Finally, we arrived at Friday, September 6th, our second “free” day in Reykjavik. Originally, we were going to fly home on that day, but when I started researching flights, I realized it was a lot more expensive to fly home on Friday than Saturday. So Bill had Iceland Luxury Tours to add a day to our itinerary, and we planned Friday as a day to go souvenir shopping and rest up a bit.
In retrospect, it wasn’t a bad idea to schedule a day to relax, even though I was already getting a bit antsy to go home. I missed Charlie and Noyzi and clean laundry, and I was itching to write and make videos. I don’t know why… It’s not as if people are that interested in these blog posts. I do take pleasure in writing them, though, and I have so many beautiful photos that I was dying to edit and arrange.
We tried to make good use of our last full day in Reykjavik, starting with breakfast in the Saga Hotel. It was just as noisy and crowded as ever. 😉
After breakfast, we took a walk back toward Lake Tjörnin, a small lake right next to the Saga Hotel, at the entrance of downtown Reykjavik. We spent a few minutes there watching the ducks. The lake isn’t super exciting, but I do like to watch water fowl.
Next we walked back to the Hallgrímskirkja, Iceland’s largest church, which looms over the city. When we were there a week prior, the nave was closed to the public. I was hoping to go inside and get some photos and, perhaps, take the elevator up the church tower and get some photos. We were successful in that endeavor. In fact, we were able to sit in the sanctuary for a short time and listen to the organist play. That was a treat for me. I liked that the benches were turned toward the organist and the instrument itself. They were movable, so I guess when they need more seating for actual church services, they can turn them around. I was glad we went back to the church so I could get photos of the organ.
I was especially happy that the church tower has an elevator, which makes sense, since the church dates from 1986. Most of the churches in Europe that allow people to climb towers involve going up lots of steps. I know it’s good for me to climb steps, but the older and fatter I get, the harder it is. You can climb a few flights at the church in Iceland, but it’s only a few, and not in a tight place. And yes, we did go up the flights of stairs to get the best possible views. I often suffer for this blog, you know…
Going up the tower does involve a small fee, which you pay in the church’s gift shop before taking the elevator up. It appeared to me that the tickets were on your honor. There was no one there checking them. Below are some shots from our walk, an the church and its tower…
By the time we finished visiting the church, it was about time for lunch. We headed down the main thoroughfare by the church and walked until my nose picked up the smell of something appetizing. A small restaurant called Salka Valka was putting off the pleasant aromas, so we went inside for lunch. When we arrived, the place was almost full, so we sat next to a an older woman who was sitting alone, reading a book. While we were deciding on lunch, she offered an unsolicited opinion, saying that all of the fish dishes at the restaurant were “amazing.”
For once, I didn’t mind that someone offered an opinion I never asked for, because I was having trouble deciding what I wanted. I settled on the fish soup, which was rich and satisfying, with a chickpea base and a delightful zing. It came with a slice of fresh sourdough bread, slathered in butter. Bill went for the catch of the day, which was probably cod again. I don’t remember! Anyway, the food was excellent and healthy, and the music was great. The lady sitting next to us had a very nice looking chocolate cake for dessert. I was tempted by it, but decided my gut didn’t need any enlarging.
After lunch, we walked a little bit further down the street and found one of the many souvenir shops in Reykjavik. We stopped in and bought some gifts for Bill’s grandchildren, as well as a mug and a magnet (or two) for us. I saw a few things I liked, but decided I didn’t want to carry anything more in my bag. The new rain jacket and hiking boots were already taking up precious space in my bags. The book I saw that tempted me could probably be found somewhere online. Now I wish I’d bought it, of course…
On our way back to the hotel, we passed through an area we hadn’t yet explored. I looked up and noticed a cafe that had a strange looking “airlock” set up at its door. It turned out to be a “cat cafe” called Kattakaffihúsið, where people can enjoy or even adopt the resident cats. It was really cool! I would have gone in, but Bill is very allergic to cats. I’m sure my mother-in-law would love that place!
We decided to go back to the hotel for a short while to work on packing everything, since we had an early wake up call for our ride to the airport on Saturday morning. So we spent time doing that, and wondered if we wanted to venture out again for dinner, later. The weather was looking pretty grim. As it turned out, we did go out for dinner, at a place called Duck & Rose. I had duck two ways, and Bill had more fish! It was a good place to people watch. At one point, a goth looking couple walked by. The guy half was wearing a weird looking mask that covered his whole face. His woman was dressed in straight up goth ware.
I think it was pretty safe to say that we were both pretty much ready to call our vacation done by the time we had dinner. It was time to go home and get back to normal living. But we really had a good time in Iceland… and before we said goodnight to the city of Reykjavik for the last time, we stopped by the store and picked up some Icelandic candies for Bill’s grandchildren. I’m sure at least some of it has liquorice in it.
Now… there will be one last post in this series… an exciting description of our flight back to Germany. I hope you’ll join me for that! Then, it’ll be time for my much anticipated “ten things I learned post…” which no one ever wants to miss. Bwahahahahahaha!
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