I write this on day 6 approx 10 minutes west of Hofn. I’m not going to lie, exhaustion is starting to creep in and it’s 9:36p. Luckily, I took a 45 min cat-nap in the early evening after having the best lobster in my life. But, I’ll backtrack to where I left off in my previous blog on day 1 back in Reykjavik.
So, I left the Blue Lagoon and plugged my coordinates into my Google Maps (in which cell service has been fantastic for 80 percent of the Ring Road on the entire journey). For those that use turn-by-turn instructions, in the areas you don’t get service, which are all mainly in the eastern desolate areas, you can download offline maps with Google maps and they work perfect. I read this recommendation from Rick Steves and it’s been a total life saver for any areas that might be un-serviceable. The phone notes that you are offline and continues on as you have routed. If you need a video tutorial on how to do this, just click here for your next adventure. All you have to do is select the area in the world you think you might be offline and it will save it for 30 days on your phone: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mk0-PTmoaSU
So, I was on my way to my host Anna’s house in downtown Reykjavik. She was initially extremely communicative and prompt and giving me ideas on bus pickup locations for my Game of Thrones tour the next day. She was also a chemist and had a daughter so I assumed she was educated and responsible. However, my last communication was 3-4 months ago. I tried following up last week seeing if there were any check-in instructions I needed, if a lockbox was supplied, or if she needed a time to meet up. I originally said 3p but was trying to keep it flexible since I didn’t know how long I’d want to stay at the Blue Lagoon. There had been zero response in the last week and zero response a few days leading up the arrival. I was getting extremely worried about the whole reservation and didn’t know what to expect once I got to the address. So, I arrived at the house and it’s a huge white building around the corner from City Hall. I park and there is a ringer for the different levels with the resident’s name on them. I was relieved to see Anna’s name still on on the ringer, as a thought had crept in that she might have moved without telling me. Even the Airbnb info itinerary couldn’t populate, so I had assumed she might have deleted the entire account and moved.
So, a gentleman answers the door and I ask for Anna. He said she had left to go on holiday and asked if I was the Airbnb resident. I said I was. He wasn’t the nicest guy in the world, but he was very short and brought me up the stairs and said this room is yours, the apartment and bathroom are in here across the hall. He gave me the keys and there were 3 of them on there. One for the front door, one for the apartment for the bathroom and one for my tiny room across the hall. To say my room was a closet would be an overstatement. I’ve never slept in such a tiny room in my life. Yes, you see pictures online of Airbnb’s, but you can never tell the exact size. Below is what I was dealing with. I had a tiny sink in my room and a small table and a “bed.”
By the way, if you’ve never ventured outside the USA, make sure you get an electrical outlet converter. This converter I got on Amazon before I left can handle pretty much any country in the world and includes 4 USB ports and 1 main American outlet charger. It’s phenomenal and highly recommend and you can buy it here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0774Q5ZWK/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 This is what you see plugged in to my outlet on the floor. I was able to charge everything at once.
Oh, and make sure you bring good, sturdy, hiking boots to Iceland. I had bought an pair of UGGS, yes the male version, years ago before they were popular with women, and now people find it hilarious and this is what happens when you are ahead of the times apparently. They are the best boots I’ve ever worn on durability and the inside is comfortable. But, they are oversized boots in dealing with the spiked rocks and water. They are perfect for KC winter’s as well.
At this point in the trip, I didn’t care how big the bed, but I needed a bed. With no sleep on the plane, straight to rental car, straight to Blue Lagoon, straight to Airbnb, I needed a nap…so I slept for two hours from 1p-3p, which was really 8a-10a Central Time for me. But, I knew I couldn’t sleep the rest of the day since this was really the only full day I’d get exploring Reykjavik since I’d be on an 8-hour tour the next day and the day after that I would be leaving to explore the rest of the country. So, I forced myself to get up.
I immediately walked towards the direction of City Hall. I wanted to confirm my bus pickup location for the next day and it was on the way to all the restaurants and shops. While walking towards downtown, on the same street as my Airbnb, I came across the most unique cemetery. It was tucked into the neighborhood with walls all around it, but low enough to look over. It was FILLED with trees and tiny gates around some of the tombstones. It was so unique and reminded me, on a smaller scale, of the cemetery I visited in Savannah, GA called St. Bonaventure’s Cemetery that I had read about in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. It had little trails in it and something you’d envision after reading Edgar Allan Poe.
Continuing on, I found City Hall down and around the corner, a left and then a right. Probably an 8 minute walk. I was up for exploring the main downtown street at this point. So, ventured by some coffee shops, souvenir shops (bought a few magnets for the fridge back home as I collect them of all the places I’ve been).
I then see a gathering down at the end of the street. I figured it was a local band playing or some spirit fest of some sort. When I got closer, it was a huge outdoor screen playing the World Cup Final game France vs. Croatia. There were outdoor vendors selling food and drink and it was starting to mist a bit. The temp was about 55, so wasn’t horrible as long as the rain held off. But the diehard soccer fans weren’t going anywhere. There were probably a couple thousand people there filling the middle section and into the side areas. So, I ended up watching the entire second half. The France fans starting chanting their national song and waving their flags. It was an awesome sight to see since soccer isn’t huge back home as football, baseball, basketball and hockey are our primary sports. But to see the pride in a foreign country react to the game was something to see. Iceland had make the World Cup this year, a country of 350k people, and USA didn’t. They were super prideful of this fact and all the souvenir shops had specials that if you bought an Iceland team jersey, you got a scarf free. There were posters all over town and in store windows of the Icelandic players. It was their team. They ended up bowing out when they lost to Nigeria, but they had tied powerhouse Argentina and Messi, one of the world’s greatest players and then lost to eventual finals team Croatia 2-1. They had held their own and the smallest country to ever make it to the World Cup. It was an honor to watch with them.
So, it’s approaching 10:40p in Iceland and I have a huge day of driving 5.5 hours tomorrow, plus stops along the way including Diamond Beach, Selfoss and a couple other waterfalls. Then, I have to find and check into my Airbnb and then meeting up with KC Area Development Council President, Tim Cowden, for a beer. He made the journey over with his family for leisure after taking the inaugural flight in May for business. Good to see more and more KC folks out here. Hopefully this blog makes more people feel more comfortable with the decision to come. It’s a land filled with adventure, originality and nature. Fun for solo travelers like myself or families. There are pieces for every person and tastes as I’ll outline in the different cities and regions. All of them are unique, much like the different lands at DisneyWorld. You beaches, you have mountains, you have glaciers you have deserts, you have rocks and you have countryside. Iceland has it all.
Until the next adventure…..
Michael
Moonlit Wings Reflect the Stars That Guide Me Towards Salvation 