REYKJAVIK IN ONE DAY

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Day 2: KEFLAVÍK - REIKIAVIK: Hallgrímskirkja, Old Harbor, Puffin excursion, Harpa building, Solar Traveler sculpture, Lake Tjörnin ...

We wake up at 6 in the morning ready to start the day moving to Reykjavik, where we will spend the first day of our trip to Iceland for which we already have a good itinerary prepared to see Reykjavik in one day.
But a few minutes after waking up, Roger cannot move from bed due to low back pain that does not pass in any way and causes dizziness and cold sweats.
After assessing the situation a little and seeing that it seems to be getting worse, we decided to call the RACC, our medical insurance and after a few minutes on the phone and go to a doctor, they tell us that both can be a lumbago as a nephritic colic, something Roger already has a history, so they almost confirm us for the symptoms that are most likely.

They inform us that in Iceland, despite being a country with a very good medical infrastructure, the correspondent's service is slow, so it is best to call 112 which is the number of emergencies, say that it has a nephritic colic and so they will come with an emergency ambulance.
In order not to go to the tremendous one, we tell the doctor that we are looking for a pill in the medicine cabinet and he advises us to take a couple of paprine pills every 8 hours, combined with a painkiller every 4 hours and wait for them to take effect between 45 minutes or one hour. And above all, if the pain does not go away and is increasing, call the ambulance urgently.
We could not start the trip in a more "special" way
Seeing how the subject is, we decided to wait for a reasonable time and in view of how it is, decide what we do.
After half an hour or so, the pain seems to decrease a little, so we took the opportunity to eat something and at 9 in the morning we decided to leave the GG Guesthouse and go to Reykjavik, where the largest hospital is also from the country and from which we are now 1 hour and 15 minutes away.
Who was going to think that this was going to happen when yesterday we were landing in Keflavík ...

More practical information to prepare your trip to Iceland
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Seeing that it seems that everything is a little better, we decided not to think too much about it and leave it "parked" waiting for everything to improve.
It's a little after 9 in the morning when we already have the rental car in Iceland loaded and our CityMaps2Go app connected to Reykjavik as a destination.

It's amazing the sunny day we have and the landscapes we are going through. Every kilometer we travel the most we look at each other and smile. We are finally in Iceland and we are sure that you will not be disappointed.

Reykjavik Road

Although it is sunny and the sky is very clear we are only 13 degrees and it shows that it is cool, so the initial idea that on sunny days we would be able to wear short sleeves we discard as the minutes pass.
We arrived to from Keflavík to Reykjavik in less than an hour, much less than expected and at 9.45 we are at the door of our accommodation in Reykjavik, Guesthouse Aurora, right next to Hallgrímskirkja, one of the emblems of the city.
As we cannot check in until 2 in the afternoon, we leave our bags and after talking to the RACC doctor who called us to see how Roger evolves and write down the medication guidelines, we decided to continue with our planning visits Reykjavik in one day and we go straight to Hallgrímskirkja, which as we mentioned before is only a few meters from our accommodation in Reykjavik.

Hallgrímskirkja

Hallgrímskirkja is the building that attracts the most attention in Reykjavik, protagonist of many of Iceland's postcards, visible up to 20 kilometers away.
In contrast to the spectacular exterior, the interior is of absolute simplicity, highlighting a huge pipe organ, which looks like a gigantic weapon and we have the good fortune to listen live.

Hallgrímskirkja interior

Entrance to Hallgrímskirkja is free, but to climb its 75-meter tower and enjoy the views of the city, we pay 700 ISK.

Reykjavik views from Hallgrímskirkja

The views of the city from here are incredible, but it must be said that the interior is all closed and there are only a few windows to peek through.
After a good time enjoying the views and letting Roger take a few minutes of rest, we are on our way to Old Harbor, where we have to be at 12.15 since we have an excursion to see puffins.
We walk through the main street of Reykjavik, at this time full of people on the terraces and in the shops that invite us to stop at every step we take.

Reykjavik Streets

The weather accompanies a lot and it is a real pleasure to walk through these streets with an atmosphere like we had not seen in a city for a long time. It is a mixture of atmosphere and peace that make us want to stay here for several days to enjoy it to the fullest.

Old Harbor Cartel

Reykjavik Harbor

We arrived a few minutes before 12.15 noon at the box office of Special Tours to do the tour to see puffins, the most famous birds in Iceland.

Special Tours in Reykjavik

Later we will see you in the north of the country, but we did not want to miss the experience of taking a boat trip today and more being a day in which circumstances force us to take the day relaxed, although we have to say what to see Reykjavik in one day it's possible. It is clear that not completely, but the most important and tourist areas of the city.
Another good option to see animals from Reykjavik, is to book this boat to spot humpback whales in their natural habitat.

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We have been watching prices while we were walking and the truth is that we cannot say that what we have seen is especially economical, but it is not as expensive as we thought. Perhaps it is because we have been coming from our trip to Switzerland a little more than two weeks ago, a country that we believe is excessively expensive.
The prices that we have more or less seen are that a menu more or less costs about 20 euros, coffees about 2.5 euros, water at a super 1 euro. Of course more expensive than other sites but not exaggerated prices telling us that we are in Iceland.
After collecting our tickets at the box office, it is time to embark on our boat and in less than 15 minutes we are in a kind of island, in front of Reykjavik where we already started to see our first puffins of the trip to Iceland.

Embarking with Special Tours in search of puffins

Landscapes on the excursion to see puffins in Reykjavik

The tour lasts 1 hour and is a unique opportunity if you do not go further north, where you can also see them. We wanted to make sure that much and preferred to see them twice. (Now, ahead of the days, we can tell you that when we were in the north we did not have the opportunity to see them, so if you have time, we advise you not to miss the experience).

Puffins in Iceland

We arrived back at the port at 13.30 noon and being here we can not stop going to one of the most recommended places to eat in Reykjavik, Baejarins, the most famous hot dog bar in the world next to the Berlin Curry36.

Cola to eat hot dogs in Baejarins

When our turn comes we ask for three complete puppies (they say you have to order them like that so they put all the ingredients) and coke for 1400 ISK.

The famous hot dogs of Baejarins

Great !! Although you have to think that they are quite small, so then we have the perfect excuse to go for a good dessert with coffee to a cafeteria that we have recommended.
With a full stomach and Roger quite recovered from his "bad entry into Iceland", we are going to the next visit we have planned on the route of Reykjavik in one day, the famous Viking ship sculpture in Reykjavik or the Sun Ship.
We have only been here for a few hours, but Iceland is enchanting us and we already know that it is only the beginning. This promises a lot.
On the way to the sculpture of the Travelers of the Sun, we pass in front of the Harpa building and following on the right hand side, parallel to the sea, we arrive at La Nave del Sol and we have to say that we don't know exactly why, but it is a beautiful enclave.

Harpa building

Sculpture of the Sun Ship in Reykjavik

Here we have a good time enjoying the surroundings, taking photos and more photos and shortly after 3 in the afternoon we return to the center of Reykjavik, where we stop at one of the main squares, in Café Paris, where we ask for a kleine, the donut from Iceland, a nutella pankake, an American and a cappuccino by 2360 ISK.

Snacking at Café Paris in Reykjavik

This makes us recharge energy although Roger has been feeling a little pain for a couple of hours, so we prefer to go to our guesthouse for a while to rest and leave again a little later.

Reykjavik Streets

It's 6 in the afternoon when we leave the guesthouse again and go straight to the Tjornin Lake Park, where we see many people taking advantage of the sun's rays that the day is giving us.

Tjornin Lake Park

Surroundings of Lake Tjornin

From here we arrive at the Café Paris area, again in the center of Reykjavik, where we had a few hours ago having a snack and as we see that it is not yet dinner time we go to Laugavegur Street, one of the liveliest in Reykjavik where we find number of restaurants, shops, bars ...

Square of the fumaroles in Reykjavik

Reykjavik Center

Being the time it is, we see a lot of people on the terraces again and see that most stores close at 6 in the afternoon. That kind of life we should learn to enjoy more ... We leave it there 😉

Reykjavik Streets

When it is 7.30 we go to the port area, where there is a restaurant that we had recommended where to eat fresh fish, but as soon as we arrive we see a tremendous queue, so we "abort the mission" and we go in search of another Aimed at the downtown area, the Hressingarskalim, where we ordered a plate of salmon, a Caesar salad, water and coke for 4930 ISK.
A good option if you do not want to walk a lot is to book the tourist bus that stops at all points of interest in Reykjavik.

Having dinner in Reykjavik

After 9.45 at night and still with a sun, which seems to never want to hide and with renewed energy, we return to Guesthouse Aurora waiting for Roger to just recover, that tomorrow we start the Iceland route.