During the final two days in Iceland, we visited the Blue Lagoon and went Icelandic horseback riding. They were two things we wanted to do on our first trip but didn't get a chance to. I really loved the horseback riding! Blue Lagoon was a nice experience but it is an over-priced tourist trap (with everything together it was approximately $200 per person). It is something to do if there is time in the schedule but I don't think I would do it again. I heard that the other natural springs in Iceland are nicer and more worth it to visit.
Starting the day with breakfast at our usual spot (Sandholt)
We booked a few hours of horseback riding with
Islenski Hesturinn. We went around beautiful volcanic landscapes. As I was too nervous to take any photos during the ride (in fear of falling off)..I don't have any of the scenery unfortunately. The guides took some photos and said they would be sending the photos to us soon though.
Here was my horse, Graumann!
After the horseback riding, we got back into the city in time for dinner. We went to a Danish/Scandinavian restaurant called
Jomfruin. During our first trip to Reykjavik, we didn't get a chance to eat here (since we didn't reserve and they were fully booked on the night we went) but I really wanted to. I like Scandinavian cuisine. So this trip, I was excited for a chance to eat here. Unfortunately we ended up being very disappointed in it. I ordered a schnitzel and it was WAYYYY too salty. My boyfriend said his was the worst meal he had in Iceland lol. I guess my expectations were too high for this place.
The following day, we visited the Blue Lagoon!
It was nice and relaxing being in the very warm water, surrounded by extremely cold temperatures.
Dinner at Geiri Smart that night. The food was delicious but I remember being extremely sleepy since we ate pretty late lol.
I'm sure you know by now about the abrupt closer of Wow Air. We had booked with them for this trip and the airline shuts down the day before our departure back to Toronto. It created a lot of stress for a few hours. We found this out the morning before visiting the Blue Lagoon, so we had limited time to frantically search for alternate flights/routes back home (entrance to the Blue Lagoon is pre-booked and timed so it's not flexible). At the last minute before catching the shuttle bus to the Lagoon, we were able to book tickets to fly to Edmonton, then back to Toronto the following day. We wasted a couple thousand dollars due to this but I guess it will be a memorable experience lol. As I always try to look for the positive in any situation, I know this could have been a LOT worse. For example if we were to find out the airline shut down while we were at the airport already, or flying that day. I heard a lot of people were stranded at the airport. The airline didn't announce their closure at first - the flights just kept getting "delayed" while people were waiting for it, then they eventually find out the airline shut down. Also if we didn't have the option to fly to Edmonton we would have had to spend way more on booking a last minute flight.
Leaving Reykjavik was pretty hectic though. At the airport at one point, their security system shut down due to the high volume and I was stuck in the customs line for awhile wondering if I'd miss the flight to Edmonton. Everything worked out though and we had a really nice seat on the flight.
There really isn't anything to do at all in Edmonton. The streets were very deserted and pretty sketchy. We stayed at the Fairmont MacDonald downtown and spent the majority of our time there at the hotel. We had breakfast with the Anaheim Ducks (well not "with" them, but some of them were there eating as well as they had a game against the Edmonton Oilers that night). After one night there, we flew back to Toronto.
& that concludes our second trip to Iceland! Even with the horrible Wow Air experience (for the second time)..and not seeing the Northern Lights again..I really had an amazing time!!
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