Landing in Reykjavík in the midst of January 2015 was one of the most surreal experiences. If not for the fact that we’d set off from home at one o’clock in the morning to get our coach to Manchester Airport in order to fly in the early morning to Iceland – after a full day at work I might add (I know! I should have booked it off, you live and learn!) but for the cape of snow draped across the airport grounds after arriving from a rather cold but not at all snowy England.
The immense wind – the most wild, rapid, bitter and icy wind I’ve ever felt whipped around us at the Keflavik Airport whilst we waited for our bus to take us to our hotel made. It me feel other worldly and I knew there and then that we had come to a special place.
This picture below is a perfect reflection of what I was feeling whilst sat on the bus. I was snapping away taking any pictures I could of the first sightings of Iceland. This is a blurry example of the sun straining to get through those stubborn clouds, juxtaposed with a wish wash of snow and rocks, tainted blue by the sky.
This enchanted feeling never lifted the whole time we were in Reykjavík. The hour long journey into the city centre gave us a real taste of the country, looking out the bus window with puppy-wide eyes, all we saw for the first half was baron land; snowy, rocky untouched land on both sides of the road, it was very refreshing to see. It went on for miles with the term man made lost from my vocabulary. It was like nothing I’d seen before, I’d seen the vast green fields of England, the dusty vegetable patches of Cyprus and the endless, golden sands of Spain but never endless stretches of mysterious rocks; baron and untouched.
Then there were houses, built half underground so as to maintain warmth in the snowy, bitter weather. I love the design of Nordic houses; just take these ones in the picture below – bright, colourful and full of character. These are city centre houses and different to the ones just mentioned. The bus was whizzing past too fast to get any pictures but here is an example of these houses.
They are known as earth sheltered homes which is just what it sounds like – using earth against building walls which acts as a natural thermal barrier against the cold, keeping the house warmer.
Image: Laura Damant
We were soon driving through a little fishing village, home to ‘The Hotel Viking’ which we later found out to be called, Hafnarfjörður. We only got a very swift glance of this little place but from what I saw, it is definitely a place I want to visit.
I am going to detail a few things that I find quite wondrous about Icelands capital – things I think help to make it unique, special and worth visiting.
Icelandic Folklore
Many Icelanders believe that Elves, Fairies and Trolls (also known as ‘Hidden People’) live in caves all over the country and it is apparently bad form to say that you don’t believe in these beings in Iceland – you either believe or don’t admit it if you don’t! We learnt all about this on our bus trip to a very desolate, bitterly cold part of Iceland (apparently near to where Game of Thrones is filmed!) to see the Northern Lights.
The tour guide regaled the folklore to us over the microphone as we looked out the window at miles worth of unspoilt land draped in thick snow and ice. Looking up revealed a dark sky, speckled with the most vivid, theatrical looking stars I’d ever seen. It was a beautiful night and we were told all about the Christmas folklore which involves 13 mischievous characters, supposedly descendants of of trolls. Legend has it that they live in the mountains and during the 13 days before Christmas, emerge out into town to make mischief then one by one return back to the mountains in time for New Year where a whole host of other whimsical events take shape such as seals taking human form and elves becoming visible.
Never a dull moment in Iceland! I find all these stories so endearing and it adds an element of enchantment and intrigue to the Icelandic people. You can imagine parents telling their children these stories at Christmas time and it’s even cuter if the parents believe it themselves!
Icelandic Art
One thing is for sure, the many Icelanders seem to be very creative and this really shows. All it takes is a glimpse of the city centre to experience this; music shops full of CD’s with obscure, interesting covers; work by Björk, Emiliana Torrini and Sigur Rós to name a few. Definitely check those out if you are wanting to learn about what’s popular music wise in Iceland.
The architecture – humble with a sense of other worldly escapism. Look at the shape and colour of the cathedral. It’s not like other cathedrals, this one drapes and performs whilst it stands there in the centre of Reykjavík. It has a classic Nordic appeal.
Image: Laura Damant
The artwork – speckled all around this small city which appears to mirror the strong characteristics of Iceland – quirky, obscure and mysterious. Take these buildings below:
Image: Laura Damant
Not much really needs to be said about these pictures, I think they speak for themselves and there is a great deal of surrealism like this to be found around the city. I’ve looked through mine and a friend’s photographs from trips to Iceland and have decided that between us, we captured so much of the artwork that I will do a separate post on this.
For now, just one last picture to add that also feeds into the next section about Icelandic food (pun intended).
This fantastic painting was on the wall of Café Loki. It stretched all across the back right behind where I was sitting and it certainly made a statement. This kind of artwork is not uncommon around the city so if you’re into art, Reykjavík is a great city for you – this was just in a local cafe, close to the Cathedral.
Icelandic Food
Our food at Café Loki was delicious. As you can see from the picture below, it is something rather different from what you might be used to, if you are from the UK for example. You could choose from a selection of Icelandic pre-set plates. I chose mashed fish, dried fish with Icelandic butter, (it is tradition to spread the butter on to the fish piece) lamb on rye flat bread and fermented shark. My travel partner opted for mashed fish and raw fish on rye flat bread, sheeps head jelly and mashed turnip. We both had a shot of the signature Reykjavík schnapps, Brennivín.
It was really interesting to try such a different cuisine. The varied fish recipes have been perfected over the years with fish being so plentiful in Iceland – it is admirable what they have come up with. It can be a bit of a shock to your taste buds if you’re not used to this kind of food but I liked all of it, except the fermented shark, it was very strong and intense in flavour. Basically, I couldn’t handle it.
Icelandic People
The general vibe of the people of Iceland during our time in Reykjavík was one of sincerity, individuality and kindness. I have never felt safer anywhere in my life than I did here, considering I’ve lived in the UK all my life and was in Iceland for 3 days makes this quite an incomprehensible and bold statement, but it couldn’t be more accurate.
The crime rate is extremely low in Iceland and people just seem to get along and know how to live. This is lovely to be around, and combined with their sublime appreciation of art and individuality makes the Icelandic people some of the best I have encountered. Take this photograph below, some could say of it – only in Iceland.
Plus, there is a penis museum in Reykjavík. And no, I didn’t go – but there’s always a next time!
We also saw youngsters playing football on and running over the huge frozen lake which looked very precarious to us but to them it’s probably just the norm, likewise with people running across icy streets, I was so scared people would slip, but they never did!
I know that there is much more of this little country that I have yet to discover and I intend to do just that in the not so distant future. It is so much easier to travel to Iceland now that they are wanting the tourism and actively working together with travel companies to put great deals out there. It is making it possible for many more to travel to Iceland and enjoy a few unusual and thought provoking days away somewhere, a bit different to what they might be used to. Variety is the spice of life after all and you certainly get that here.
One piece of advice – if you get a blocked nose, just order the fermented shark, it will sort it right out!
Have you been to Iceland? Share your experiences below, I’d love to hear about it!
