Where do I begin to describe the magic that is Iceland? I feel like I am living in a fairytale. The landscape surrounding the city is breath taking. I knew I would like this place, but the fact that they had dishes of salmon at the hotel breakfast buffet took it to a whole new level.
(While I’m very excited about the salmon, that really wasn’t the tipping point on my love for Iceland haha).
This morning I got to go out riding in the lava fields on Icelandic horses. It is important to make the distinction. The average person can come up with a picture of a horse and a pony in their heads. They are very similar, except a pony is smaller. Icelandic horses are the size of ponies, but it is terribly disrespectful to call them ponies. They are horses. They are strong. They are fast. They are smart. When the Vikings came to Iceland, they brought their best horses with them. Iceland does not allow “average” horses into the country, and once an Icelandic horse is sold to another country, they can’t come home either. They want to keep their lines pure, and they are the purest bred horses in the world.
They are fantastic. I was paired up to ride with Coupay. He was a sweetheart and we had a great time riding out into the lava fields. It was like riding through a fantasy story. Speaking of which, most of the fantasy shows and films like Game of Thrones and Lord of the Rings wanted to film here for the spectacular setting, but they wanted to use full sized horses, which is a big no-no so off to New Zealand and Scotland they went.
Coupay was great and I felt super comfortable. They asked me if I was an experienced rider before we started. I responded, “I have experience, but I’m not experienced.” I got to go on the slower ride which was pleasantly restful. I even managed to snap some pictures while on the horse, but don’t hold your breath, they don’t do the land justice at all.
After a morning of riding, we went to two museums. The Icelandic National Museum and 871+2. The Icelandic museum had exhibits on Vikings, of course, but focuses more on the conversion to Christianity. It was very interesting. 871+2 is an underground museum that holds an actual Viking longhouse structure. The walls and roof are long gone, but experts guess that the building was used in the year 781 or 782. The original foundation still stands and is a very rare find from Viking history.
We spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around Reykjavik and taking in the great city we are staying in. We went to the Geysir Bistro for dinner, and had a delicious meal of lamb kebabs. It was a perfect dish.
The last few days have been long and packed with adventures, so tonight is going to end earlier than most, even though the sun will be up for a few more hours. I think this might be the earliest I have gone to bed since being in Europe. I hope the long post was okay with all of you, it amazes me how much I do every day on this trip!