Ashore in Reykjavik
19 July 2019 | Reykjavik
Helen

Mark set the alarm to 7 am. We stayed up way too late knowing that we had an extra hour of sleep last night as our time fell back one hour. We are now only 4 hours ahead of EST. I woke up before 6 am and it was bright and sunny and I could see the mountainous shoreline in the distance. Tried to go back to sleep but could not fall asleep. Decided to get dressed. Opened our sliding door and stepped out to take a few pictures. It was cold outside and the breeze was stiff as we motored towards shore. I didn't stay outside very long. I came back in and waited for Mark to wake up. Eventually, he got up and got dressed. We headed up to Deck 7, Lido, for breakfast. Then came back to our cabin and packed up a bag to take to shore. Our ship docked and the Captain announced that everyone was cleared for getting off the ship. We decided to head over early as the port terminal offered free wifi. Our rental vehicle was available from 10 am. We could see the Enterprise shop from our ship, so it was an easy walk for us. There was no line up getting off the ship. However, the few people in the Port Terminal building were tying up the wifi or the connection was pretty weak. Mark loaded Google Maps Iceland on his phone and notebook. Then we walked over to the Rental shop. There were a lot of people sitting in their waiting room, but they were very well organized. So, it didn't take too long. Our car was a 5-speed. It did not have any special features like air conditioning or cruise control. It was cold enough that we should not have needed any air conditioning. The good news, too, was that they drive on the right side of the road. It's been a while, and I only remember Mark turning on the windshield wipers, once, when changing lanes. Our first stop was at the Great Geysir which was 70 miles away. It took us around 1 ¾ hour to drive there. The different hiways were in good shape, with a couple of places under construction. The speed limit was 90 kilometers. The hot springs were still active. They had a number of restaurants where we parked the car. We walked over to the many smalls geysers before waiting for the large one to spray. We didn't have to wait long. Mark didn't get the camera turned on before it shot up the hot water spray. It was impressive but happened too fast. By this time, the wind speed increased and it started raining some. Thankfully, I wore two sweaters plus a jacket. Still, I was cold. It did not take more than a couple of minutes for the next eruption. This time we were ready. Took lots of pictures. Then headed to the restaurant area and had some very expensive burgers for lunch. We headed back to the car and drove about 5 miles to the Gullfoss Waterfalls. Again, it was raining or the huge gusty winds were pushing the spray off the falls in our direction. There was a walkway at the top level, plus a very long staircase down to the lower path. We bundled up and climbed down the stairs. The falls view was stunning! It was much bigger than I thought it would be. There were several flows of water falling in-between the huge rock walls. We were getting soaked from the spray, was the only down side. It was not easy to take pictures when the wind was so strong. Mark almost lost his hat. Good thing I had a hood on my jacket as it kept my hat on my head. Our next stop was the Blue Lagoon. It took us 2 ½ hours to drive there as it was just on the other side of Reykjavik. We spoke with a couple in the parking lot. They said they booked their reservation a couple of days ago. We didn't know we had to have a reservation. We checked when we got there and the earliest time available was 9 pm or tomorrow morning. We bought a drink in their cafe area which had glassed walls looking out on the lagoon. The lava rocky edges and very pale blue waters were amazing. I didn't think there were too many people in the many pools. Mark noticed that they had a bar set up in a few places. Most people in the water, were standing with a cocktail in one hand. So, we decided we would not come back later tonight. It was too cold for me and it would be even colder as the day progressed. I didn't think we would have enough time in the morning, either. So, we enjoyed their free wifi where I posted many Iceland pictures on Facebook. We found a shopping mall on the way to returning our rental car. However, there was not very many stores and most of them were closed since it was after 5:30. Mark located a gas station to top up our fuel and we headed in that direction. The gas station was close by and it was totally automated. Mark could not get it to take his credit card without entering a pin. So, we checked for another gas station. It was a few miles away, but at least it was a regular one. We filled up and headed back to Enterprise to return our car. We walked back to the Port Terminal. However, by this time, Mark phone was in need of a charge. We had my phone and the tablet on charge while we drove. So, we ended up heading back to our ship. It was around 7 pm. We dropped off our bags to our cabin. Then headed up to Deck 7, Lido, for dinner tonight. There are not as many choices as on the Sea Princess. However, there is plenty of food for us. There were lots of people eating there so it took a while to find an open table. We knew there was only one show tonight at 7:45, so we headed down to the theater. Mark decided he was gong to skip the show and headed back to our cabin. I watched the show with my fellow passengers. There were two local actors, presenting the Icelandic Theatre show. It was supposed to a spoof on their history. It was okay until they selected some people out of the audience and named one of them Donald Trump. I didn't think it was entertaining. Mark ended up going back off the ship to the port terminal. I decided that I didn't want to go. Mark couldn't get the internet to work for him, so he came right back. Watching our tv. I think we're both tired from our day at shore. We have tomorrow morning thru 2 pm to re-visit Reykjavik. There are shuttle buses to the downtown area, so we may do that in the morning. Thanks for the many emails and messages received today. Enjoy your day!