Days of Grey
Nordic Efficiency
A shining example of Nordic efficiency. This award-winning burger joint manages to turn out the best burgers in Reykjavík (allegedly) with 60% less guys than a certain similarly named American counterpart....
Harpa
The Harpa concert hall and conference centre is the star attractions of Reykjavík's redeveloped central waterfront district, and is located just down the street from the world famous Penis Museum.
In 2017, it hosted the World Yo-Yo Contest, where over a thousand contestants from over 30 countries competed for the six champion titles. It was only the second time ever the contest was held in Europe.
The Land of Fire, Ice & Sheep
Gotta love a good portmanteau….
Tastes like chicken
Saw very few customised registration plates in Reykjavík, but this was one of them....
NB: It's probably just a coincidence, but the Škoda Octavia is based on its parent company's Volkswagen Golf, which prior to 1984 was known as the Volkswagen Rabbit, at least in North America.
Price of Eggs in Iceland
The price of eggs in Iceland. Compared to how ghastly prices are for most things in the land of fire and ice, these almost seem reasonable. Almost.
The red ones are 90kr per egg and the green ones 103kr, which converts to €0.63 ($0.73) and €0.73 ($0.85) respectively.
And while $10 for a dozen eggs might not sound reasonable, you have to take account of the fact that in Europe these egg laying hens benefit from free universal healthcare, lots of paid time off and also don't get saddled with student loans...
Best seat in the house
Info Uneccessary
I love that there's not a single bit of information on this poster. Locals apparently already know who this guy is, what he does and where he's presumably going to be doing it in the near future, and this is just a friendly reminder not to miss out.
Honest Street Art
Honest Icelandic street art. Days of grey indeed….
Heinz Oatmeal Cereal for Baby
Nothing to see here. Just a totally normal window in an old house in Reykjavík in the year 2025....
NB: This is an old house, but it also appeared to be the Reykjavík City Museum.
Varúð!
Warning: This is a spray painting area, park at your own risk!
Nosferatu Jesus
Before flippantly referring to this as Nosferatu Jesus, I did a quick search to see what's actually going on with these crossed arms, but the internet didn't really have any answers:
"The image of Jesus with arms crossed and standing is not a common or traditional depiction in Christian art or scripture. While Jesus is often depicted standing, including in scenes like his ascension, his arms are typically not crossed.
Common depictions focus on Jesus with open arms, inviting people, or in moments of teaching or blessing. The gesture of crossed arms is more often associated with a posture of judgment or disapproval, which is not a typical portrayal of Jesus."
So apparently Icelandic Nosferatu Jesus is judgmental and disapproves of all the tourists traipsing through his austere house of worship - probably because he knows some of them will later go on to poke fun at him on social media, which opens all kinds of difficult questions about the linearity of time....
Rearranging the furniture strictly prohibited
Another slightly odd sight inside Reykjavík's massive Hallgrímskirkja - in addition to the already mentioned statue of Nosferatu Christ - is this sign kindly requesting visitors not to rearrange the furniture.
To be fair, it is a bit confusing, as half the benches face the pulpit and half the organ, but they're also a good 10 metres long and must weigh hundreds of kilos apiece, so moving one probably wouldn't be something undertaken on a whim by a confused tourist.
But it also stands to reason that some previous bench turning incident must have taken place in order to necessitate the existence of this sign....
Hallgrímskirkja Day
It's Sunday, so might as well just make this an all Hallgrímskirkja day. Here's a detail of the front door. I've got nothing snarky, flippant or remotely insightful to say about it, but really like both the font and the red tiles....
Suspicious
No idea what this truck is used for, but I'm inherently suspicious of anyone who feels the need to loudly proclaim their innocence without even being asked....
NB: A reader pointed out that this is apparently a Danish company called Innocent Drinks.
Disc Golfer's Paradise
Apparently handball (or perhaps glíma)* is Iceland's national sport, but every park and larger green space in Reykjavík seems to have some disc golf ‘holes’ set up in them.
However, I've only seen a handful of people playing (and most of them appeared to be doing so solo), and this during what is technically Icelandic ‘summer’....
*”While Iceland is known for many popular sports like football (soccer), swimming, and golf, handball is considered the national sport, according to nat.is and Visit Nordic. The Icelandic national handball team has achieved significant success, including a silver medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Glíma, a form of traditional wrestling, is also a significant part of Icelandic sports culture and is sometimes referred to as the national sport as well, according to Icelandic National League of North America and Wikipedia.”
Postage sticker shock
Cost to send a dozen postcards from Iceland to Europe and the US: 5020 krónur, or a nice symmetrical €35.35 (or just over $41). Ouch!
Single stamps to Europe are 360kr (or €2.54 or $2.95), while for the rest of the world they're 460kr (or €3.24 or $3.77).
Luckily I was able to find only amazing postcards to send, so obviously got my money's worth - assuming they all arrive at their intended destinations....
3am Sunrise
Walking to the airport bus at 3am - the perfect time to catch a bit of sunrise, despite the fact that it never actually got dark....
Keflavík Airport
Iceland's Keflavík Airport (KEF) has a bit of a cramped European budget airline airport feel to it, but it's also quite well-designed, efficiently run and if you wander around you can find an out of way spot to work before your flight....
Last minute gifts
I generally despise last minute gift shopping at airport duty free, but at least Iceland has some interesting options to choose from....
First-class barf bags
Never too late on your trip to Iceland to learn a bit of Icelandic geography with a bit of Icelandic (dark) humour....