Getting Settled in Reykjavik

We got clothing at Haikaupt, we got chocolate cake and hot coffee at the Pearl. We convinced ourselves that we would not freeze to death. Not today, anyway. The manager there told us that the Saga Museum had moved from the airport to a spot near the boat dock. The new location was near our hotel, so we went to see a dramatic representation of the story of young Skallagrim, a boy who distinguished himself by killing his playmates, then becoming a feared Viking leader around the year 1100 A.D. We learned that some of the oldest and purest versions of the Norse sagas were Icelandic. They were less subject to change than those of Norway, whose people settled in Iceland. Across the street from the museum was the Bonus Food Store. We would be setting out on our own in a rented car, so we stocked up on emergency food. The car rental company also gave us a satellite phone to use in case of emergency. The wind in Iceland is constant. The rental car folk said that the most common damage they see is the wind ripping the doors off automobiles that are not headed upwind when the passenger opens the door. Coming back to the hotel, she checked in, and I parked our Toyota RAV 4 Diesel in a parking lot about a ten-minute walk from the Center Plaza Hotel. We unloaded our luggage, then as we were going to the car to bring in more water, Glenda saw a clothing store with Icelandic sweaters. We each bought one to cover us until our luggage was located. In the late afternoon we walked in the snow about half an hour to find the Red Cross Consignment Store, where she shopped for waterproof pants. Finding none, we went to get supper at the Fish House. I photographed it and the building next to it, just a few doors down from our hotel. It is the oldest building still standing in Reykjavik, built in the late eighteenth century. The Fish House was a bit more expensive than we had expected, so we then went to have a meal of traditional Icelandic hot dogs from the hot dog stand in the plaza. They were delicious. We came back to the room to organize our packs for tomorrow. I do hope our luggage arrives soon.Leggi altro