Reykjavik, Iceland

We were up very early this morning to get to the Glasgow airport for our flight to Iceland. We weren't sure how long the drive would take us since it was rush hour, but thankfully we breezed right along and had no problem with returning the car or getting checked into our flight. We actually sat for an hour and a half at the gate. Two interesting things about the flight: there was a blind man with a seeing eye dog on the flight. I've never seen a dog on board a plane before. He was a big yellow lab and just so attentive to his master. There was also another yellow lab in a crate who went into the hold. I felt bad for him because it was raining and he sat out there in the cold waiting to be loaded. Poor puppy! I thought about you, Helga....you would have been really upset!

We were surprised to find it sunny when we arrived in Reykjavik! We had seen rain for every day of our trip here but today is gorgeous, although a bit cool. We checked into our hotel, the Radisson SAS right in the heart of the city, and are really happy with our room. It has a rather Scandinavian feel to it....hardwood floor, IKEA-like furniture, and a very contemporary feel to it. Our bathroom is all black and white and is two steps down from the bedroom. We're going to have to be careful in the middle of the night!

Once we got organized, we took a brisk walk up hill to the Hallsgrimskirkja, the national cathedral here in Iceland. It is the most beautiful structure, very modern, and simplistic, but absolutely amazing. I could just imagine a bride walking down the aisle in this church! The colors were reminiscent of the ocean. We took the elevator part way up to the steeple then climbed the rest of the way. When we got to the top, the views were breathtaking. I'll post all four directions below. Hubby and I were the only ones up there which felt odd, but nice. While we were there the carillon struck the half hour.....was it loud!!! I took photos of the cathedral's history, and some of you might be surprised to know that 90% of the Icelandic population is Lutheran. And the country is unique in that it has been Christian ever since it was first settled.

These are the views from the top of the steeple. The colors of the homes and their roofs are really striking:

The altar was really beautiful with fresh flowers adorning it:

The baptismal font was the most amazing piece of art. The top, which holds the water, seems like it's made of water itself:

And the organ....wow! This is for Patrick who would definitely love to have this organ! It has 5275 pipes!!! And the console is movable around the sanctuary:

Here are photos of the history of the church.....really rather interesting. You will have to click on the photos to make them larger so they can be read:

After we left the cathedral, we walked around the Tjornin, a lake in the heart of the city. We saw the city hall, a very modern building whose columns come down into the water. Then we walked to Austurvollur Square, a small park surrounded by many great buildings including the Parliament and an old Lutheran Church. You can see our shadows in the last photo.

We finally decided it was time to try Icelandic cuisine and we were very happy with our choice. We picked a quiet little restaurant (probably quiet because it was only 5:30 and here dinner is eaten much later!). Jim had a chicken dish, with potato and vegetables that had such a beautiful presentation. I had a pasta dish with six large spinach and cheese tortellini, with Icelandic lobster, in a cheese sauce with more spinach and mushrooms. It was phenomenal! We each had a glass of the house wine (at $12 a piece!). Food here is very, very expensive and with the cost of living so high, almost everyone here works and most people are over-extended on their credit. Some can't pay their mortgages. It's a sad situation. There is a 7% tax on food, and a 24% tax on alcohol! I won't even tell you what dinner cost, but at least it was wonderful, and hey, we're on vacation!! Here is a photo of the street our restaurant was on. I loved the lights that looked like tulips.

Tomorrow we head north to Budir which is "at the end of the habitable world" according to the hotel website. We'll be a captive audience there as there's nothing else there! Tomorrow is supposed to pour rain unfortunately, so we may not be able to hike to the tall waterfall as we had planned. We'll have to hope for the best. Tomorrow's photos should be very different. The landscape here looks like the moon, all volcanic and black with lava. The cracks in the earth are just amazing.

The Internet service here is just great and the upload speeds are the fastest we've seen, so I've picture-ized yesterday's blog. If you read it yesterday, go back and see the photos.

I can't believe we're really in Iceland. I said to Hubby over dinner that I would never have dreamed this would be a place we would visit. But it is really beautiful here (I'm running out of adjectives!) and I think once we get out into the countryside we're going to be in awe of the scenery.