November 24

I got up during the night but still no northern lights I guess we will have to go to Finland or Norway next and try! We got away relatively early and there was actually some frost and ice on the road. Good thing we had studded tires on the panda! We made a quick coffee stop in pingvellir national park for a coffee and view of the lake. The sun was just starting to rise so you could see a nice glow highlighting the mountains. We drove into what felt like a huge city (the rest of the island seems very quiet) and to the amazingly huge church in Reykjavik. It was such a contrast with the concrete and basalt looking columns, truely unique. I’m not sure if I love it or hate it. The glow behind it when we first got there definitely made it look even more spectacular. From there we wandered around the city. We walked along the harbour and saw the fishing boats, poked into a few shops, and admired the square colourful buildings. Some of their modern architecture is neat but anything a little older is just a box. At least in the old town they used some fun colours. We also found a restaurant that served puffin and whale! Before we left we had to find a fish and chips shop, which we did. It was pretty tasty. We took the scenic route to the airport and went along the coast and through one of the geothermal parks. It still looks like the moon to me! Although it was less eerie now then when we first got in. After dropping the car off it was time to go to the airport. Goodbye Iceland. It’s been a unique, expensive trip full of landscapes I’ve never seen before.