We arrived in Reykjavik about 9 am after a long day of traveling. Our approach into the airport was through a lot of cloud, breaking out about 800 feet. It was raining. I sorta expected that as I had been keeping an eye on the weather in Iceland over the last few months. Of course when it rains, we go to plan B which is Plan A with rain gear. We were met by a driver who took us straight to our hotel, The Leifur Hotel. We arrived about 10:30 and were happy to find that there was a room available for us so we could get settled in. After that we headed out (in the rain) to see what we could see in Reykjavik.

We found out about a walking tour at the Information Center so we decided to take it. The guide was humorous and gave us an Iceland native's view of things. That view included Iceland politics as well as international politics. One interesting discussion was about Iceland's potential entry into the EU. It is not obvious that this will happen because a good part of the population realizes that the EU wants to regulate everything and that would put their fishing industry at jeopardy to the whims of bureaucrats. That sounds like a losing proposition to me. Ask the Scots about that one.

By this time I was getting pretty tired, but I was determined not to give in. I have found that instant jet lag remediation could be achieved if I stay up until local bed time despite the overwhelming need of my body to sleep. So we continued to walk around. We saw the huge map of Iceland at City Hall. Not much there except a huge relief map, but it was interesting because you could see what the terrain was like. It is pretty bleak for sure. The interior is very bleak. We will be getting a chance to go there on this trip.

We decided to check out a food store to see what prices were like. Expensive, for the most part. We did a bit more of a walkaround then hit a Subway sandwich shop to pick up a little dinner. There are seven Subway shops in Reykjavik.

We headed back to the hotel and relaxed. Ginny walked over to Nordic Visitor to have a chat with the guy who has helped arrange all the stuff. Then she checked out the Hallgrimskirkja, a big church right across from our hotel. It is interesting because it was designed by a fellow who is Icelandic in a style that seems to be peculiarly Icelandic. You will note the little vertical structures. They are in the style of basalt columns which is a volcanic rock formation that is found all over Iceland. I thought that was pretty neat.

After working on the pictures and working the diary, we hit the sack at a normal bedtime which should put an end to jet lag. We will see.