BROADWAY LIGHTS AND NORTHERN LIGHTS DAY #10 “Back in Reykjavik, No Northern Lights, No Horse”

Today was supposed to be a big day.  We were to fly back to Reykjavik, go on another Northern Lights tour and sample a dish that Icelanders love, “Icelandic Horse”.  Yes, horse.  But first, since we had an afternoon flight we had time time to walk around the lovely town of Akureyri a little more.  Next to our hotel is a church with a long stairway leading up to to the entrance.  We were told there were 135 steps.  Not that we didn’t believe them but we did our own count.

Once we made it to the top of the stairway we found that the church was having a service (imagine that on a Sunday morning) so we didn’t want to disturb the worshipers.  Instead we walked around the neighborhood and found some beautiful homes.  Each house was a single family dwelling and they had two numbers.  One indicated the address and the other was the year it was built.  See the two homes below, one built in 1926 and the other in 1928.  We were told this by one of the owners.

I previously mentioned how Iceland is rich with the natural resource of thermal energy due to the numerous volcanoes.  They manage to direct this hot water into pipes under the street preventing the roads from freezing during the winter.  Here is an example of a road being repaired.

Before leaving Akureryi I had to try their hot dogs.  I had heard they are a true delicacy.  We asked our guide to recommend a place were we could buy the best hot dog in the city.  He recommended a place not far from the hotel so we went there.   See below.

The dog was very good.  I was told it contained lamb, pork and beef.  I didn’t ask if it was the meat or other byproducts of those creatures.  But I did ask where else one could buy a hot dog in Akureyri and was told that the only other vendor could be found at the local gas station.

Then it was off to Reykjavik on our prop plane.  This time we went straight to the hotel instead of visiting the Blue Lagoon.  We are again staying at the Canopy Hilton.  The staff is great, they do the little things that make me so very happy.  See below.

We had a spectacular dinner at Grill Markadurinn (Grill Market).  We asked about the horse but our server said horse in not currently available.  Horse is not raised for consumption.  It is only available if a horse has to be destroyed due to an orthopedic or behavior problem (you just get to eat the horses who are either lame or have ADD).  Instead the server recommended we have the 8 course pre fixe meal.  How could we not agree?  My friend Joe always wants pictures of the food so here they are.  Sorry, I forgot to take a picture of the first course of Duck Salad (sorry Joe, I was hungry and forgot).

After dinner we went on a boat tour in search of the Northern Lights.  All we saw were Icelandic clouds.  Good news is that we are allowed to return for another trip for free.  So we can go nightly until we see the Northern Lights.  Allen and David: don’t expect me back to work until December.