Today dawned cloudy and cool again, but we were fine with that, as our plans for the day just involved exploring Reykjavik some more and doing a little advance prep for when we return in two weeks. (I still can’t quite believe we’re going to be abroad for more than three weeks, but I don’t think I ever want to do it any other way. 😁)
After breakfast, we saw this great representation of three common themes from the visit so far: 1) the ubiquitous corrugated siding found on a large percentage of the residential structures, 2) the surprising amount of graffiti, and 3) the equally common ‘sponsored’ street art. This is a visually dynamic city!
As we walked down to the wharf to confirm our bike rentals for the return trip, we found these spectacular shrubs full of yellow flowers, and some interesting architecture combining vertical walls of foliage, reflecting pools, and ducks! (The shrubs smelled very much like tulips.)
(And notice the church in the background too.)
In a great example of the serendipity that often happens when traveling, we took a wrong turn on the way to the wharf, but it led us to the National Museum of Iceland, which we thoroughly enjoyed, and wouldn’t have stumbled across otherwise. There was a very entertaining exhibition of postcards of Iceland, spanning more than a hundred years, and featuring everything from classic old hand-colored drawings and photos, to modern art and ironic commentary. There was also a fascinating exhibit of a huge variety of relics from the early history of the island. (Which, interestingly, is what the country is called in Icelandic: Island!)
My favorite exhibit was an examination of the remains of a woman, unearthed during road construction in the 1980’s, who lived approximately 1100 year ago! It was incredible to see the ways in which forensic scientists have advanced their field in recent decades. They are now able to say that she was probably born in the UK, and sailed to Iceland at age 5-10, just by being able to identify changes in her diet that are evident in the remains of her teeth. Most incredibly, part of her face was preserved simply by its proximity to a bronze amulet she wore, whose corrosion somehow preserved some of her facial structure. There were even bits of the fabric of her clothing, preserved through the same circumstances. It was really amazing.
I also found a nice piece of leaded glass in a stairwell, so can’t resist sharing:
After confirming the bike rentals, we wandered back towards our car, and of course found a couple beautiful flowers to share. Who knew that columbines are found in so many places around the world?
And Mallory reminded me that these fall into the category of “DYC’s” (Damn yellow composites), much like you birders refer to LBB’s, right?
Here’s one more wild example of the giant murals found all over Reykjavik too:
Of course, the day wouldn’t be complete without a little drama, right? When we pulled of the highway to top off the rental car, it was raining and blowing a gale (the doors were almost impossible to open on the windward side!) I struggled through figuring out how to use the petrol pump, and when I finished, the car wouldn’t start. We tried to roll-start it a couple of times, with the help of a couple locals, but it just woudn’t go. So we called the rental company’s roadside assistance number, and they sent a guy right out. He had a portable charger, and though there we had a couple of tense minutes when it still wouldn’t start, it finally did, and we managed to get to through security and to our gate with plenty of time to spare. Phew!
As I’m finishing up today’s post, we’re flying across the North Sea on our way to Edinburgh. On our way through Keflavik Airport, I found the companion piece to the wonderfully modern leaded-glass piece I posted two days ago:
Until tomorrow!
