6 Sep 2014 – Reykjavik/edited 9 Oct
According to legend, Reykjavík/REK, the capital was home to Iceland’s 1st settlers, the Norse Viking who arrived in 874AD. Today almost 3 out of 4 Icelanders live in REK. Iceland’s pop of 325,671 and an area of 103,000 km², making it the most sparsely populated country in Europe.
Tue: from Keflavik Airport/KEF to REK – app 50km/30mins on the bus with no built-up area.
Hotel Leifur Eiríksson is set in an old respectable house right in the center of REK where we are staying. Across the street from the hotel is the magnificent Hallgrímskirkja, the most famous landmark of REK.
The church is also used as an observation tower. One can take a lift up to the viewing deck and view REK and the surrounding mountains.
REK is the largest city of Iceland with its latitude at 64°08′ N, makes it the world’s northernmost capital of a sovereign state. With an urban area population of around 200,000, it is the home of the vast majority of Iceland’s inhabitants. It is the center of culture and life of the Icelandic people as well as being one of the focal points of tourism in Iceland.
Dinner at Sjávargrillið**** a variety of fresh fish deliciously presented.
Wed: morning walk to the museum and around town.
App half hour drive from Reykjavík lies the dormant Thrihnukagigur Volcano that erupted 4,000yrs ago and the only volcano on earth that can be explored on the inside. After app 50mins walk to the crater (this is where my shoes gave out on me!), we were lowered 120meters/400′ in a cage into this volcano with all kinds of colours inside.
This tour*****was just one of a kind with professional cheerful well-trained guides and staff who put my shoe together. Highly recommended, even thought it was quite expensive – EUR260=S$425
Another delicious dinner at Fish Company****
The fact that a cloud from a minor volcanic eruption in Iceland—a small disturbance in the complex mechanism of life on the Earth—can bring to a standstill the aerial traffic over an entire continent is a reminder of how, with all its power to transform nature, humankind remains just another species on the planet Earth ― Slavoj Žižek