Iceland Day 3 - December 29, 2008

Billy and I had a booked our Glacier Walk tour with Reykjavik Excursions (RE) the night before online, and had our hotel confirm it. Well, we didn't set the alarm correctly, so Billy and I slept all the way until 8:50. Can you blame us? It was dark outside, and our room had black curtains to boot. Billy raced downstairs to see if RE came to pick us up. The guy at the desk called RE, and they said we weren't even on the list to pick up, but they said they would come by. We tried to get ready as quickly as possible, but it was too slow for them. They came by immediately after we called. Luckily, we were able to re-book for Wednesday.

Instead of Glacier Walking, we ventured out in our rental car to the Perlan. We had a tough time getting the car out of the parking area because there was a steep driveway. We only stalled out a few times on the way there, especially on the hills at traffic lights. After we got there, Billy and I went up to the top. You can walk or take the elevator. We walked around the observation deck to see panoramic views of Reykjavik, but we did stay out to long due to the wind. We walked down the stairs to watch the artificial geyser on the 1st level near the restrooms. We decided to forgo the Saga Museum which is located at the Perlan.Afterwards, we strolled back to the 4th Floor Hotel. Fewer stalls this time than the way there. We dropped the car off, and then walked to the downtown area. We had lunch at the Sea Baron. Run, do not walk to this place. They have the best lobster soup EVER! I thought it was amazing, and of course Billy wasn't as impressed. I would make a trip back to Reykjavik just for this soup. The ambiance of the Sea Baron is very charming. It is a hole in the wall near the harbor. There is very little seating inside, with about 4 picnic tables outside area surround by plastic. They have a very limited menu: lobster soup and kabobs. Definitely add the Sea Baron to your list of places to eat in Reykjavik.After our heart-warming lunch, we went to the Harbor House Museum. We were surprised to find out that it is free to get in. We browsed through the exhibits, but were not wowed by anything in particular. It is not really our style of art, but it was interesting none the less. The last exhibit, we looked at was not art in my opinion. The artist took things from regular places and created an exhibit. For example, there were a convenient store refrigerator with soda in it. Not true art in my opinion, but to each his own. Overall, it was good place to visit to get warm and see different types of art, and the biggest bonus...it was free.

We strolled back to our hotel to rest and hang out for a while. We took advantage of the free wi-fi that had sporadic service.

After resting up, we had dinner at Reykjavik Pizza Company...it is a short walk from the 4th Floor. Once again, we had poor service, but the pizza was tasty. We went back to our hotel for the evening after dinner to get prepared for our day of snorkeling and caving.

Day 2 - Iceland

Hmmmm....where do I begin? We took the FlyBus from the airport to Reykjavik. Their plan was to drop us off at the terminal because they do not service our hotel. We told them to drop us off at a hotel (Hotel 101) that we thought was close by. Wrong! We had to walk a few blocks to our hotel in the drizzly rain. Thank goodness for overhangs.

We finally got to our hotel - 4th Floor. This is where the fun begins. We checked in, and were asked if we would like to pay now or later. We said later, and the receptionist said they would like it now. OK. We attempted to use our credit card that does not charge a fee for exchange rates. It got declined. We used during our entire trip to Quebec, and it is paid off. Of course, the receptionist is now looking at us like we are retards. We were told that our room is available, but the rental car that was part of the deal would not be available until noon. Fine by me, the bed was calling my name.

After being treated like idiots at the front desk, we got to our room on the 4th floor, hence the name of the hotel/guesthouse. I was feeling sick so I immediately laid down. Billy joined me after checking out the facilities. We slept for a couple of hours. We got up around noon and headed out to tour the city.

We walked around for quite a bit just looking at the buildings and see what restaurants were around. We walked towards the harbor and turned around. After walking, we decided it was time to get something to eat. After checking out some restaurants, we settled on Cafe Paris. We sat ourselves per the instructions at the door. The service was very slow. It was at least 15 minutes before we were greeted and asked what we wanted to drink. By this time, we knew what we wanted to drink and eat. I ordered a pasta dish with hot chocolate to drink. Billy had the fish special which consisted of a white fish with saffron sauce served fries along with some mealy Icelandic vegetables. The food was average, but I do have to say that my hot chocolate was delicious.



We headed back to our hotel/guesthouse after dinner. Billy booked our trip for the Glacier Walk, and the person at the front desk confirm it. It was then time to relax and hang out in our dorm room.

Reviews for the day
FlyBus - 3 stars
Pros: Cost, convenience
Cons: Argumentative clerk at the airport, does not serve our hotel

Cafe Paris - 3 stars
Pro: ambiance, center of town, hot chocolate
Cons: slow service

Back from Iceland

We are back from Iceland. We got back to Atlanta around 2:00 a.m. Saturday morning with 1 1/2 hour delays from JFK to Atlanta. No need to complain after our last run of delays a week ago. Billy and I have mixed reviews of Iceland. I have to say overall I am happy that we went and experienced a new country. I promise that I will actually do the trip report.