Wonders of Rekjavik, for cheap or free!

Reykjavik

We stumbled off the plane into gusting winds and scatters of rainfall. In the weeks that followed we soon discovered that every 5 minutes would bring new weather, but in those early morning hours it was a rude awakening.

We also soon discovered that a week of penny pinching is just too long in Rekjavik, but don't miss out on this quirky city. Here are some of my favorite free and cheap things.

> The Street Artwork: Everywhere and eye popping. Just walk down one of the main streets, Laugavegur, and see the strange and the colorful, the odd and the grand.

>Perlan: One of the coolest sights, also great for a view of the city and for miles around. This impressive structure has a mirror dome at the top, and a 360 observation deck, as well as hiking trails nearby. Zach and I followed one trail down to a beach with a thermal pool open during the summer. You can walk to it from Harpa, and it takes about 40 min, or take a bus.

View from the top of the Perlan

Our walk through the forest behind Perlan held elven houses. 

View from the beach Nauthólsvík we walked down to a WWII remnant nearby.

>Harpa: This gorgeous building is the Reykjavik concert hall  right near the water, and is super fun to wander around in. Zach and I ended up stumbling across a fashion shoot! That's for free, but they also have some other very interesting things to see and do if you don't mind plunking down a bit of cash.

Inside Harpa. Beware, it feels like an Escher drawing

>Hallgrímskirkja Church: This Lutheran church is easy to find and is a must see. Inside is a place to light a candle and place in this orb candelabra, and in the afternoon during the week we stumbled upon choir practice. Ethereal voices, and I'm sure there are other events happening during the week.

A nearby bakery to the church offers a chance to try Happy Marriage Cake

> Sculpture garden at the Einar Jónsson Museum: Also right next to the church is this museum dedicated to the work of one of Iceland moat well known sculptures and entrepreneurs, Einar Jónsson. He produced some fantastic work during the first half of the 1900s. His work is a blending of religious and mythological motifs, and is quite stunning to see in person. The sculpture garden is free and always open, and I highly reccomend seeing it.

Thor wrestling with Age (1930-1940)


>Laugardalslaug Public Thermal Pool: Such a wonderful way to end a day! This was one of my favorite places. There were multiple hot pools, a cold dip, a steam room, two large swimming pools, a fantastic water slide. Only for about $8 an adult. A pretty cool place to take in local life and meet other travelers.

>Icelandic hotdog: Get it with all of the toppings, which include this gravy mustard and fried onion bits. Suuuuper tasty.

> Weekend Flea Market: After a few days of being disenchanted with the price of everything, we were told about a market that happens on Saturday and Sunday between 10 and 5pm. So with a hankering to find some seriously thrifty clothing and oddities, we set off. It was a bit hard to find, but eventually we found it in the old harbor area, a short 10 min walk North West of Harpa. It was in a large white building, and inside we found the cheapest coffee in all of Reykjavik. I also found all of the 90's clothing, numerous volcanic rock jewelry, and Icelandic turn of the century pin up girl post cards. And more! In another section is a fish market, where you can purchase whale meat and blubber, as well as puffin breast and many different kinds of fish, as well as tasty breads.

I try whale blubber for the first time.


>Bontanical Gardens: These are nearby the pool and a camping site, also where the HI Reykjavik hostel is. Free to enter, and it's quite extensive with a cute cafe and a friendly cat. In a nearby park there is a hotsprings that was used as a place for washing women to go since at least the turn of the century. Pictures and information up everywhere.

Flowers in the gardens

The cafe in the gardens blends right in

Before washing machines were a thing in Reykjavik

Great pictures and historical details everywhere

Overall, a great time in Reykjavik. Perhaps a week was too long for my pocket book, but was made worth it by our fantastic Airbnb host Þorlaug.


Next up: renting a car and heading out into the wild!

Tips not mentioned in my last post:
- Get the strætó bus app, at This link. If you plan on busing around Reykjavik and nearby towns, this will help you get the buses to take and location.
- Also, if you love museums and plan to bus quite a bit for 1 to 3 days, perhaps think about getting the City Card. Its available for 24, 48, or 72 hrs, and gives you unlimited access to buses in that time, and free entry to all museums.
- VERY IMPORTANT go to google and look up maps.me
  This will give you an offline GPS of all maps around the world. Just do it. You download maps from the country your in using wifi, then your GPS location on your device is used with it.