We are still savoring last night’s amazing stroke of luck – witnessing the Aurora Borealis! It was surreal and we are so fortunate that everything came together for it to happen – the weather, the new moon, no cloud cover, and being near a wide open space away from the city lights.

This morning, we had a cup of coffee and a just a little bite to eat for breakfast, as we had signed up to go on The Reykjavik Food Walk this morning. We checked out of the hotel and drove to the 10:30 meeting place in front of the Harpa Concert Hall, but the traffic made us late. I thought I spotted our guide, who would be wearing a blue backpack, so I quickly jumped out of the car and gave Allan my phone since I had downloaded the parking app he needed to park. We had no clue where the parking area was, so Allan went off to try to find it, and I went to find the group.

The person I spotted with the blue backpack had a few people standing with him, so I asked if he was leading the food walk. Nope. Then I went around asking everyone with a blue backpack if this was where I was to be. Nope! So now, it’s getting late. I have no phone, I don’t know where Allan is, and I can’t find my group. At this point, I assumed they left without me. I kept pacing back and forth, second guessing whether this is where I was to meet and I can’t check because…I don’t have my phone.

After what seemed like an eternity, a young girl came out and called my name. Thank goodness. I was just about to borrow a phone from someone to call Allan. Then, I see Allan approaching. Our guide Jenny had called my phone to see where we were, and Allan told her I was outside the building. So, it all worked out and we apologized profusely to the group for our tardiness.

It was interesting finding out where all the others in the tour hailed from. New Zealand, Texas, New Jersey, to mention a few places. One couple had been camping for the past week. We told everyone about seeing the northern lights last night, and they all said they hadn’t been lucky so far to witness them.

So off we all went and our first stop was Hressingarskalinn to enjoy a traditional Icelandic breakfast. We had delicious meat on bread, a thick and savory yogurt called skyr, and a very thin crepe with sugar. The skyr is delicious. We don’t have anything like it in the states.

After breakfast, we walked to a stand for an authentic Icelandic hotdog. Wow! They are delicious. The main ingredients of Iceland’s hot dogs are predominantly lamb, and the rest of the dog is beef, and pork. Lamb is the secret ingredient to the Icelandic hotdog, unlike the typical hot dog elsewhere, which uses only pork or beef.

Icelandic sheep is one of the purest domesticated breeds of sheep in the world. They graze on lush countryside farmlands and enjoy cruelty-free and hormone-free environments. This setup ensures their meat is organic, high quality, and healthy (for a hot dog!). 

Then you have the toppings that go on it. Raw mild onions, fried crunchy onions, ketchup (which is a thinner ketchup than we are used to and it has a little apple cider in it), a sweet brown mustard, (locally known as pylsusinnep), and finally, a remoulade, which is a mayonnaise-based condiment. It is by far the best hot dog I’ve ever eaten.

The picture doesn’t show all the delicious yummies that are underneath the dog.

Next on the food walk was a restaurant called Fjallkonan, where we enjoyed creamy lamb on bread and also Arctic char. The lamb was outstanding, but the char was a little fishy for my taste.

We walked the rainbow street where Gay Pride is celebrated. As our guide said, Icelanders are patriotic and celebrate their Independence Day, but Gay Pride is huge and it is embraced wholeheartedly. As our guide said, acceptance and love for all our fellow human beings is where it’s at, and I totally agree.

Sjavargrillid was our next stop where we enjoyed sweet, tender langoustine tacos. But before everyone dove into the tacos, Jenny brought out fermented shark and Brennivin, known as the “Black Death” because its consumption has caused many “deaths” of people passing out by drinking too much. It’s actually aquavit and Jenny encouraged all of us to try it. But first, we had to open the fermented shark jar and smell it. Then we put the shark on a toothpick and chewed it 10 times, swallowed, and chugged the shot of Brennivin and then slammed the shot glass down and yelled like a Viking “skál” (cheers). When I say “we”, I mean everyone BUT me! Fermented shark? I think not. Anthony Bourdain said, upon trying it, its “the single worst thing I’ve ever put in my mouth!”  Allan was a trooper and chewed and swallowed and said drinking down the Brennivin afterwards helped.

We weren’t able to go to the last place to taste some Icelandic dessert, as we had to leave to catch our flight. We bid everyone safe travels, and thanked our guide Jenny who really was very entertaining and a lot of fun.

Our flight was uneventful on Icelandair. The food was actually very good. They served duck confit which was delicious.

As Allan and I were driving to the airport, we both said we’d come back to Iceland. We’d love to live there for a few months and really immerse ourselves in the culture. The country is beautiful, with such diverse topgraphy. The people are kindhearted and helpful. It truly was a vacation we’ll remember for a long time.

And seeing the Northern Lights. (sigh!)