Iceland: Day 4

On our last day in Reykjavik, we had breakfast again at our favorite morning spot, Reykjavik Roasters. I could eat that Greek yogurt and muesli every day.

Our ticket to the National Museum had included a pass to the Culture House, which the clerk at the museum had a bit of difficulty in describing. It sounded like it was a lot of things, some of them sort of weird, and if you haven't got that that is the theme for our travels yet (along with beer), then you haven't been paying attention.

It is part art exhibit, part history museum, and part...collection of stuff related to Icelandic culture? 

Also, until now, I realize I have forgotten to discuss the somewhat abject signs around Iceland asking people to behave nicely. There were signs in the geysir and waterfall visitor center bathroom that urged people not to stand on the seat but rather to sit on the seat (I have seen these before, and I think they're geared toward people from countries who typically have toilets that are holes in the floor?). 

The Culture House had one of my favorites:

Is this a problem?

I enjoyed this piece on the ubiquity of sheep in Iceland:

So this is why yarn is so cheap...

Here's some yarn art that was oddly compelling:

Don't ask me what the tiles say.

And speaking of oddly compelling, I found this table near the gift shop - it's a "domino table" sold by a company called Neue Tische. The table top contains piles of plastic domino-sized tiles that you can arrange to make images.

I need one immediately

On our way out of town, we made one last stop to Hlemmur for some pastries from BRAED, a celebrated bakery.

In the airport on our way home, I found two things to love. First, someone yarn-bombed the columns near security (I actually got yelled at taking this photo - whoops). I love that the Icelanders have such a sense of humor about their yarn art.

The second thing was in the duty-free shop, which is unusual for us because we almost never shop there. But I realized that they probably would have some Havana Club rum, which is a tasty and affordable Cuban rum that is not available for sale in the United States because of the trade embargo.

We looked over in the booze section and there it was! Here is Dave with his prize, next to a weird gnome statue in the airport.

Parting thoughts

We loved Iceland despite the chill, and we would definitely go back for a more in-depth visit to the countryside. The Icelandic people are friendly, welcoming, and have a unique culture that is (thankfully) thriving. The food and beer were both surprisingly good, especially the food.

Yes, the food and beer are expensive, but you have to think about Iceland as a Hawaii equivalent where prices are inflated because tons of stuff has to be shipped in if it doesn't naturally occur on the island.

Thanks for a great trip, Iceland! We hope to be back someday.