Despite the restrictions imposed by our oldest son’s university work term calendar, we squeezed in a two-week summer holiday. We opted for Iceland, even though we knew going in we most likely wouldn’t see northern lights, that ice caves would be off limits and that we would probably be sleeping through golden hour each night and morning. But we also knew we’d be able to take advantage of Iceland’s long summer days by scheduling some long day hikes.

So on a mid-July Saturday afternoon we drove to Edmonton, parked in long-term parking and caught an early evening direct, non-stop Iceland Air flight to Reykjavik. After six hours of flying, we landed early Sunday morning at Keflavik International Airport. By the time we collected our checked bags, cleared customs and drove into the city it was coming up on 8 o’clock.

We approached the reception desk at our pre-booked hotel with our fingers crossed, hoping at least one of our two rooms was available for early check in. It was! But with only one large bed for the four of us, we opted to drop our luggage, forego any nap, head out in search of coffee and snacks, and then carried on to a geocaching event taking place on the grounds of Hallgrímskirkja, the largest church in Iceland.

Whimsical bikes along one of the main shopping streets block vehicle traffic during “pedestrian only” hours. Hallgrímskirkja is visible up the street.

Basalt column details.

Designed it to resemble the basalt lava flows of Iceland’s landscape, Hallgrímskirkja took 38 years to build. On the plaza is a large statue of Leifur Eiriksson (Leif the lucky), the first European to discover America around 1.000 A.D.

There’s a large, convex mirror erected in front of the church. We had a bit of fun incorporating reflections into some of our photographs. K composed this image.

A relatively recent addition to Hallgrímskirkja, installation of the pipe organ was completed in 1992.

It’s worth the small fee (payable inside) to ride the elevator to the observation deck. K enjoyed the bird’s eye view of colourful Reykjavik, all the way down to the harbour.

Despite the fact it was July 20th, by the time the geocaching event wrapped up we were cold! Our teen boys didn’t even argue when we suggested heading back to the hotel to layer up.

As soon as we were out of the chill wind, jet lag hit. Although it was a little cozy, we all flaked out – four across the bed – for a 90 minute nap, enough to power us through to bedtime.

Dressed more warmly, we headed back out around 12:30. After a quick lunch, we walked to Lækjartorg Square to locate Hlolli Sigurdsson, founder of Free Walking Tour Reykjavik. Hlolli led our group of about 20 tourists on a 90 minute walk past some of the most significant buildings in Reykjavik, regaling us with stories of Icelandic history and culture. We really enjoyed the walking tour and recommend it as a good way to get acquainted with Reykjavik and Iceland.

Free Walking Tour Reykjavik

Ingolfur Arnarso and his wife Hallveig are recognized as the first permanent Nordic settlers of Iceland. They built their homestead in (and gave name to) Reykjavík in 874.

Prime Minister’s House

Art Deco building in Reykjavik

Stop on the walking tour.

After the walking tour we headed to the Harpa Concert Hall and Conference Centre for an extended photography stop, including a thorough exploration of the interior.

Harpa Concert Hall

Funny how one thing can catch so many eyes! We were intrigued by the structural elements of the Harpa.

Harpa from the ocean pathway.

K noticed clouds reflected in the exterior glass panels of the Harpa.

We enjoyed the colour and shape elements from the inside, too.

Coloured windows

The guys looking out to the harbour from inside the Harpa Concert Hall and Conference Centre.

Another look at the interior. Do you see the Escher tessellations?

K spotted Mom at work with her camera in the corner.

In one alcove of the Harpa, we discovered a light and liquid sculpture.

After an hour or two at the Harpa, we walked along a pathway parallel to the shore, stopping now and then to find a geocache or photograph a sculpture. One of our longest stops was at the very popular Sólfar (Sun Voyager) sculpture. We were patient though, and eventually managed a family photograph thanks to our little Joby Gorillapod and the 12 second delay on Mr. GeoK’s camera shutter.

Graffiti, public art, and a variety of buildings made for some great street photography.

Towards the end of our holiday we were back in Reykjavik for a couple of nights. One evening we walked to a viewpoint across the harbour to make even more photographs of the Harpa, mostly from a quirky public art installation called “Thufa” (translates to “Mound” or “Tussock”). The piece was created by visual artist Ólöf Nordal.

Mr. GeoK captured traditional and modern elements in this photo which includes the fish drying rack at the top of the Thufa and the Harpa Concert Centre across the harbour.

K enjoyed walking the sea wall out to one of the lighthouses at the harbour entrance

K included his older brother in this photo of the Harpa taken from the lighthouse on the far side of the harbour entrance.

Our last evening in Iceland we noticed that the ripples reflecting in the glass panels made them look like plastic blowing in the wind. This is one structure you could visit again and again and never see quite the same way twice.

We continued to wander the streets near the old harbour. The boys took some time to photograph the Eve Online sculpture.

We also noticed a wide range of boats and even a couple of jellyfish.

We ran out of time and energy before we could make our way to the Perlan, so that’s on our list for next time we make it to Iceland.

Other notes for next time include:

• Don’t stay in central Reykjavik. Although it was find the first night (a Sunday night), we found the night life was loud and carried on until about 4 in the morning on Friday and Saturday nights, making it pretty much impossible to sleep, even with earplugs!
• Spend a good couple of days in Reykjavik to enjoy more street photography, attend a performance at the Harpa, and visit the National Museum.

If you live in Iceland or have spent more than a couple of days in Reykjavik, what have we missed?

Stay tuned for several more posts about our summer adventures in Iceland.