Trips

After the visit to the Ocean Cluster House, Andres took us across the street to his favorite ice cream shop, Valdis Ice Cream. It was really Italian gelato! It cost $4 US or 500 IK for one scoop. Nancy got coffee flavor in a cup and said it was very good.

Lots of choices	Icelanders are big on licorice
Ice cream prices - in Icelandic kroners (1kroner = 0.0082 US; one scoop = $4.10)	We left the group and headed out on our own to walk down to Tryggvagata Street to find the famous Hot Dog Stand. It is a special Reykjavik custom - a hot dog on a bun with dark brown mustard, chopped onions, or a butter-cream sauce. Marge got one. The dog is eaten outside standing in the 35° windy conditions, but Marge thought it was good. The Icelanders are a hardy folk. Next, the three of us walked up Austurstraeti Bankastraeti and Skolavorousugur streets to the Hallgrimskirkja Lutheran Church. The streets are lined with souvenir and wool sweater shops. The church is a stunning building inside and out. It looks like a space shuttle from the outside and the inside has a very high vaulted ceiling with clean, simple lines. The organ was the most decorative part. It had a bunch of horizontal pipes that we had only seen in one church in Northern Spain - Cathedral de Santa Maria de Leon.
Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur Hot Dog stand on Tryggvagata Street - very famous - good hot dog!	For you hot dog - on a warmer day than this one!
Hallgrimskirkja Church at the top of the avenue
Hallgrimskirkja Church	Hallgrimskirkja Church
Organ inside Hallgrimskirkja Church	Front of the church
Horizontal pipes	From the church, we walked back down to the harbor to the magnificent Harpa Concert Hall and Convention Center. There were no tours today but we were able to walk around the lobby areas outside the concert hall, looking at and out of the unique glass external walls. It is a showcase building.
Harpa Concert Hall and Convention Center	Sculpture in the pool outside
Model of Harpa Concert Hall and Convention Center	Harpa lobby interior
Harpa lobby interior	Harpa lobby interior
Interesting visuals	Harpa lobby interior
Harpa lobby interior	Steam rising from the pool
View across the harbor from Harpa	View across the harbor from Harpa
The three of us went out to dinner at Reykjavik Fish and Chips, a cute restaurant a block from our hotel. They had wonderful cod fish and chips with a local beer called Borg. Gale had a vegetarian lasagne and salad. The lasagne had black beans in it and it was served in a hot frying pan. It was delicious. Our simple dinners cost $42 US! Iceland is a very expensive country.
	Nice table covering
The best part!	Fish and Chips and Lasagna

Continue on next page