Reykjavic day 1

Arctic Terns

Well, this is quite the challenge. it’s supposed to be easy to log into accounts from anywhere and I even have a program that will save my passwords for me. Nevertheless, I seem to be consistently able to do something that the computer gods don’t like. Here I am in Rekjavik at an ungodly hour of the morning because my eyes sprang open and I couldn’t go back to sleep. Ah the joys of international travel. I’m glad to be here though, in this little apartment near the centre of town. It’s a very pleasant place, kitchen, living room, bedroom and bath with a small hallway. It gives us enough room to spread out and we’re very good at that. When we were cycling we could reduce a motel room to a shambles within five minutes of arriving.

One of the nice surprises of this place is that there are 3 power adapters here. We brought 2 and with all the electronic stuff we carry, the other 3 are a great bonus. There is no consistency in them so I suspect that previous visitors have left them unintentionally. There are three opened bags of coffee. R says one is stale and he tossed it last night. There are tea bags and coffee whitener. R ventured forth last night and bought coffee and milk so we are set for the mornings.

We landed yesterday at around 7 in the morning local time or about midnight our time. Neither of us got much sleep on the plane. It wasn’t dark until we came down into the clouds to land. I was looking out the window, expecting to see something through the fog and by the time we were flying over cars on the roadway I could almost see the drivers’ faces. We retrieved our luggage and bought bus tickets then got on the bus for the ride from Keflavik where the main airport is located to Reyjkvik, about 40 km. We put our luggage in a locker at the bus station and proceded to play ‘how can we stay awake until 3:00 pm when we can get into the apartment?’

By the time we got into town the rain had stopped and we followed some other bleary-eyed tourists to the Paris Cafe where we had a lovely but expensive breakfast. I had no idea where we were going and got completely turned around in our wanderings. Good thing R has a good sense of direction and a GPS on his phone. It took us all of about 2 minutes to decide to pay the $12 per day roaming charge on the phones. After all, what’s the point of having technology if it doesn’t make your life easier? Besides, we’re on holiday and this is not the time to ‘swallow the cow and choke on the tail’ as my mother was fond of saying. I have no idea where she got that and I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone else say it.

We poked our noses into several shops. They have beautiful wool sweaters and I’d love to get one but I know it would be too warm for me to wear at home and too bulky to carry on trips like this, so I’ll content myself with admiring them. R saw some wool hats that look a bit like Viking helmets and they have braided ties to keep them on. We didn’t find one that was good for him colour-wise and he really wants one with braids. We will keep looking.

We debated whether we should watch an hour of films at The Volcano Centre or whether that would be too much of temptation to sleep. We decided to chance it and every time I thought I’d just give my eyes a rest, R nudged me. I wasn't sure whether to appreciate him for being so conscientious about the rules of the ‘stay awake’ game or irritated because I wasn't sleeping: I was just resting my eyes.

So with a bit more wandering we made it to noon. With a substantial breakfast in our stomachs killing time by having lunch didn’t make much sense. We checked out the harbour, walked past the whale-watching kiosks, had a look at the survival suits one of the whale-watching companies had on display, found the library, city hall, and visited one of the tourist information places. There were brochures on all sorts of tours plus a map of hiking routes and another one of bicycling routes in Iceland. I thought the cycling sounded like fun for about a millisecond until I remembered the forecast for rain, rain and more rain for the next few days.

If lunch wasn’t an option, tea was a necessity. R had two cappuccinos with breakfast but I only had one cup of tea. We went into another little cafe that overlooked the harbour and I got my cuppa. The prices there were better than at the Paris Cafe.

We debated as to whether to walk to the bus station and then get a cab to the suite or to haul our suitcases. In the end the clouds cleared and the sun came out. The temperature was perfect ‘sweater weather’ so we decided to take advantage of the weather and walk, dragging our wheely bags behind us. I’ll take this opportunity to confirm that I’m crazy because I love summer temperatures that require a fleece, a waterproof-breathable jacket and, for folks with less hair than I have, a toque.

There were still a couple of hours to go until check-in and I wasn’t sure I could stay awake but as we walked towards the bus station we stopped to watch a number of birds on a small lake. There were geese, ducks and best of all, Arctic terns. I was absolutely fascinated by the terns. They could hover like a helicopter, plummet into the water and come up with a fish. We sat down on one of the benches and watched. There was a lot of tern activity on a small island at the end of the lake so we relocated to a bench there. Tired as I was, I made the effort to haul my camera and telephoto lens out of the bottom of my backpack. Suddenly, as I watched the terns swoop and dive,I wasn’t tired anymore. I didn’t actually see any eggs or young ones but birds certainly were sitting on the ground all over the little island and the air was filled with their calls. No award-winning shots but I had a wonderful time. Every time I take photos of birds my admiration for stunning photos of birds goes up a few notches. Difficult enough to get photos of Arctic terns which are reasonably sized bird, much more difficult to get photos of sparrows and song birds that hide in bush and zip among the branches.

Three o’clock came and we got into our digs. We slept for a couple of hours and then went out for fish and chips. The place we chose to eat is just around the corner from where we are staying and the shades on the lights above the bar are a couple of fish skins, minus the heads. I’ve certainly never seen anything like that and, to be honest, I found them kind of creepy. The meal was good, the cod so fresh it flaked at the slightest touch of a fork. On the tables were spray bottles with cider vinegar in them. After exchanging ours for one from another table, R and I gave up on spraying the vinegar on our food, opened the bottle and poured it. It seemed impossible to get enough vinegar on the fish and chips to even taste it otherwise. By supper time it was raining again and while R went in search of coffee and milk, I sorted through some of my photos. I packed it in when I could no longer see straight.

I’ve now had two cups of tea. The apartment is quiet except for the occasional conversation among the geese outside. I’m not sure what we’ll end up doing today and it’s wonderful not to have an agenda or a ‘to do’ list. If we run true to form, I’ll want a nap just about the time R gets up. We have a tour booked for tomorrow but today is completely open. I can hardly remember the last time we had a day like that. it’s a real treat but the highlight so far has been the Arctic terns. Any pursuit that requires my entire concentration and makes the passage of time inconsequential is a true gift.

Will I be able to get photos of the headless-fish lights in the fish and chips shop? I’ll certainly try. I doubt that will go down as a highlight of the trip but it’s so unusual that I want to share. Stay tuned.