15 days in june
- Day: Friday, June 23
- Weather: Sunny, slightly cloudy, 14 °C
- Distance in kilometers: 0 km
We arrived in Keflavik at 03:45PM local time and transferred to the Alba Guesthouse.
A very friendly hostess welcomed us in perfect French (rather rare in Iceland!). At 6 pm, we went for a walk in the streets of the capital. We started in Hallgrímskirkja and enjoyed the view from the top of the tower for 350 ISK. You can see the whole capital from the top of this monyment.
Next we walked to Lake Tjörnin, a rather peaceful spot in the heart of the capital with active birdlife: arctic terns, geese, ducks, and more. Here the birds are not wild but quite used to humans, so you can approach them up close.
The Perlan
We continued our walk through the lively city streets where we met many young Icelanders warming up for a great weekend. Friday evening is usually when the wilder parties happen in Iceland.
At 9PM we decided to stop and eat at a small restaurant on “Laugavegur”, the main shopping street in Reykjavík with salmon fillet and Viking beer on the menu, all for 2380 ISK per person (about €25...).
The restaurant has great atmosphere and fast service. After this break we continued our walk, noticing the wind and the temperature dropping a few degrees. We stopped near the famous Drakkar in Reykjavík to capture this strange metal sculpture in a few photos and to admire the view. At 11PM we are still out and it feels like the mid-afternoon.
This can be a bit disorienting because despite the fatigue of the trip, we don't feel tired enough to go to bed. On the other hand, it seems that Icelanders like to take advantage of the endless day offered by the midnight sun, we even met some mowing their lawns around midnight...
On the way back, we passed “le Perlan”, located very close to our Guesthouse. This 5-storey, dome-shaped establishment includes a very chic panoramic restaurant and a few shops and is very popular with the wealthy Icelandic class. It was almost midnight (and the sun is still shining!) by the time we returned to the Guesthouse for a well-deserved night's rest.
