Iceland 2014 Day 1 ~~~ Hafnarfjorður ~~~

I made it back to Iceland! 

Maybe a bit impulsive, but more a matter of keeping sane in my life. Early summer I had to make my decision to book or wait for prices to sky rocket. And so I choose the first option. And rented a car, because that would be the same problem, more expensive if I wait too long.

Since going to Iceland is getting normal business to me, I did not pay a lot of attention to it anymore. And one week ahead, I got shocked about my car rental. They require a €1500 deposit for possible damage, but my creditcard only allowes €1200 and I cannot raise it due to financial status. It was a living nightmare to get it arranged. By Saturday I had almost €3000 euro on the way to get this money on my account. But.... Banks dont work in weekends! And I leave on Sunday. So I saw the axe hanging over my whole trip to Iceland, because the car was the heart of it all. Just prior my departure I got the helpdesk so kindly to raise my limit to €1500. That was such an emotional relieve! I now could focus on enjoying my holiday!

When getting to the gate, I passed the new security system. We now have body scans, a big cone you have to stand in with your arms above your head. A quick scan is made. When I was ready, I saw my image full of squares and patches, so I was suspecting. I had too much and too heavy clothes on (because I always put on the heaviest clothes to save valuable luggage kg. So I had to undress, take my shoes of, a woman was doing an examination and it felt terrible ashaming to stand there in public while she took special care checking breasts and crotch. Because thats places where women would put drugs. :-( I so hated this moment.... it took 15 minutes before finishing and putting everything back on and I could go on, and lucky me got to go to gate D67 or something like that. I basicly couldnt get further away... Double check if I had the right plane, because on Sundays there is a Æroflot flight served by Icelandair leaving at the same time and luckily the gate next to my flight. There were few people waiting for the wrong plane, but not me. The other plane took off first despite of it being scheduled 5 minutes later. That plane was Katla, and I had Laki. 

Then, during the flight I enjoyed myself with an Icelandic movie about Icelandic horses, Hross og Menn (of horses and men). It was a very very strange one but just lovely to see the round-up a little bit and get my cheer back.

The plane circled around my home town straight after take off.

Drinking water reserve where I like to go for a hike.

Westmann Isles, first time ever to see it this clear.

Heimaey, capital of Westmann Islands, with on top the volcano Eldfjall which partly devoured Heimaey in 1973 after a very sudden eruption.

It was a smooth flight which made me happy because since my returnflight in 2012 I am not so sure anymore about flying. Im not scared, but planes tossed on the winds, dropping, shaking and beeping in complete darkness are not amusing me any longer. ;-)

I didnt have time for buying skyr, my suitcase came out first and so I didnt even have to wait a second for luggage. We landed at 15.17 and at 15.25 I was greeted by the rental agency. And at 15.50 I had the car and was wondering if it worked. It did nothing with the gasoline for the first 80% of the pedal and then it screamed but did not move at all. It really has a typical combination code with the gearing. I was happy for as long as it moved, but with stopping signs I am afraid I woke up half of Reykjanesbær with its roaring. Luckily I found my hotel easy, and it took me a long time to park it on a not flat parking lot. Lots of roaring again. What a nightmare car....

I stay this night at Hotel Viking in Hafnarfjorður, ever since I drove by here on my first trip I wanted to stay here for once. But you need your own car or at least it makes it a bit easier or else you need to take busses to Reykjavik, and not all (but most do) touroperators have pick up in Hafnarfjorður. So this stay was another Icelandic dream come true (the list is endless).

Beware of drunk Vikings.... ;-) Inside it had a red bar, stating forbidden for drunk Vikings.

I dont know about Vikings with a cross on the head.... this one looks like some kind of priest

I like to call this hotel Disneyland of Iceland. It is completely Viking themed. And every year the Viking festival I really want to join once, is held around here the week after midsummer. The hotel has lots of Viking art, the food is typical traditional Icelandic, with wooden plates and earthen mugs. Personell dresses in style, and during dinner you can choose for Viking buffet/dinner (if you dare, because that is hákarl (rotten shark), sheephead, foal meat, rams testicles and brennivin. And you will have some entertainment from Vikings telling stories or have you sing Viking songs accompanied by drums, some ancient snare instrument (like a Finnish kantele) and women with beautifull voices. The rooms are also very cozy in style. I had Viking themed one, but they also have settlement themed ones.

Next I decided to go see the elfgarden at Hvergerði park. It is a botanical garden with a collection of tree species on a lava field. Hafnarfjorður is completely build on a lavafield, and in this lava live the elves or Huldufok. These are actually not elves, but to the non Icelandic world they are called elves. But they are supernatural spirits, quite alike humans, but without a body. And Icelanders have always lived with them and it is still big part of Icelandic culture, folklore and even law. In road constructions it happens often that government calls in people who can communicate with them to see if they want to move or not. If not, most often a road will be constructed around or away from such place, because it didnt happen just once that machines broke down or bad luck struck when they ignored the elves. Thats why you happen to find a cluster of lavarocks somewhere where you wonder why they left it there and constructed around it. There are even perfect straight roads, that suddenly make a turn around some rocks to continue very straight. And you just wonder why they didnt shovel those rocks away. Well... the elves didnt want to relocate.

In the garden, two brave girls were tadpooling the water of the pond. Im not sure, it could be geothermal water, but they must be brave otherwise because all water not geothermal or otherwise heated is freezing cold in Iceland. Also from the tap. I wondered for a while next to the waterfall, but then the sky turned darker and went back to the hotel, hoping to return the next morning. But during the night it started to rain and a storm arrived..... a big one. Not just one, 3. All remains of some tropical hurricanes. No northern lights for me this night. Despite of the ideal look from my window.