a two-week trip around the Ring Road of Iceland, a 828 mile, two lane road that encircles much of the country.  We have really been anticipating this part of the trip, both because of the geography and history of this country.  At 40,000 square miles, Iceland is about the size of Kentucky and Virginia combined, making the 2nd largest island in Europe (behind Great Britain) and the 18th largest in the world.  But what makes this place interesting is that it is one of the youngest landmasses in the world, with some of the most active volcanoes.  Between the lava flows from the multiple volcanoes around the country and the pulling apart of the Eurasian and North American plates that intersect the island, Iceland is actually growing by 2 inches per year!  And around 80% of this land is uninhabited, with more than half of the 309,000 residents living in Reykjavik. More than 10% of the land is covered with glaciers that feed the nearly 20,000 waterfalls around the country.  Much of the remaining terrain consists of mountain peaks (many of which are volcanic), high plateaus, fertile lowlands, giant lava fields, and black sand beaches.  So much to see and so little time to see it!

During the first few days of the trip, Reykjavik would serve as our hub with day trips taken from there.  After getting off the ship, our driver gave us a brief tour of the city, including a stop at Bessastadir, the official residence of the president of Iceland.  The site has held a church since 1000 and was at different times a farm belonging to one of the Icelandic chieftains, a royal stronghold when Iceland belonged to Norway, and after serving as a school and private farm, ultimately became the presidential residence in 1941.  What is amazing about this place is the total lack of security.  You literally could knock on the president’s door and he would probably answer it!  Apparently, President Guðni Thorlacius Jóhannesson is well-known and loved by the locals and can be frequently be seen jogging in town or fishing by himself.  The locals refer to him as “Uncle Bob.”  What a refreshing change from the layers of security and entourage our President has.  Anyway, we walked around the city, visiting the Hallgrímskirkja church that is one of the tallest structures in the country and provides panoramic views of the city from its tower.  From there, we spent some time wandering down Laugavegur, the principal shopping district of Reykjavik as well as the location of lots of bars, nightclubs, and restaurants.  What was weird about this street was the number of shops that were closed every day that we tried to visit them.  I guess the good news was that this saved some potential costly souvenir purchases! 

The church at Bessastadir with the Uncle Bob’s house behind.
The Hallgrímskirkja Church. Outside, it seems like a Brutalist style…
The interiors of the church are quite plain.
You can go up in the church tower and get panoramic views of the city…
… just don’t be in the bell tower on the half-hour when theses babies start to ring!
And then there’s the statue of Leif Erickson — a gift from the US. Between Minnesota, Norway, and here, I’ve seen way too many statues of the man…
Making our way down the shopping Platz…
A boiled wool puffin that Deb wanted, but the store was closed.
The Prime Minister’s office is right on the street corner. Once again, no security.

At the base of these street and along the waterfront, we visited the Harpa, a concert hall and conference center that opened in 2011.  This is sort of the anchor of a redevelopment that has been taking place by the waterfront after Iceland recovered from its bank crisis in 2008.  It really is a beautiful building and has been filmed for episodes of Black Mirror and Sense8.  While walking along the waterfront to our hotel, we noticed a building that seemed out of place with all the towers and other modern structures in the area.  It turned out that this was the site of the Reagan-Gorbachev summit of 1986 that focused on intermediate nuclear forces.  While the summit ended in a stalemate, the path was laid for what would become an important treaty in 1987.  People of Iceland were understandably proud of their small contribution to this process and, when redevelopment of the waterfront area began, the decision was made to preserve the structure as a reminder of their role.  One last note about the waterfront redevelopment — it spawned a number of truly excellent restaurants that we sampled during our stay there.  But enough of this city stuff; let’s go explore!

Just because. We chose not to have lunch here.
How about the world famous hot dog stand?
Sure, let’s do it. Worthy of its reputation? Nah, not so much.
I was really impressed with this mural in the waterfront redevelopment area.
Not to mention the Harpa, a beautiful music hall that seems to be the anchor of the redevelopment.
We walked along the waterfront, admiring the art installations… along the way.
… as well as the building that held the Reagan – Gorbachev summit.
Our first dinner in Reykjavik at the Fish Market — one of several great restaurants in the city.
This entry was posted in Iceland, Travel
Glen Bruels

I am a traveler and sometimes clay sculptor, following a long career working in consulting. My work allowed me to travel the world extensively and I was hooked. Today, I travel with my wife/best friend to explore new places, meet new people, and learn new things.

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