Reykjavik, Iceland
March 15-19, 2024

Seeing the aurora borealis has always been on my bucket list, and for some reason I got it in my head that around the spring equinox would give me the best chance, and that 2024 is supposed to be a "solar maximum", so I booked a trip to Iceland. As this was my only real reason to go, I didn't plan for anything else, since I might spend a couple of late nights going aurora hunting.

Things did not go to plan; even that minimalist of plans... but it all worked out anyway.

On the first day, getting off the red-eye, I checked in at my hotel (Center Hotels Þingholt). It was a nice hotel in the center of town, but my room was not ready yet, so I walked down the to marina to see if I could catch a whale watching tour. Luckily I unpacked and changed into some cold-weather gear at the hotel (always strange to change clothes in a "public" bathroom), because it was freezing and windy out on the boat's deck. We spent a lot of time not finding anything but then we spotted a resident whale, Frodo, and that was neat. I spent the rest of the day just wandering around Reykjavik near the harbor, just trying not to fall asleep from the timezone change. I can't even remember what I did or had to eat. (I think it was fish-and-chips from 101 Reykjavik Street Food, which was nothing special.)

This was the first night for me going aurora hunting, so I had no plans for the day, so more exploring Reykjavik! I started off with a mind-blowing cinnamon bun from Braud & Co, and then started wandering. I passed by FlyOver Iceland (4D ride) so gave that a shot, it was fun. For dinner I went to Messinn where the food was great. I also ran into the walking food tour. This would happen a couple other times, so obviously I was hitting the right places!

That afternoon, as I was anticipating the aurora tour, the tour company called to let me know it was canceled due to weather. The weather was a basically going to be cloudy/rainy/snowy for my entire trip, so I was not surprised, but I was a little disappointed. I was hoping maybe the weather outside the city would give me a shot, but basically this torpedoed any hope of seeing the aurora. So Nature: 1, Dane: 0. I hopped online to see if I could book a tour for the next day. I might as well do the super-touristy things: the Golden Circle and Blue Lagoon. (With my track record of natural disasters, the Blue Lagoon will be destroyed by the volcano in the next year...)

That night I could not fall asleep, which was going to make a day-long tour exhausting. Plus there was kind of a racket out... Reykjavik is chock full of bars and bistros. It seems like a real party city, and I bet it's chaos during the summer. So I figured, it was a Saturday night, people were cutting loose. The next day I woke up (I got some sleep), and waited in the freezing cold for my tour. Note to self: cheap long underwear from Fruit of the Loom did just as good a job, or even better than the high-tech thermal base layer I bought. When we got on, I was told the Blue Lagoon portion of the tour was canceled because the volcano started erupting again! Holy cow, so that was the noise last night. One other other tour-goers showed me pictures he got from his hotel of the night sky lit up red from the volcano! I couldn't even have seen that without going out somewhere cause my hotel room was actually a half-a-floor below street level. Bummer. Nature: 2, Dane: 0.

The tour was okay. A lot of people at each site. I cannot even imagine the crowds during the summer. I think the highlight was Gullfoss. That is a gorgeous waterfall. I got back to the hotel tired, and slightly bummed out that I've now struck out twice on this trip. Don't get me wrong, I was still having a great time. It's a fun city to explore and while the food is expensive, it's also been really good! Being a foodie, I can't ask for much more than that. I decided to splurge for dinner and went to Sjavargrillid. Holy cow that was one of the best meals I've had in a long time! Now, I had to figure out what to do on my last day...

In the morning, I jokingly asked the hotel staff if they knew of any drivers who would be willing to go out the eruption site, but they didn't... and then it struck me: Reykjavik has a lot of helicopter tours. So with that seed of a plan, I fired off some emails (nothing was open yet), and decided to head over to Perlan (the natural history museum). If I couldn't see the aurora, I might as well go to an aurora-show at the planetarium and see their ice cave. While exploring the exhibits after the ice cave, I got an email from Nordurflug Helicopter tours: would I be available for 2PM? Hell yes! I skipped the rest of the museum, grabbed a taxi, and headed back to Reykjavik. I had the taxi drop me off at Baejarins Beztu Pylsur, famous hot-dog place, grabbed a quick lunch (way less crowded on a Monday) and headed back to my hotel.

While killing time at the hotel I got a call from Nordurflug. Sorry the tour was canceled due to weather. Nature: 3, Dane: 0. (sigh) I kinda wished I hadn't have raced out of Perlan: while I saw the show/ice cave, I skipped about half the museum proper. Oh well, back to explore and drown my disappointment with more awesome food. I still had yet to have any of the traditional meat/lamb soup or go to the cafe I bookmarked. Delicious stew, good beer, Icelandic whiskey, coffee, and pastries go a lot way to making a happy Dane. Later, Nordurflug contacted me again: The weather might clear up, would I be interested in 6:30PM? Hell yes (again)!

There were no last-minute cancellations this time and I unexpectedly got to check a different item off my bucket list: seeing lava. I've also always wanted to ride a helicopter, so two birds with one stone. The flight was amazing. You really got to see how much area (and depth) the lava covered. And I was right: no amount of pictures or videos is the same as seeing it first hand. There is something about the color and glow of the lava that just doesn't translate. You could not wipe the stupid grin off my face for the rest of the day. I finally had my win for the trip and it was incredible. I really got to see Iceland: land of fire and ice.

Land of Fire and Ice (4K)

Land of Fire and Ice (4K)

 Iceland Eruption Fly-Over Short

Iceland Eruption Fly-Over Short

 Whale Watching

Whale Watching

 Geysir Geothermal Area

Geysir Geothermal Area

 Great Geysir

Great Geysir

 Gullfoss

Gullfoss

 Quiet Snowy Morning

Quiet Snowy Morning

 Quiet Snowy Morning 2

Quiet Snowy Morning 2
Boston, I am in you I kinda wanted to go to Wahlburgers, but ate at Davio's instead. No regrets: the braised short rib was excellent! My hotel was right near the Rainbow Road Oh wow, the cinnamon rolls at Braud & Co. are awesome! Sun Voyager... unfortunately the sun was not out for most of my trip. Hallgrimskirkja and the statue of Leifur Eiriksson Harpa concert hall. The glasswork is meant to look like the hexagonal basalt formations Weather cleared just a bit to give me a rainbow Baejarins Beztu Pylsur - The famous hot dog stand in Reykjavik. I would eat there later... But today was a quick burger in a local 'food hall', Posthus, which are way cooler than the name implies. Yummy burger at Yuzu! Founder statue Messinn - The Atlantic wolffish with mushrooms, potatoes, and grapes in a mild paprika and wine sauce was very good. Skal! Thingvellir National Park Geysir geothermal area Gullfoss - Gold Falls. The falls were very impressive, but it was super windy and cold that day! Fridheima - A very cool farm with (tomato) greenhouses. There are tables within the greenhouse where you can have a meal. It was very posh and cool looking. Vinstofa Fridheima. A very cool looking wine bar. I bet the view here during summer is amazing. Kerid Crater - The scale of the crater is very fun to see. I bet when the lake isn't frozen it looked spectacular. Gatcha in Iceland?! I really wanted a Donut Friend, but had no Krona Sjavargrillid - Start of one of the best meals I've had in a LONG time... I ordered the tasting menu. Started with slow cooked cod with artichoke, pearl onions, and dill. Paired with Weingut Alphart Neuburger Ried Hausberg 2023. This was tender and buttery, and totally delicious. I went off the beaten path and asked to NOT have the tuna tartar, but instead got the mushrooms & broth. They paired it with a Loosen Bros. Dry Riesling 2022. I was so very happy I did. It was a mix of deep fried, fried, and steamed mushrooms with a spoonful of intense mushroom and beet broth (and the crunchy fried soy beans added great texture). It was savory, intense, and utterly incredible. I think a slighly spicer wine, like a Gewurztraminer, would have been a better pairing. The main course was a lamb sirloin and neck with potato, kale, and rhubarb. Paired with a Glen Carlou Grand Classique Red Blend 2021. The lamb was cooked to perfection and the sauce complimented it perfectly. Although from my personal preference: a little less fatty a cut would have been better, but it was still amazing. I also would have preferred a slightly more acidic red to cut through the richness. I actually ordered a glass of malbec, which really was perfect for me. And the final course, a salted caramel mousse, topped with a quenelle of raspberry sorbet. Served with 64 Reykjavik Rabarbara Rhubarb Liqueur. The creamy mousse mixed with the tart sorbet was a fantastic way to end a meal. Finishing it off with a nice macchiato. Superb! Lots of street art murals. All very Nordic... some with odd Cthulhu-esque vibes. Makes me a little worried about these Reykjavikians. Ice caverns in Perlan Museum Baejarins Beztu Pylsur - It was a nice hot dog, but still just a hot dog. Also probably the cheapest meal I ate. Food is EXPENSIVE in this town. The meat soup at Islenski barinn. It was super tasty and the spice blend was not at all what I was expecting. I'll have to look up a recipe! Mokka Kaffi - Art and Coffee since 1958. A swiss mokka and a kleina, a nice way to take an afternoon break. Iceland is a small country, so they can't dedicate a whole 5 Guys to their burgers... 2 will have to do Ready for take off! The happiest of campers Last proper meal at Mat Bar. More like tapas really. Ling, ponzu, capers, and lobsterfoam. I wasn't sure what to expect from 'burrata and anchovies'... literally a ball of cheese with some anchovy fillets House made limoncello. Skal! A quiet, snowy street heading to the bus stop at 5AM. Takk fyrir Iceland! Breakfast at Elda in the airport... I was hoping to see Takamimi-sama At JFK on the way home...