Reykjavik

Reykjavik 48 Hours in the capital of Iceland

Reykjavik, Iceland is exotic in a way warmer places can only hope to be.

Landing at the main airport twenty miles outside the city after an overnight flight feels like the beginning of an adventure at expeditionary scale that should have required months of preparation, including provisions of salted meat, fish and citrus. Perhaps it's the name; Iceland. It conjures visions of villages of hardworking, hard-drinking men, who have grown immune to the cold, living on one of the most remote islands on the planet, because their behavior and general outlook on life would be acceptable nowhere else.

The Sun Voyager on the city's shore.

Nothing could be further from the truth. You are warmly welcomed on arrival and the anticipation of a seafaring adventure is quickly replaced by the sense you are about to take advantage of an open secret few have thought to experience.

As a foreigner, there is no feeling that you are unwelcome. There is no limit to the patience of your hosts. They do not resent that fact you do not speak their language (Icelandic) and they are quick to slide into English as soon as you say "hello."

Reykjavik is a small city by international standards with its share of modern architecture along the harbor, a few iconic landmarks, and a city center stocked with small homes, often sheathed in corrugated steel and painted in a variety of colors, from plain white to Bermuda pinks, and farmhouse reds.

It is European in feel. Most of the visitors are from the continent and they seem to use Reykjavik as a weekend getaway. It is one of the few European countries completely open to Covid-safe tourists. In fact, I met one traveler who was returning to England from America, through Iceland, because it was the easiest way for him to get back home.

An hour, or less, in any direction and you can escape even the hint of city life in the volcanic wilderness of the rest of the country. Less than two hours from Reykjavik an on-going eruption is attracting visitors from around the world.

Although tourism to Iceland is gaining strength, post pandemic, the pace is still relaxed. Both pedestrian and car traffic on the narrow streets is manageable. Drivers are precise and courteous. Icelanders follow the rules of the road and those rules are efficiently spelled out on the streets themselves and pictogram road signs.

Being an island nation, fish is always on the menu. They make it into hash, serve it whole - as you might be used to - and slice it roughly into stew. Breakfast, lunch and dinner. Lamb is next on the list of local favorites and there are plenty of places advertising "American Food" - which seems to mean hamburgers.

From most of Europe, the eastern U.S., and Canada; Reykjavik is possible to pull off as a long weekend. It is also the best place to base your operations if you are planning to see more of the country. One of the most popular choices is to drive the Ring Road clockwise, or counter-clockwise beginning and ending in the capital.

Reykjavik is warmer than you think all year long. At this time of year it is usually in the high 40s to low 50s - Fahrenheit. The sun sets just after midnight and rises again at about three in the morning. The weather can change quickly and often so you should be prepared to shed and add layers and one layer should be waterproof.

Coming soon: The Ring Road