riakaruda

Travelling and eating my way around the world


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Once upon a time…

…I was on vacation. Or was that a dream? Although it’s only been 9 days since being back, it seems like much longer. Pretty sure the five straight days of work didn’t help. At the risk of sounding spoiled, here’s a tip: if you don’t work for a full month, trying to make it through five days (even five shorter-than-most-people-work work days) seems like forever. BUT, if I want to travel again (and I do!), it’s off to work I go (hi ho, hi ho!).
So.
Back to the distant past, when I was finishing up my trip.
May 1, 2013
I arrived at the Blue Lagoon (aka. Heaven!), got my fluffy robe, showered up (you must wash before and after) and headed out into the -1C weather. A little chilly for bikini-wearing, you say? That’s why I quickly made my way into the 38 C milky blue water!

it. was. glorious.

Blue Lagoon

Blue Lagoon

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relaxing in the cave

relaxing in the cave

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The water is milky blue thanks to the silica that is in it. The silica is also really good for your skin.

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getting my silica on…

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notice the lovely skin….

 

With the lost-card trauma melted away in the hot waters, I hopped on the bus and headed to the airport. Once there, I dropped my bags off, laughing to myself as I looked at all the people who were checking in manually (I checked in online a day earlier). Time to go home. I’d have been more sad if I hadn’t been so relaxed 😉


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Good thing I booked the Spa…

Even with mask on, the sun woke me up early. Try as I might, I couldn’t sleep past 8 am, so I gave in, got up and finished packing. Went downstairs for breakfast and to relax until my pickup at 10:30am. My flight isn’t until 5pm today, but I’m heading to the Blue Lagoon for a few hours to soak up the lady of those geothermal hot springs! I AM a professional hit tubber after all 😉
Got on the transfer bus to the main station, and them realised I didn’t know where my visa, debit card and drivers license were! Trying to remain calm, I checked the outer pockets of my bags, but in the limited space of the transfer bus, I had to wait until getting to the main bus station to fully check (read: fully panic).
After unpacking and sorting through all my dirty laundry (literally) in front of strangers, I finally found the rogue cards – the longest 15 minutes of my life! Tears may have been shed, and random strangers may have seen several sets of undies, but I found them! Really needing the spa now, I hopped the bus to the Blue Lagoon. I should be there soon, and I’m planning on some serious relaxation until the bus leaves for the airport at 2:15 (now 11:45am).
I think Keflavik airport should have wifi, so I’ll update you frontier on my Blue Lagoon experience!


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Meandering through Iceland’s History

Woke up to more roommates – magically gifted from the roommate fairy or late-night flight arrivals? Hard to say, but either way, my room is starting to fill up.
Over breakfast, Leena and I set our minds on a massage at Laugardalur, because they are very reasonably priced. We had the hostel front desk call for us, to avoid any mistranslation. 4:15 were set, so we each set off on our days, to meet up later.
I started a self-guided walking tour, then came upon Settlement 851 Museum and went in. It’s the remains of a settlement (from about 851 – haha!) which was found beneath the streets when another building was doing renovations. It was a really cool exhibit. I continued on my walking tour, around The Pond and then wandering the back streets of the town. With its size and easily seen landmarks, it’s hard to get lost, or if you do, to stay lost for very long. Found a new way to Kaffi Loki, and stopped in for coffee and skyr. I really like it, and it is surprisingly filling! It’s similar to greek yoghurt, but next to no fat and high in protein. The guy at the next tar ventured to try fermented shark, and I could smell it from my table. He said it was terrible, as I guessed from the putrid smell wafting from his table.
I left in search of cool yet affordable jewellry, but opted for buying lava rock beads and supplies to make my own (seeing as earrings started at 4500 krona).
All shopping done, I started walking to Laugardalur, and met up with Leena for massages. But when we went to pay, the price was more than double what we expected! After a few minutes of discussion, we left the pissed off spa clerk and headed to the hot tubs instead, saving ourselves 3000 krona from the original massage price and 6500 krona from the surprise price!
After 90 min of soaking up the warmth and sun (outdoor temp -1C), Leena had hit her limit (amateur!) and so we left. The walk back was brutally bitter, although it didn’t really hit me for the first 15 min because of the hot tubs. The thought if BBP hotdogs kept me going, and when we got there, I was not disappointed. It’s crazy how busy that place is, for being a 3m by 3m box! There seems to be a constant stream of people from morning to late evening, eating outside in the cold or on the roadside in their cars. I’m gonna miss it!
Later that night, I went to a comedy history show about Iceland (Let’s Talk). It was above the Dubliner, in a bar / hall called Vikingakrain. It runs every night at 8pm. I tried to get some others to go with me, but in the end I headed out myself. And then watched the show myself. And by “myself” I mean that no one else came to the show that night! Haha! It was just me and the one -woman show. I thought it might by awkward but it was really awesome, and the actor did a bang-up job of the full Icelandic history in an interesting and engaging way! I highly recommend it if you’re ever there.
After my personal show, I hung out in the hostel lounge until midnight-ish, when some of us bundled up and ventured down to the dock, hoping to see the Northern Lights. Sadly, no one told them we were coming and they were a no show 😦 surprisingly, even at half past midnight it wasn’t fully dark! The darkness forecast for the evening was 12:00 – 3:50, with sunrise at 5am.
Hit the sack, with my earplugs in and my night mask on (to block out the early sun).


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On the corner of quirky and quaint

Monday – the day I liked Reykjavik
Woke up this morning to a new roommate! Her name is Leena, and she is from Denmark. She’s here to help local farmers birth the lambs next week in a small village on the Snaefellsnes Peninsula.
After eating breakfast, I ventured out on the town, skeptical there would even be enough for me to fill the morning, and even more skeptical yet that I’d enjoy myself. Luckily, Reykjavik proved me wrong!
It was alive after the sleepy Sunday and ready to rock! The sun was shining and the wind had died down from the day before. I decided to peruse the shops in search of my souvenirs. I wanted to get them out of the way in case I took a day trip to Jokulsarlon, a lagoon with glacial icebergs on the Southeast coast. I also went I search of an Icelandic sweater, because I was sick of feeling so cold.
I stopped at the thrift store to see if I could find a cheaper (and possibly more authentic) version, and left with some woolen mittens and ear warmer for only 2200 krona. But no sweaters that I liked nor fit. No worries – pretty much EVERY store sells woolen goods. I finally found the one I liked best (added bonus: it turned out to be the cheapest) and walked back to the hostel.
Donned my new sweater and ditched my spring jacket, grabbed my swimsuit, and headed back outside. Those Icelandic sheep know how to stay warm! I had to ditch my windbreaker because I was getting too hot! Why didn’t I get a sweater like this yesterday!! It was worth every krona I spent on it.
In my new toasty sweater, I happily strolled the half hour to the Perlan, , where I got amazing views of the city against the mountains. Ate at the cafe (meat soup!) then made my way on foot another 30 min towards Laugardalur Outdoor Thermal Pool. They had two outdoor hot tubs (38 C & 42 C) that had my name on them, and I easily spent 1.5 hrs soaking up the warm. The hotter one was specifically designed for lying down in, and I would’ve fallen asleep had it not been for some loud children. Oh yeah. This is apparently THE activity for Icelanders after work/school because it seemed everyone was there! I had hoped for a massage (professional, not just some random Icelander) but they finished at 5pm. Even though the temperature outside was 1 C, I was hot tub heaven!
I completed my triangle of walking for the day, strolling along the water’s edge. I stopped to take a picture along the way, and a biker guy came and offered to take my picture for me. “You’ve come too far to take the picture yourself,” he said. He told me all about the statue and we talked about Canada (he loves Halifax, and has relatives in Calgary!). When I mentioned that it was kinda cold to be biking, he said with a grin, “But I am a Viking.” True.
Caught my roommate heading out for dinner when I returned, so I joined her for fish n chips. I skipped the chips, seeing as I’d foolishly weighed myself at the pool and figured I could do without 😉 But I couldn’t resist the skyr dessert, which I’m sure was still packed with healthiness despite the chocolate. Leena and I checked the Northern Lights forecast, and found out tomorrow night would be a better bet for seeing them, so we knit for a bit, and I decided to save my money and hang around my new favourite city tomorrow, instead of sitting on a bus all day. I’ll take an Alaskan cruise to see icebergs later 😉


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Is this it?

Sun, Apr 28
I had a leisurely start this morning, seeing as it was Sunday and more than the half the town wouldn’t open til 10 or 11am, and the other half wouldn’t open at all til Mon. Seeing as this was my first real day in Reykjavik, I stopped at the information office down the street. The girl that helped me was not as good as the other one there (I overheard her talking to other people) but I thought it’d be rude to switch, so I just struck out on my own.
Not much was open, save the coffee shops and souvenir places. The weather was cloudy, very windy and cold, and I was not loving Reykjavik very much at all. Because I’ve been backpacking, I had decided that I could just layer when I got to Iceland, instead of bringing heavy clothes just for this stop. I was beginning to regret thus decision, and debated buying warmer clothing.
I walked up to Hallgrimskirkja, the iconic church on the hill in Reykjavik, and paid to go to the top of the tower. It had great views of the city and I cheered up for the moment (plus it was warmer inside).
Next up was Kaffi Loki, a cafe across from the church that had been recommended to me by several people. I had planned on getting the Traditional Plate, but it was a cold plate, and I needed something to warm me up so I went for the meat soup lunch. Delicious! I really love the rue bread here, especially when topped with sliced smoked lamb – YUM! I followed it up with coffee (they really know how to do coffee here!) and some rye bread ice cream with rhubarb sauce – DOUBLE YUM!
With a full tummy, I walked back over to the church to catch their afternoon English service. The church is more liturgical than mine (meaning more set structure) but it’s nice to see different cultures, both countries or churches.
After the service, I went to the museum across the street, on the recommendation of a fellow hosteler. It was small but very interesting. The medium was mostly plaster, and I was amazed at what the artist was able to accomplish with it. There was also a garden gallery with bronze statues which were equally as impressive. But cold, because it was outside.
Following the museum, I just roamed the streets of Reykjavik, to see what there was to see. I picked up a few groceries / snacks, then stopped to try Reykjavik’s famous hotdogs. I’m not usually a fan of hotdogs, but Baejarins Beztu Pylsur has got it down! For only 380 krona, you can be just as famous as Bill Clinton (pic to prove it on their cart) and enjoy a delicious dog with raw onions, crunchy onions, Dijon mustard and some type of gourmet ketchup (I didn’t know such a thing was even available!). AND everywhere in Iceland, they take visa! Even for a 380 krona ($3.25) hotdog!

I headed back to the hostel, and had a long hot shower because I was SO COLD! In my defense, I didn´t really pack well for this leg of the trip, hoping that creative layering would do the trick. Apparently, it doesn´t.  I did my obligatory blogging, then went to bed, the sole sleeper in a dorm for 10. Hoping that tomorrow I would actually like Reykjavik.


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Journey to the Centre of the Earth*

Apr 27
Set my alarm early because we were being picked up at 7:30 for our day trip out to Snaefellsnes Peninsula. I ran into a bit of a snag when I tried to board the bus but the guide didn’t have my name on the list. After about 10 min inside at the office, I got things straightened out, and boarded the coach. Ann and I settled in for a long day of bussing. Luckily, we had a great guide who was very knowledgeable. However, paired with the sad weather (overcast, foggy at times) the theme of the day was “normally we would see , but not today.” By the third time this happened, Ann and I would start to laugh, knowing the “but” was just around the corner.
“Normally we would see 15-20 seals sunning themselves…”
“Usually you can see the glacier from this vantage point…”
“Typically there are many different birds on this cliff…”
Despite this trend, it was still a very cool day trip. I DID get to see some unique rock formations, lava fields and Icelandic countryside (of which they have much). We visited the fishing town of Arnarstapi, which had stunning views despite the weather. They had gorgeous bird cliffs, and I saw the very exotic Icelandic seagull. (“usually we see several species of Icelandic birds, but today…”) and yet, the town was beautifully pristine and well worth it. The cafe (which I’m sure only opened for us, as NO ONE else was around) served great coffee and dessert pancakes, and I’m assuming delicious meat soup, from the smell, although I was still full from all the food I’d eaten en route. Despite having a captive audience, they were very reasonably priced (unheard of here in Iceland)  and even gave refills on coffee and meat soup!
One good (?) thing about Icelandic weather: if you don’t like the current weather, just wait 5 min (local saying). And it’s SO true! For example, the sun was shining as we pulled over for a shirt photo stop, and headed up the hill. A short 5 min later, we were pelted with wet hail which seemed to come out of nowhere. I took some quick photos and headed back to the bus, fairly wet by the time I got back. Ten minutes later, sun!
After Arnarstapi, we drove by Hellnar, another small fishing village, not yet open for the season. We stopped for some picture-taking of lava fields (very cool!) and Icelandic horses. They are smaller but sturdier than regular horses, and their breed is fiercely protected by the law. They have 5 gaits to the usual 3 (?) and they are a very pure breed. Icelandic law prohibits any outside horses to enter the country, and Icelandic horses that leave the country for whatever reason may never enter again! Lord of the Rings is heavily influenced by Icelandic culture and landscape, and plans had been made to film here, but due to the strict horse laws, they relocated filming to New Zealand. Supposedly the horse-to-hobbit ratio would’ve been off had they used the smaller Icelandic horses 😉
We also saw Snaefellsjokull volcano, which has a glacier at its peak (which if course we couldn’t see… re: clouds and theme of the day, hahaha!). We passed the community that makes the Icelandic specialty of putrified shark, known as Hákarl (no, that’s not a typo) and which I’m still debating about trying. Simply for the bragging rights. I doubt that it’ll be my new favourite food. I expect it will be right up there with Japanese natto.  Blech.
We returned to the hostel about 7:30, both quite tired from the long day. Despite the theme of the day, we were both very satisfied with our day. We sat in the lounge until a respectable time, then headed up to the room. Ann packed up, as she flew out early the next morning. We said our goodbyes and went to sleep.

* this mountain was the setting for the famous novel by this name


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Seriously??

Apr 25-26
It turns out that Icelanders have a sense of humour. April 25 is a national holiday, being the first day of summer in Iceland (hahshaha!)
To celebrate, we all got a free ice cream bar in flight 🙂 apparently, nobody told the weather though, as it was a balmy 3 C when we touched down. Glad I wore my shorts!
Despite the celebration, I added the length to my shorts to make pants (they’re zip-offs) and paid for & hopped on the bus into town.
At the hostel, I got to my room and met Ann, my roommate. My only roommate. In a room for 10. Nice! I sat down on my bed, and realised how tired I was. But going to bed at 6:30pm local time would mess me up, so I unpacked, skyped, hung out in the lounge, and surfed the Internet until it was 10:30, which I figured was a respectable time to hit the sack.
The next morning I woke up (without an alarm) at 6:30. I tried to convince myself to sleep longer, but my body wasn’t having it. So I got up and headed downstairs for breakfast by 7:15. Stuff is expensive here, but the breakfast was well worth the 1250 krona! It was by far the best hostel breakfast I’ve had 🙂 Ann joined me, then a few other people. We get to talking, and this girl asks me what my plans are for the day. I respond with, “nothing.” “Want to go on a day trip to the (insert many places I didn’t yet know about)? I have a ticket and I’m not gonna use it.”
Me: “what?”  (I haven’t yet finished my coffee)
Girl: repeats it again. I’m still in the dark.
She must be able to tell for the blank look on my face and gives me a bit more detail in slower sentences.
Turns out I arrived in town in time for Eve Fanfest 2013. I’m sure you’ve heard of it, right? Yeah. Me neither.
I’ve since found out its an online sci-fi reality game, like a second life. Anyway, the gamers have come from all over the world for this fanfest. And some of them have convinced their partners to come along. Since most of the players are guys, and their wives / girlfriends don’t play, they need something to do while the gamers are, well, gaming. So the  event organisers devised a plan: Sisters of Eve. Those women who have joined but need something to do.  This girl, Alexandra, was one if the few girl gamers (only 5%) but decided to go to the conference instead of this trip.
“I’m even willing for you to have it for free so it will be used.”
Caffeine and information finally sinking in, I agree to whatever this day trip included.
“Oh yeah, it leaves in half an hour from Harpa, about 5min from here.”
I run upstairs to get my stuff for the day (what do I even need???), and run off to join the SOE.
Once in one of the super jeeps, I find out I everything that we are doing that day (and that I should’ve brought my bathing suit!).
This is what we visited / saw:
* the oldest parliamentary in the world, in Þingvellir National Park (Þ sounds like “th”)
* Geysir (geezer) which is a geyser and the namesake of all others after it
* free fabulous buffet for lunch – including delicious fresh fish
*  off-roading** with our super jeeps to get to some glacier fields
* Gullfoss, a famous waterfall
* Laugarvatn Fontana geothermal spa
Basically it was a $200 tour! The whole day I was in disbelief, and kept thinking someone was going to tell me I didn’t belong there, but no!
I had left at 9 am, and returned at 7 pm. Exhausted but happy, I hung out in the lounge while waiting for my laundry to finish. I booked another day trip for the next day, to travel along with my roomie, Ann.
All in all, a great day!

** our driver was crazy, probably as a result of driving the same route every day. Whenever he got bored, he would just drive off the road. Because he could. We drove up the side of the crater, through waist-deep snow, and AROUND a bridge (yeah, why use a bridge when you don´t have to). It was the high-light of my trip!


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Au revoir

Apr 25th was my last day in Paris, and when I woke up, I realised the major flaw / overlook on my plans: I had forgotten about Versailles! Don’t ask me how, I chalk it up to travellers memory*. I had about a 10 min frenzy of trying to fit it in before flying out in the afternoon until I sadly realised it would be a tight squeeze (read: impossible) so I decided it was for “next time” and headed out for Sacre Coeur after bidding farewell to my hostess.
I had be warned about all the stairs leading up to Sacre Coeur Basilica, but I have it no thought until that morning when I remembered I’d be doing them with my full backpack on. Oh well, gotta walk off those crepes 😉
I decided to count the steps, because I’m a masochist like that. So, 330 steps later, I arrived at the front door. I walked in single file along with the plethora of other visitors. At the end, I snapped my “no pictures allowed” picture, then headed back out and around to enter the crypt and dome portion (which cost €8). The crypt was not nearly as scary as the name would suggest. It resembled the upstairs, without the lights on.
Beginning to wonder if I’d be taken for €8, I headed towards the dome (tower) and noticed the sign indicating it was 300 stairs to the top. What they neglected to mention was that the stairwell is not for the claustrophobic. Or, say, people carrying a big backpack.
Three hundred spiral steps later, I reached the top, glowing** like a neon light and a little dizzy. And that’s when I realised that I had gotten a steal of a deal with €8 and 630 stairs – the view was AMAZING! It was a clear day, and I could see to the Eiffel Tower. I walked around for a bit, taking pictures from every angle, before starting my descent. The views were so beautiful, Ilost track of time and had to pick up the pace to get to the airport. All told, I climbed and descended 1260 stairs with a 12 kg backpack and 3 kg front pack.
On the train heading to CDG, I realised I didn’t know my terminal (and there are three). I figured I had better odds with the Terminal 1 & 3station and luckily it paid off. I found my check-in and got in the REALLY long line. I tried to do web check-in but it wouldn’t allow me, so I waited in line. And waited. And waited. And panicked, as I mentally did the math on the time remaining versus the tasks remaining (security, find gate, food, bathroom run, change to warmer clothes, etc). And waited. (panic)
Time I arrived in line: 12:35
Time I arrived at the counter: 1:30
Time plane was scheduled to leave: 2:15
Time of boarding listed on info screen: 1:50
Rumoured time to get through security: 40min (panic)
When I got to the counter, I was informed that my 12 kg bag was considered “oversized” due to the straps! Meaning, I had to take it to another area to drop off before heading to security (more panic). To add to the fun, their computer system had decided to revolt after the long line and wouldn’t print my boarding pass (yup, you guessed it: panic). After waiting the longest 10 min of my life, (time: 1:45) I got my boarding pass and full-tilt RAN to drop off my “oversized” backpack, (time: 1:48) then on to find security and my gate! Got to security, (time: 1:53) gulped down half a litre of water in under 2 min and went through the security drill (which luckily I have down to a science now!)
Time: 1:57
I rush out of security, ready to run for my gate, when I look up….. And see my gate RIGHT THERE. It was then I realised that the security drill had gone abnormally fast. No wonder: it was just for that small wing! My plane was still not boarding, so I:
– bought some pastries for the plane
– bought an orange juice at another shop
– did a bathroom run
– refilled my water bottle
… and then I sat down and waited for boarding. Which happened at 2:05
(we didn’t leave on time…)
The flight itself was pleasantly uneventful as I headed for my final destination: Reykjavik, Iceland. In my shorts.
* since every day is a holiday, you quickly lose track of which day it is, how much time you have, sometimes which country you are in, and which tourist attractions you still need to do.
** Horses sweat, men perspire, women glow.


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Cross My Heart!

K, despite my long day, I managed to get three posts up – only 3 more to get me up-to-date!

And I´m making a promise to myself and you that I´ll be up-to-dating myself by tomorrow (my time, not yours. I´m too tired to figure that out for you…)

and for now I bid you góða nótt (good night in icelandic)