Our breakfast plans of stuffing our faces with pastries from Brauð & co were dashed due to many businesses being closed for the merchant's holiday, but we were not disappointed by the croissant offerings at nearby Sandholt Bakery.
We had a few hours to kill in the city before our camper van would be ready that afternoon, so we took advantage of the immaculately sunny day to explore more. An eye-opening visit to The Icelandic Phallological Museum, the world's largest (only?) penis museum, got our blood flowing enough to take a pleasant walk over to the harbor.
We poked around at Harpa Concert Hall and tried not to smudge too many of the windows (that clearly take an army to keep pristine). The wind in the harbor is no joke, so we popped into quaint little Sægreifinn for a bowl of their incredible lobster soup to warm ourselves up. I could probably eat that soup every day for the rest of my life.
At long last, 1pm arrived and the CampEasy shuttle took us to get saddled up into our trusty steed for the rest of the week. We originally reserved their cheapest camper van, but they gave us a free upgrade to their 4x4 Volkswagen Transporter, which I lovingly named Jason Statham.
Once we loaded up the van with food and supplies (basically just snacks, pb&j materials, hot dogs, and giant water bottles to refill with the mouthwatering local H2O along the way) we set out to the first of our many scenic landscapes: Þingvellir National Park. (Note: You must pay for parking at the kiosk here, but all of the other natural landmarks we visited across the country had free parking.) It's easy to get lost in the geologic wonders in this park, as the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates are visibly drifting apart here, but digesting the history of the place was the most incredible part for me.
The Althing assembly that gathered in this spot is the oldest parliament in history, formed in 930AD. These yearly assemblies decided on legislation and dispensed justice, and were usually the main social event of the year. For nearly two centuries, Althing's rule of law believed that blood was the only way to cleanse society's sins and 72 executions took place at Þingvellir in that period. As I marveled over the clear, refreshing pool of Drekkingarhylur I glanced up to read a plaque, noting that 18 women were drowned in the water there for various crimes of immorality (generally, incest or pregnancy out of wedlock). This is when I realized that among the immense beauty of Iceland, you can also find some very twisted history and legends.
The park is also home to Öxarárfoss, a lovely little waterfall where several children (and adults) were splashing barefoot in the pools of water below it. I also loved tiny Þingvallakirkja, one of Iceland's oldest churches, and the Nikulásargjá fissure, where the crystal blue water has become littered with coins that began being tossed back in 1907 in honor of a visiting Danish king.
After a quick dinner of gas station hot dogs, we stopped at one of the more hidden gems along the Golden Circle route: Efstidalur Farm. This is as locally-made as it gets: the dairy cows serving up the milk for their ice cream are in the barn adjacent to the parlor. I got mango with vanilla soft serve, while my husband opted for the decadent salted caramel. The homemade waffle cone was equally delicious, but the icing on the cake was the farm dog, who was a dead ringer for our own sweet white husky mix back home, Daphne.
I should mention here that we decided to skip the most popular destination of the Golden Circle, Gullfoss, just for the simple fact that we would be seeing plenty of other waterfalls on our journey, and we knew it would be teaming with tourists. (We skipped the Blue Lagoon for similar reasons.) That being said, we didn't want to miss one of the more unique tourist hotspots: the Haukadalur valley area, home to Geysir and Strokkur. Despite our intel saying that Strokkur erupts every 6-8 minutes, we nearly got drenched as we approached the "splash zone" because there should have been another five minutes til the next eruption! My iPhone camera only got a tiny bit wet, and we had fun oohing with the crowd with every burst of boiling water thereafter.
After a pretty full day of walking around the city, a World Heritage Site, and avoiding the spray from gushing geysers, we were ready for some relaxation. Enter nearby Flúðir's "secret lagoon", Gamla Laugin. The rugged charm of this natural swimming pool sets it apart from places like the Blue Lagoon, plus it's a lot more historical. Originally built in 1891, the pool sat unused from 1937 until being refurbished with new changing rooms and a small cafe in 2014. The water trickles in from a hot spring, and there is a small geyser that erupts every ten minutes or so. (Note: Leave your modesty at the door. All of the public swimming areas in Iceland require you to shower naked before donning your swimsuit and entering the pool. I was nervous at first, but it's really no biggie.) It's the perfect spot to float around and rest your tired limbs in misting, hot water with a cold beer after a long day of exploring. My husband voted this his favorite place we visited on our entire week-long trip (even over the Mývatn Nature Baths).
Feeling like brand new humans, we now needed to find somewhere to park our van for the night. We found a secluded road and drove (and drove and drove) until we were certain we were far away from any residences. (Note: unless you are in a designated campground area, the rule in Iceland is you must have the landowner's permission to camp there.) We didn't realize until close to midnight that we parked in the midst of a beautiful view of Eyjafjallajökull, the glacier volcano which famously erupted in 2010. I was nervous about how well I would sleep, given the potential discomfort of our makeshift bed coupled with the minimal hours of dark sky in the summer, but after a couple of gin & tonics, and thanks to the magic of the hot spring water relaxing my muscles, I dozed off dreaming of the waterfalls and black sand beaches we'd be seeing the following day.
Continue to Icelandic Honeymoon: Day Three (Southern Coast)
Back to Icelandic Honeymoon: Day One (Downtown Reykjavik)
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