Reykjanes Peninsula

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I did a full-day tour today of the Reykjavnes Peninsula (area west of Reykjavik) and absolutely loved it - as per usual by Icelandic standards. I swear, I could come here every year and not get bored.

I was on the tour with 10 seniors from Britain haha - such a cozy group. They pretty much adopted me as their own for the day which was fun. Our tour guide, Thorsi (that is so spelled wrong…) was hilarious, yet very informative. I love the tours here b/c they don’t just point out the obvious things - there’s always a story, a fun tidbit or what not.

I think his best story was about how friendly Icelanders are, but to be weary of those who think they speak better English than they really do. (Apparently) a Japanese couple had car trouble one day, and some road workers came to lend them a hand. Unfortunately, in trying to say that they were working (starv) and that they had a rope to pull them out (eata) they actually said that they were starving - that they were going to rape them and eat them.

OH NO - Cannibal Icelanders!! Omg, we laughed so hard in the bus hahaha. See people, the dangers of assuming a word in one language is the same in another! Yeah, I’m talking to all of you that add an e with an accent to make any word French lol.

Anyway! We visited some hot pockets/springs (ah, so warm yet so sulphur -y) which make a fantastic gloop noise. The colours are great too - all sorts of yellow, orange and brown. We encountered a worse smell though - we visited a cod-drying hut. Row, upon row of cod-skins and cod-heads - not the prettiest thing to look at either I must say… and oh my, the smell…

Thankfully the next stops were prettier - despite the fog which rolled in. We stopped by a bird nesting area to watch some Artic Terns (from quite afar), and then headed towards a lighthouse and walked down in to a valley which brought us out to a cliff overlooking the Atlantic ocean. Ah, I love the noise of waves crashing up against the rocks. Again, as per Icelandic standards, not a single caution rope/barrier/nothing - I honestly don’t know how more people don’t fall into, or over, things here haha.

We then drove past the geothermal plants, and we heard stories about the “Hidden People” (aka, elves). I love that it’s such a deep part of their culture haha. I find it hard to believe that 70% of the populations really believes in them… but it’s cute.

We stopped in Grindavik for the Cod Museum (… no comment) and to grab a bite to eat before continuing on to the Shark Hut. Ahaha, another smelly adventure! Inside the hut was a single piece of fermented (cured) shark hanging from the roof. Thorsi asked if anyone wanted to try a piece - we joked that it was too much effort since it hadn’t been cut. Always prepared, Thorsi took out a little freezer with a jar of cured shark cubes… sigh. One of the Brits was game, so I agreed to do it too…

Oh my… the smell when he opened the jar haha. Ammonia x1000000. Mmm, rotten shark.

It actually wasn’t as bad as everyone says it is… it’s just chewy with a strange (and powerful) after taste. The worst part really is the smell - but we let our pieces “air out” before eating them so we wouldn’t gag. Thorsi then gave us a shot of Brennivin (aka “Black Death”) to wash it down… that’s quite the liquour they have.

Following the shark adventure, we drove to the bridge across two continents - Iceland sits on the American and European tectonic plates, so in theory, this bridge is where the two meet. It’s symbolic more than anything else. The Brits teased me asking how it felt to be home lol. We also stopped at a Viking Museum just outside Keflavik which was cool - there was a replica Viking ship and a lot of historical tidbits all around.

Last stop was the Blue Lagoon which is *THE* tourist thing to do in Iceland. Normally I’m a skeptic b/c I always find *THE* thing to be overrated and overpriced… which is why I hadn’t done it last time I was here. This time, however, it was part of the tour - and boy was I wrong. The 90min I spent in the pool was the most relaxing 90min of the past, like, decade haha. The water is nice and toasty, kinda of milky (in a non-gross way) and there’s tons of steam. Didn’t hurt that I enjoyed a beer in the water as well.

Back in Reykjavik, I gave in to another big thing here, a pylsur - more commonly known as… a hot dog. I swear it’s a culture here - they have hot dog “stands” (more like actual stores) EVERYWHERE. They put all sorts of unknown things on it as well… but it was good. (Side note - upon further investigation the mystery things were: remoulade, ketchup, Icelandic mustard, chopped raw onions, and fried onions.)

I just got back from Bonus (cheap grocery story) - I’ve loaded up on snacks for Scandinavia before the prices sky rocket as compared to here. Another side note, I love that their milk cartons are called “Muu”

I don’t want to leave Iceland… not yet at least... the past two days flew by.

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Photos

Dried cod-skins
Ah, the smell.

Hot springs
Glooping.

Bridge between Two Continents
Symbolically where the two tectonic plates meet

Viking + Troll
The Viking is protecting the museum, the troll (the statue on the rocks in the back) is protecting the harbour.

Powerplant
Right near the Blue Lagoon, its water looks like the exact same.

Viking Ship in Reykjavik
On the harbour front

The Lonely Man
The best statue in Reykjavik haha.

Milk
Really does go muu here

Comments

[Irene]

That's my girl!
Mmmmm, shark! Once you've tasted crickets, there's no stopping you! Sounds like a fabulous place and I can so picture you in the Blue Lagoon, relaxing....finally! You deserve it. Enjoy.

[jewel89]

Thanks Mom! It only took me, what, two years? Haha. And I'm so fearless - yummm. Actually, if we're going to talk weird food, those cheese flavoured meal worms were the weirdest things I've ever had.

[Lulu]

=)
So happy you had a good time! BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA THE LONELY STATUE DUDE! That's totally my sad stance. =D Also- Muu. Hilarious. Please give me time to save up for Iceland, but I definitely wanna go with you. =) Please continue to chill out and have a great time. Love you.

[Elvira]

Dried fish
Julie I've tried Vietnamese dried fish (not sure what the type was) and didn't like it; just as you mentioned the smell was very ammonia-like. The taste very salty. I politely declined after I had a piece as the hosts at that time suggested I'd have more. Do you remember our friend Vidar from Norway? We tried to serve him fish when he was staying in Ottawa and he would shake his head and tell us that he was near traumatized having had to eat too much fish when he was younger! Great stories!

[jewel89]

It's totally dejection in that statue haha - I remember seeing it last time and literally lol'ing, so I had to go back for another chuckle. Love you too - thanks, you know I will!

[jewel89]

I don't think I could have taken another piece of shark either if it were offered - I feel your pain haha. I remember Vidar - didn't know he was from Norway though, cool!