Just a Little Icelandic Detour

 

So. It has happened.  My flight took off 2 nights ago at 8:40 pm from Dulles Airport. Right now I am sitting in a “Te and Kaffi” shop called Stofan in Reykjavik, Iceland.  Perhaps I forgot to mention in my earlier posts, that I decided to take a two-day solo journey to Iceland on my way to France.  Hey why not start this whole thing off with a bang, right?   Icelandair is a relatively cheap way to get to Europe and they make it easy for you to stop in Iceland for a few days, which I am now very glad I decided to do!

What I have to say about Iceland is this: Whoa!  What an efficient country! Iceland rivals Switzerland with its pure ease of living.  There is a bus that takes all passengers from the airport directly to their hotels. My check-in time wasn’t until 3pm, but when I asked my hotel, the City Center Hotel,  if I could store my bags until check-in time, they kindly responded that I could check in immediately.  (at 7 am!)

Reykjavik at first seemed like a little toy city to me, with shops where you can buy hand-knitted wool hats and earrings made from volcanic ash.  The restaurants are big on whale, puffin, and pickled shark.  I just strolling around taking in the smiling people, crime-free streets, and charming little buildings, until I first saw Hallgrimskirkja from the end of a long, uphill street.  My friend Altaire sent me some info about this humongous Lutheran church right before my trip, so I knew it existed, but still wasn’t prepared for what I like to call the “Lord of the Rings Effect.”   This church looks like Gandalf’s stomping ground!  As I was walking around Reykjavik at 8 am, (3 am for my body!) I was deliriously noting all the cuteness of the city, when all of a sudden I see this giant, hulking Lord-of-the-Rings-like church right there in front of me!   I felt an immediate compulsion to walk toward the towering edifice, touch the stone, go inside, and sit in a pew. The organist was practicing some very Icelandic-sounding hymn, or should I say elfin-sounding? (no, that's probably too much..)   I took the elevator to the top of the tower and had an amazing view of the entire city and the surrounding country! (photos coming soon!)  

Ok, then I felt awake. 

After my trip to the top of  Hallgrímskirkja,  I took a (very efficient and timely) bus to The Blue Lagoon.  Believe it or not, this place is actually cooler than it looks on the website.  I felt like I was at some kind of bizarre volcano theme park.  It was forty degrees outside and we were surrounded by volcanic ash, but my Bulgarian bus mates and I were swimming and relaxing in the sky-blue hot-tub-like geothermal pool.  People all around me were rubbing mud from the bottom of the pool onto their faces and bodies. (It is supposed to have powerful anti-aging effects because of all the minerals.)  I found out this morning from my bike-tour guide that the Blue Lagoon was actually an industrial accident.  It was first a geothermal energy plant.  They couldn’t use the water from below the volcano because it was too mineral-rich, so they just used the volcanic water to heat the regular water.  Then they just poured the volcanic water back onto the ash, thinking it would seep back under the rocks.  But because of all the minerals, it stayed on top, forming this weird and wonderful pool!  A bunch of Icelandic locals found out about the pool and started swimming there.  Eventually the geothermal company decided to build a fence around the pool and charge an entrance fee.  Go Capitalism!

After relaxing at the Blue Lagoon for a bit, I took the bus back to Reykjavik, went up to my hotel room and passed out asleep for about 4 hours (hey! I didn’t sleep at all the night before….)  When I woke up my stomach was growling and it was 7 pm – time for dinner!

Now let me just make a confession here.  Maybe it’s a function of growing up in a large family, with a house that was more like a pub than a private residence, or maybe it’s just a personality flaw.  But I have always been uncomfortable by myself.  I am in my element when I am surrounded by a lot of people I know, and I usually avoid situations where I might need to, say- eat at a restaurant alone. 

Now my first thought on waking up from my nap with hunger pangs was- ugh I’ll just roll over and go back to sleep until tomorrow (hey! I was exhausted ok?)  But then a little voice said to me: “Ann Marshall, you only have 2 days in Iceland!  You can’t spend one of your evenings sleeping in the hotel!”  So then I thought- I am going to go to the nearby supermarket and grad some bread and deli meat and bring it up to the room, then I’ll go walk around. 

When I walked downstairs, the hotel concierge (who I was now bff’s with after having asked her a ton of questions about the coolest things to do in Reykjavik) said, “Are you going to dinner? I can recommend some good, affordable places near here.”  I decided I’d listen politely to her suggestions, then head to the supermarket anyways.  She told me about places where I could get whale sushi, fresh halibut, sea snails, and cheap but delicious steaks.  Suddenly my mouth was watering. 

Was it time to face my fear of going out to dinner- ALONE?  This year should be about challenging myself, about learning to savor the moments I am alone rather than fear them.  Yes, I decided to do it.  I must have walked around for at least an hour trying to find a restaurant that was not too crowded but not too empty, had good ambiance, reasonable prices, and menu items that appealed to me.  Hey- my first solo meal should be perfect right?  I finally decided on a little bistro called Geysir.  The waitress seated me a table for two, but took away one of the place settings, which made me cringe.  I immediately took out my copy of Scientific American (a magazine I had strategically chosen just before going into the restaurant to make me look semi-intelligent and sophisticated.  Plus!  There was an article in there about multiple universe theories! Cool!)

Once I had a glass of wine in my hand I felt better.  I put down the magazine and started to look around the room.  I noticed a man at the next table eating something that looked amazing, so when my waitress came, I pointed and said, “I want what he has.”  It was halibut with mango and red onions.  Mmmmm.  I don’t know if I have ever savored something so much in my life.  Eating without the distractions of conversation or a book really lets you taste and enjoy your food. After I was finished, I even ordered a coffee and a slice of cake.  I am already scheming about my next solo dining experience.   This time, I'm getting whale! (though not the kind that has been illegally or cruelly hunted...) 

Not to sound bizarre, but I think last night may be a metaphor for what I want this year to be, though I am not going to say what that is just yet. 

Onward to France!