Randomly Reykjavik

Yesterday we left Glasgow for our extended travels. Below is the view from the airplane, in which we can just make out the Squinty Bridge, the Armadillo, and a few other locations. It’s rather a tumultuous leaving for us, as we lived in Glasgow itself for four years, and lived within an easy drive to Glasgow for the past year. We have committed to coming back, though, so we’ll regard this as just the beginning of the next phase of our relationship with Glasgow and Scotland.

When deciding to leave Scotland, we decided that we needed a break somewhere along the way – to stop, regroup, and just relax for awhile. We’re in Reykjavik for just that reason, and to enjoy the 20+ hours of full daylight (well, OK, lightly overcast daylight) for a few days. We arrived yesterday and had to cast around for a bit to find our apartment rental. We ended up being dropped off at the Central Apartments instead of the Central View Apartments, but the lovely proprietor generously offered to ferry us to the right place – after telephoning and searching for it online and much fumbling about in search of the correct website. He was truly wonderful to us, and we’ve told him that we know where we’ll be staying when next we visit!

In any event, we arrived at our apartment at last after a terribly long slog which began at 6 a.m., when we arose to finally pack our luggage and clean the flat. Yes: we left it until the last day, but managed to finish packing and cleaning a good four hours before our flight, whence began the traveling part of the marathon of endurance. We took a taxi from the flat in Kilsyth with all of our various bags, as 1) we couldn’t face the idea of trying to get them onto a train, and 2) it may have cost £5 more to take the taxi. Then, the hauling of luggage began in earnest: 4 suitcases, 2 carry-on bags, 2 laptop bags, 1 camera bag, and 1 violin all had to make it into the terminal and onto the airplane. Fortunately, the check-in guy didn’t know how to charge for excess baggage, so took our two carry-on bags into the hold at ho extra charge, leaving us with computer bags and camera and violin.

We arrived sweaty and miserably worn out, but also quite happy because we’re in a neighborhood which we know well and we have a kitchen this time around (last time we made do with putting food on the window sill and closing the curtains in front of them – it was Winter in Iceland, after all). So we dragged ourselves to the local market to pick up some food (we returned again this afternoon, as our shopping choices after 12 hours of packing and traveling were rather random), passing by our favorite church.

After a dinner of flatbread sandwiches we decided that we really ought to get to bed, despite the sun being still well up in the sky at after 10 p.m. We didn’t realize until this morning that we can hear the chimes of Hallgrímskirkja from our apartment (this, also, after D. had to pull up the blinds at 4 a.m. to verify that, yes, the sun was indeed well up in the sky, and after the travel alarm-clock went off at 6 a.m. as it had apparently been accidentally switched on during the transition). With that lovely realization (at the decent hour of 9 a.m.) we wandered off to have breakfast at the Loki Cafe. We arrived before the owner got there, and enjoyed a quiet conversation with the guy at the counter (he’s just finished high school in Spain, and will be off to college in Denmark next year) before breakfasting on some truly delicious Icelandic morning fare: T. had pancakes with cream and caramel plus a boiled egg, D. had a boiled egg sandwich on freshly-baked rye bread.

After breakfast we went for a wander around Reykjavik. We’re surprised that so much has changed in just a year and a half since we were last here, but the graffiti art still persists, with something incredibly odd painted on just about every opportune side-of-building. The graffiti is one of those aspects of Reykjavik we particularly enjoy, and quite possibly shouldn’t be called graffiti, but more … “free mural art” or something.

Some of the art projects are difficult to understand (“what’s up with the guy looking blissed-out with a sitar?”), as are some of the food items (“salty licorice chewing gum? really? let’s try some!”). T. refused to try any salty licorice flavored chewing gum, but D. couldn’t resist and pronounces it “mostly all right, after the initial saltiness wears off.”

Tomorrow we’ll be off to the Blue Lagoon, to boil ourselves in volcano water for as many hours as we can stand it. Hopefully we’ll get some better pictures of the place, as there’s nothing which can really convey the sheer scope of the place. As it won’t be sub-freezing and snowing tomorrow, we do stand a pretty good chance of getting some decent shots.

We have no plans yet for Friday, although D. wants to take the elevator up Hallgrímskirkja for some panoramic views of Reykjavik, so that’s likely on the agenda for Friday. Then we’ll be returning to Keflavik Airport by bus, to brave another bit of extreme travel: over the North Pole when we’re so close to Solstice, to stop in Seattle for clearing customs, then on to San Francisco.

We’re enjoying Reykjavik, and trying to get in some good photography, but we’ve both realized why we didn’t last time: Iceland is such a relaxing and relaxed place that it’s difficult to get up the desire to push, to see, to do. Everyone seems happy to stop for a long conversation, and life seems quite a bit slower here than even Scotland seemed. So, while there will certainly be photographs, they’ll only serve to tease you with this place, and you’ll have to visit yourselves to see what it’s like.

-D & T