On August 15th we arrived in Isafjordur, Iceland. This blog will encompass the 8 stops we were to make in Iceland although we did miss our stop in Heimaey due to rough seas and the inability of our tender boats to make it safely to shore.
At our first stop in Isafjordur we had a private tour to Dynjandi Falls. This was a spectacular looking falls that we were able to walk up almost half of the way to the top taking some great pictures. On the way back to the ship we stopped at a local Icelandic farm and learned a little about their operation. Some of the goats on the farm were great to view and so were the turkeys. We took an opportunity here to take a group photo of the 6 of us on this cruise. Two or our group (Linda and Laurie would be heading home tomorrow).
The next day we arrived in Reykjavik where we had a Puffin Boat Tour and Linda and Laurie headed to the airport. We headed out in the morning to Lundey and Akurey Islands just outside the harbor to see some puffins. We saw them nesting on the island and swimming in the water. We even saw one with a little fish in its mouth. After our short puffin tour, we walked around the city visiting the rainbow street and viewing the cathedral. There are many interesting buildings and restaurants in Reykjavik and it is a nice place to stroll through. The biggest church though in Reykjavik is a Lutheran church called Hallgrímskirkja. This is a tall volcano looking church made of concrete. It has a statue of Lief Erickson out front that was given to Iceland by the US. We sampled a few pastries from some of the local shops and remembered some of the places we had gone to a few years ago when we spent 2 days here prior to a cruise. Instead of taking the shuttle back to the ship we took a long scenic walk along the harbor area.
The next day we arrived at Heimaey but was not able to see this island because of the rough waters preventing our tendering operation. It was especially strange since we had missed this exact same stop because of a hurricane 2 years ago.
On August 18th we stopped at Djupivogur which was a very small port on the east side of Iceland. Only 400 people lived there but it was beautiful country. This was the first time we had been in this quaint little town and our only new stop we were making while in Iceland. We took a 6 mile hike up a nearby mountain that was quite a strenuous hike for a Viking tour. The views from up above were great and the guide was very good. We even had someone from the ship hiking with us and Sharon asked him halfway through the hike what he did on the ship. He said he was the Cruise Director which embarrassed Sharon since he was the most well-known person on the ship. It just goes to show you how many ship events and nightly Viking entertainment shows we go to. (For the rest of the cruise he would not let Sharon forget she didn’t know who he was. She knows him now!) This town was so small that our guide in the morning was the daughter of the mayor and our guide in the afternoon was the brother of the chief of police. Everyone knew each other in this small town. The afternoon tour took us through town and showed us the famous Eggs of Merry Bay. These were 34 granite sculptures of eggs of the 34 species of birds that laid their eggs in the area. This was a project designed to improve the appearance of the area after a fishing company had built a factory and then left the town shortly after leaving many rusting buildings behind.
The following day we arrived at Seydisfjordur. We took a morning tour with the ship just to walk around the area and learn a little more about it. This is a small town also that has about 900 people. It also has a unique looking blue church that has music concerts every Wednesday in the summertime. It is said that if you think you are a good musician or singer that you must sell out the little blue church to be considered good in Iceland. We walked around the city after the tour checking out some of the waterfalls that you can see coming down the sides of the fjord. We had some great views of the city down below. Only 2 ½ years ago in December of 2020, this city had a massive landslide where it lost a good portion of the town. They had so much rain that mud and earth just gave way on the fjord mountain side causing many homes just to slide towards the water. Some homes were demolished with the rocks coming down and others caught fire. It is a miracle that no one was killed during this landslide.
On August 20th, we made it Akureyi where we had a tour set up to visit Godafoss Falls and Lake Myvtan. Unfortunately, we arrived at a different port than normal, and the bus had left by the time we got to the correct port. Fortunately, we found another tour to take us to Godafoss Falls and some other places. It turned out to be a great tour. Godafoss stands for falls of the gods and it got its name when the Icelandic leaders were forced to denounce their Pagen gods for a Christian god. They took all their Pagen god statues and through them into Godafoss Falls. The falls were as spectacular as the last time we had seen them although the Icelandic flies were more annoying and in abundance. These flies are about a third of the size of US flies and they just swarm at your eyes, mouth and ears. Keep your mouth closed or you will eat a few! Our next stop was to visit an Icelandic turf house. We had seen one last trip, but these are really interesting to go through. Half of the house is made by the earth with the roof being dirt and grass. The only thing built out of wood or stone is the front face of the house and the internal walls. Many of these turf homes include 4 to 8 smaller homes combined together. Sometimes 20 people or more might live in them. The one we visited was owned by a church preacher who also farmed the land around him. Our last stop on this tour was a Christmas House. It was quite a surprise and a lot of fun to walk around. They had many displays around the property and some nice pastry to eat. It you come to this city it is certainly worth stopping at.
The final stop in Iceland was back to Isafjordur. It was our first stop in Iceland on the cruise and the last stop. Sharon had set up a private riding experience on Icelandic horse for us. This was one of the best horse-riding experience we even had! This wasn’t just jumping onto a horse, riding around for a few hours, and then hopping off. It was the full experience! When we first walked into the stable, we were told to pick up a saddle and bridle and follow our guide out to the horses. She put on the bridle, and we took the horses to an indoor riding area to saddle the horses and ride them a little to get familiar with them. Before putting the saddle on we were given a brush to comb down the horse before we rode him. We were taught the proper way to brush by following the grain of the hair. We threw the blanket and saddle on the horse and then the guide tightened up the belt for us to make sure it was tight enough. Instead of getting on the horse from a step ladder or some raised platform like most horse tours we have been on, you put your foot in the stirrup and swung your other leg over the horse. Granted it was a little easier on these horses because Icelandic horses are considerably smaller than most horses. We then rode the horses around the beautiful countryside for a couple of hours and came back to the stables. We were offered an opportunity to ride through the beach area with the horses but was also warned that the almost, freeing fjord water got up to the horses belly, which meant you were going to get wet. Since we already had the “horse on the beach” experience in Jamaica where the water was a whole lot warmer, we elected to pass on a beach ride in Iceland. When we got back to the stable, we hopped off our horses and unbuckled the saddles. We carried the saddles and bridles back to where we got them and picked up a bowl of treats for each horse. Boy did these horses like these nutritious treats! We thought they were going to eat a hole in the plastic bowl. We then took the horses outside to the corral with the other horses and it was amazing to see them roll around in the rocks after the ride. I guess they were a little sweaty from the ride and the rocks were nice and cool to roll around in. The guide said all the horses did this after a ride. We stayed around with the horses and petted them and played with them for about a half hour before we left. These horses were almost like overgrown dogs and just loved the attention of people. This was a totally spectacular experience and if you ever have an opportunity to do this, this is a MUST! After the ride the guide dropped us off in town so we could walk around a little before heading back to the ship.
We had 8 great days in Iceland and the weather was spectacular! Just as in Norway it showed rain almost every day but the rain never seemed to materialize. Now we have one sea day, and we will arrive in Greenland. Another place we have never been to before.
Regards,
Sharon and Greg
At our first stop in Isafjordur we had a private tour to Dynjandi Falls. This was a spectacular looking falls that we were able to walk up almost half of the way to the top taking some great pictures. On the way back to the ship we stopped at a local Icelandic farm and learned a little about their operation. Some of the goats on the farm were great to view and so were the turkeys. We took an opportunity here to take a group photo of the 6 of us on this cruise. Two or our group (Linda and Laurie would be heading home tomorrow).
The next day we arrived in Reykjavik where we had a Puffin Boat Tour and Linda and Laurie headed to the airport. We headed out in the morning to Lundey and Akurey Islands just outside the harbor to see some puffins. We saw them nesting on the island and swimming in the water. We even saw one with a little fish in its mouth. After our short puffin tour, we walked around the city visiting the rainbow street and viewing the cathedral. There are many interesting buildings and restaurants in Reykjavik and it is a nice place to stroll through. The biggest church though in Reykjavik is a Lutheran church called Hallgrímskirkja. This is a tall volcano looking church made of concrete. It has a statue of Lief Erickson out front that was given to Iceland by the US. We sampled a few pastries from some of the local shops and remembered some of the places we had gone to a few years ago when we spent 2 days here prior to a cruise. Instead of taking the shuttle back to the ship we took a long scenic walk along the harbor area.
The next day we arrived at Heimaey but was not able to see this island because of the rough waters preventing our tendering operation. It was especially strange since we had missed this exact same stop because of a hurricane 2 years ago.
On August 18th we stopped at Djupivogur which was a very small port on the east side of Iceland. Only 400 people lived there but it was beautiful country. This was the first time we had been in this quaint little town and our only new stop we were making while in Iceland. We took a 6 mile hike up a nearby mountain that was quite a strenuous hike for a Viking tour. The views from up above were great and the guide was very good. We even had someone from the ship hiking with us and Sharon asked him halfway through the hike what he did on the ship. He said he was the Cruise Director which embarrassed Sharon since he was the most well-known person on the ship. It just goes to show you how many ship events and nightly Viking entertainment shows we go to. (For the rest of the cruise he would not let Sharon forget she didn’t know who he was. She knows him now!) This town was so small that our guide in the morning was the daughter of the mayor and our guide in the afternoon was the brother of the chief of police. Everyone knew each other in this small town. The afternoon tour took us through town and showed us the famous Eggs of Merry Bay. These were 34 granite sculptures of eggs of the 34 species of birds that laid their eggs in the area. This was a project designed to improve the appearance of the area after a fishing company had built a factory and then left the town shortly after leaving many rusting buildings behind.
The following day we arrived at Seydisfjordur. We took a morning tour with the ship just to walk around the area and learn a little more about it. This is a small town also that has about 900 people. It also has a unique looking blue church that has music concerts every Wednesday in the summertime. It is said that if you think you are a good musician or singer that you must sell out the little blue church to be considered good in Iceland. We walked around the city after the tour checking out some of the waterfalls that you can see coming down the sides of the fjord. We had some great views of the city down below. Only 2 ½ years ago in December of 2020, this city had a massive landslide where it lost a good portion of the town. They had so much rain that mud and earth just gave way on the fjord mountain side causing many homes just to slide towards the water. Some homes were demolished with the rocks coming down and others caught fire. It is a miracle that no one was killed during this landslide.
On August 20th, we made it Akureyi where we had a tour set up to visit Godafoss Falls and Lake Myvtan. Unfortunately, we arrived at a different port than normal, and the bus had left by the time we got to the correct port. Fortunately, we found another tour to take us to Godafoss Falls and some other places. It turned out to be a great tour. Godafoss stands for falls of the gods and it got its name when the Icelandic leaders were forced to denounce their Pagen gods for a Christian god. They took all their Pagen god statues and through them into Godafoss Falls. The falls were as spectacular as the last time we had seen them although the Icelandic flies were more annoying and in abundance. These flies are about a third of the size of US flies and they just swarm at your eyes, mouth and ears. Keep your mouth closed or you will eat a few! Our next stop was to visit an Icelandic turf house. We had seen one last trip, but these are really interesting to go through. Half of the house is made by the earth with the roof being dirt and grass. The only thing built out of wood or stone is the front face of the house and the internal walls. Many of these turf homes include 4 to 8 smaller homes combined together. Sometimes 20 people or more might live in them. The one we visited was owned by a church preacher who also farmed the land around him. Our last stop on this tour was a Christmas House. It was quite a surprise and a lot of fun to walk around. They had many displays around the property and some nice pastry to eat. It you come to this city it is certainly worth stopping at.
The final stop in Iceland was back to Isafjordur. It was our first stop in Iceland on the cruise and the last stop. Sharon had set up a private riding experience on Icelandic horse for us. This was one of the best horse-riding experience we even had! This wasn’t just jumping onto a horse, riding around for a few hours, and then hopping off. It was the full experience! When we first walked into the stable, we were told to pick up a saddle and bridle and follow our guide out to the horses. She put on the bridle, and we took the horses to an indoor riding area to saddle the horses and ride them a little to get familiar with them. Before putting the saddle on we were given a brush to comb down the horse before we rode him. We were taught the proper way to brush by following the grain of the hair. We threw the blanket and saddle on the horse and then the guide tightened up the belt for us to make sure it was tight enough. Instead of getting on the horse from a step ladder or some raised platform like most horse tours we have been on, you put your foot in the stirrup and swung your other leg over the horse. Granted it was a little easier on these horses because Icelandic horses are considerably smaller than most horses. We then rode the horses around the beautiful countryside for a couple of hours and came back to the stables. We were offered an opportunity to ride through the beach area with the horses but was also warned that the almost, freeing fjord water got up to the horses belly, which meant you were going to get wet. Since we already had the “horse on the beach” experience in Jamaica where the water was a whole lot warmer, we elected to pass on a beach ride in Iceland. When we got back to the stable, we hopped off our horses and unbuckled the saddles. We carried the saddles and bridles back to where we got them and picked up a bowl of treats for each horse. Boy did these horses like these nutritious treats! We thought they were going to eat a hole in the plastic bowl. We then took the horses outside to the corral with the other horses and it was amazing to see them roll around in the rocks after the ride. I guess they were a little sweaty from the ride and the rocks were nice and cool to roll around in. The guide said all the horses did this after a ride. We stayed around with the horses and petted them and played with them for about a half hour before we left. These horses were almost like overgrown dogs and just loved the attention of people. This was a totally spectacular experience and if you ever have an opportunity to do this, this is a MUST! After the ride the guide dropped us off in town so we could walk around a little before heading back to the ship.
We had 8 great days in Iceland and the weather was spectacular! Just as in Norway it showed rain almost every day but the rain never seemed to materialize. Now we have one sea day, and we will arrive in Greenland. Another place we have never been to before.
Regards,
Sharon and Greg
REYKJAVIK - A great day in Reykjavík as our 1st visit was after COVID, 9/21. Today we were in search of Puffins and walk around the city!
DJUPIVOGUR - Visited an adorable town named Djupivogur with a population of about 400! Too funny - Our morning tour guide was the Mayor’s daughter and in the afternoon our tour guide’s brother was Chief of Police (only officer in the city)!
Our 2nd visit to Seydisfjordur - the town is named after the Fjord Sveinstekks with a population of about 700. We visited the town and hiked to 2 waterfalls and visited the Tvisongur (sound sculpture).
Our 2nd visit to Akureyri, Iceland to view the beautiful Godafoss Falls and made new stops to Laufás to see a turf house that dated back to 1866-70s timeframe and our last stop was a Christmas House!
A fun day in Isafjordur, Iceland visiting the beautiful Dynjandi Waterfalls, Pingeyri seaside Village and Tungudalur Fishing Village.
Day 2 Isafjordur: One of our favorite days in Iceland, riding Icelandic horses! We first brushed and saddled our horses, Blossi and Lokkur in an indoor ring. Bonding time for these gentle and sweet horses before we headed out to the stunning countryside!
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