The Blue Lagoon

City Hall, and our tour overview.

Today was the big move, and also our first real vacation day.  We packed up our bags, and rolled them a little over a kilometer to the tour hotel.  There was supposed to be a breakfast at 8:30, but we were the first four there (having linked up with Mike & MaryAnne).  A few trickled in, but there was a large group coming and they were not arriving until 9:30, so we were going to be late.  A bit after 10, we piled on the bus and started the city tour. 

Our first stop was City Hall, where they had a large relief of the island.  After 10 minutes of pointing, our tour was over.  Whelp, the next ten days are just a rehash!  We walked around outside a bit and saw some of the sites.  

The relief work was very interesting, but we could not confirm if the scales
(vertical and horizontal) were the same, or even what they were.

City Hall on the city pond we saw driving around Tuesday.

The front of the Parliament building, which was built 
while Iceland was still part of Denmark.

A garden or courtyard behind the Parliament building.

The iconic steeple from the overlook.

Next was was an overlook where we could see the city, and more importantly the airport near the city center.  Perlan is a natural history museum which is perched on a high hill, and the fourth floor has an exterior deck where we could really get in touch with the wind and the chill!!  We quickly enjoyed the scene and then got inside, and back to the bus.  Then we had “time on our own to get lunch” (which is a nice way to say they’re not buying us lunch!).

The Reykjavik Airport.  Oooohh!!!

Look!  A hot dog for lunch!  (we live the good life!)

Apparently, hot dogs are a big deal here, and one brand is “the thing”!  Well, with a line of 50ish a few days ago, we opted to get the same hot dogs at a store that was inside, and had a single table that barely fit three stools.  The hot dogs were a once in a life time try.  As in once was about enough.  OK, they were lamb.  And they had a nice snap to the casing.  Otherwise, it’s a nice hot dog.  And we got a little licorice for dessert.

Layers of lava

This is the end of the road...

Our first look at the "blue lagoon" (it's more white I think!)

The peak of the day was the Blue Lagoon.  Most of Iceland’s electricity is from geothermal plants.  Years ago, this plant dumped the water nearby, expecting it to simple drain back into the lava rock surrounding.  However, it was so full of minerals, it plugged up all of the drainage.  Eventually, it coated the rocks in silica, forming a sort of giant bathtub.  As they continued flowing water through it, the coating built up to a smooth lining making it safe for people.  And people enjoyed the water which is a little more than body temp.  It isn’t quite a hot tub, but it isn’t far off.  A few spots were actually very hot and others seemed cool (by comparison).  People take the minerals and make face masks and such with them, which supposedly are very good for the skin.  (Yeah, sure)  Anyway, our entrance included a free drink, so we made our way there and enjoyed the cold drink and hot water.  It was a fun experience, and everyone seemed to enjoy it.

The mineral deposits on the lava.  It coats like epoxy!

A look across a section of the "lagoon".

A day at the "spa".

We had free drinks!!  But...

We opted for "not Krap".

We think this is the lagoon runoff. 
They said it turns over every 48 hours.

There is still a lot of volcanic activity in this area,
so they built up sort of a lava bund to steer it away.

The run off.  Maybe a second lagoon in the coming decades?

The fresh black lava is very recent.

Our room.

We headed back by bus (about 50 minutes), and finally got to check into our room.  It was…not an “executive king suite” at the Hilton.  Oh well, one night.  We had an evening meeting where out tour guide read an entire page of safety recommendations to us, but we had tiny appetizers and there was wine.  Finally, we were done by 6:15, and had “time on our own to get dinner”.  Our tour guide recommended a few options, and also pointed out the hotel had a buffet that was very large and had LOTS of options, if people did NOT want to go out or have any hassle.  It was only $78…that’s not bad for four of us…oh wait, EACH of us?  Oh no!! 

Theresa had researched a few options, and they all seemed to be in food court.  So, I tried a lamb steak sandwich (with lamb bacon!), and Theresa had fish and chips.  We enjoyed dinner with our friends M&MA.  Then walked home to end the day.

POST SCRIPT:  We found out just before publishing this, that the volcano down by the Blue Lagoon erupted today.  Not exactly sure what time, but the pics are pretty amazing!  I'd post them here, but there might be copyright issues.  I'd post a link, but those often change so 24 hours later they might not work.  So, feel free to look it up.  And to KH...I know what you're thinking...and NO I had NOTHING to do with this!