To leave time to reach Akureyri first thing tomorrow, Reykjavik day two provided us with only a few hours to finish our explorations of Iceland’s capital.
So obviously we jumped on a bus and drove 40 km out of town!
I’d heard about the Blue Lagoon courtesy of a co-worker who’d said it was the highlight of his trip to Iceland (after the Northern Lights failed to play ball).
It’s a hot water spring in the middle of nowhere, famous for its sheer size, and the supposed healing properties of the waters.
We’ve visited hot water springs before – notaby in Canada – and this was another experience, like those, which was more interesting for the people-watching than the snake-oil. It’s quite amusing watching usually-conservative groups of Japanese tourists egging each other on to do something crazy (like dipping a toe in!), and how quickly alcohol goes to the heads of those who decide that beer and bathing really do mix!
Several groups from our cruise ship took organised excursions to the Blue Lagoon. We got a taxi to a nearby bus depot instead, and then took a “local” bus service to the Blue Lagoon. Much more satisfying – not just for the 40 or 50 quid we saved, but also for the fact that it took a bit of planning.. and the plans worked out perfectly.
We’re back on board now, and floating toward our second and final Icelandic destination. Tonight we’ll be eating at one of three on-board restaurants that charge a supplement. Called QSine, it’s a “concept restaurant” where you choose half a dozen from a menu of more than 20 “courses”, each serving-up an (admittedly rather stereo-typed) national dish from various countries and regions. You choose the genres, then your waiter puts together a meal with the dishes served in the most suitable order. Generally that means seafood first, then white meat, and finally anything that resembles a burger or steak.
It might sound a bit naff, but it’s actually really fun. We did it three times when we were in the Far East last year, and I suspect tonight won’t be our final QSine of this cruise.
