Wandering around Reykjavik, Harpa & a Kickass Waterslide

Monday was our last full day in Iceland, and it started off early as we had to return the rental car by 9am. It got us up and moving, and Mijin, Todd, and I returned the car and then walked to downtown Reykjavik.

Luckily Hallgrímskirkja Church opens at 9am, so we popped in to see the sanctuary and to see the views from the top of church's bell tower.  Although incredibly simple, the sanctuary was beautiful.

We took the elevator up to the tippy top and were treated to beautiful views of Reykjavik...which is truly surrounded by water on all sides.  I didn't quite get it until I had this perspective.

The Sun Voyager

After a bit of souvenir shopping, we met up with Cathy, Katie, and Jim, and walked over to Harpa, Reykjavik's stunning concert hall which is home to the Icelandic Symphony Orchestra and the Icelandic Opera.  We had seen the building from the outside during the day and at night (which featured some sort of light installation) and wanted to check out the inside as well.

Harpa

The ceiling and part of the front facade from the inside

The back facade from the inside

And then, because we have very creative friends (and a tripod and a remote control for the camera), greatness happened...

This was a fitting tribute to the end of our time as a group of six.  From here, Mijin headed back to the hotel to catch her airport shuttle, Jim and Katie headed off on a whale watching tour, and Cathy went in search of a museum or two.  Todd and I grabbed lunch and then walked back to the hotel to swap our souvenirs for swimsuits and head over to Laugardalslaug, the city's largest pool.

The Laugardalslaug athletic complex was basically across the street from our hotel.  It was about a 10 minute walk from door to door.  Although we don't know exactly everything the complex contains, as you can see from the sign, there's a lot going on.

For an entry fee of less than $5, you have access to about 8 hot pools ranging from 36 degrees Celsius to 44 degrees Celsius (no one was in that pool - Todd and I went into the 42 degree for about a minute and almost died).  Five of the pools are about average hot tub size, sunken into the pool deck, and probably fit about 8 people.  One of the pools is a saltwater pool and holds about 20, and then two of the pools are quite large.  One holds about 50 and is a bit landscaped with ledges, rocks, and steps.  The other is pretty shallow and seems to be for lying down in. In this next picture, you can see the shallow pool right in front and the 50 person one right behind it.  The sunken hot pools are beneath the edge of the grandstand.

And there's more!  A lap pool in front of the grandstand and a huge kids pool with kid-sized waterslides and obstacles. 

And the best think about this pool is the huge waterslide!  It's AMAZING!!!  It takes at least 10 seconds to ride all the way through (at top speeds if you know the right method - thanks to the benevolent Iceland father who tipped me off) and at times you are plunged into a bit of darkness and then TOTAL DARKNESS WITH BLIND TURNS!  Amazing.  We were not the only adults on it - trust me.  Amazeballs.  I came back with Cathy on Tuesday morning before we left, and we did it again.

For our last night in Iceland, we had made reservations for dinner at a pretty fancy place, The Fish Company, upon recommendations from friends and reviews on Trip Advisor.  It was a truly incredible meal.  I got the "Around Iceland" selection which featured a four-course meal of traditional Iceland entrees and ingredients.  Due to a slight conversion error on my part (which made the meal slightly (ha ha ha) more expensive than anticipated), I had specially selected wine pairings with each course.  All five of us had amazing entrees and couldn't stop raving about how incredible everything tasted.  Here are a few pictures Katie took of various entrees and desserts.  Delish.

Katie's entree

My dessert

Todd with a chef's bite

Katie and Todd both got "the best Tiramisu ever"

Probably one of the best meals I've ever had - right up there with our dinner at Saffron in Arrowtown in New Zealand, also with Jim and Katie.  (You can read a bit about that meal here.) Although our final bill was big, it was totally worth it.  The food and experience and ambiance was incredible.  

I highly recommend a visit to Reykjavik and Iceland.  It's only a 5 hour flight from the east coast of the US, shorter than flying to LA.  Icelandair offers amazing packages and a 3-5 day visit is just perfect.  Go and visit!