Maritime Museum & Þingvellir
Posted in Travel on 07/21/2010 07:44 am by enjanerdWe started our day off walking around Reykjavik, parting ways mid-morning so Ian and I could visit Vikin, Iceland’s Maritime Museum, and everyone else could go to the National Museum.
On our way to the museum, we saw a sign indicating hard hats and steel-toed boots were required to go down a side street. It seemed that Reykjavik had a dry dock! We were able to get a closer look later from the other end of the street that did not require safety gear.
We spent about an hour in the museum learning about the history of trawling and then another hour in Óðinn, Iceland’s decommissioned Offshore Patrol Vessel.
Definite highlights were having the tour guide tell us about all 3 Cod Wars and pointing out that the gun on the ship was built in 1898. Oh, and Óðinn was decommissioned in 2006.
We met up with Cassia, Sune, and Julia early afternoon to head out to Þingvellir and learn about Viking parliament! We saw the law stone, which was lost due to earthquakes, but a flag was placed in the approximate location and stadium seating was available to listen to the speakers. The continental drift between the North American and Eurasian Plates (which cause the earthquakes) can be clearly seen in this region.
For dinner, we tried some “authentic” American-style dining at Grillhusid. The burgers were pretty adequate, but their “cold slaw” was not cole slaw. They claimed it was mayo and sugar, but it tasted a lot like whipped cream. Weird. And Ian’s meal was somewhat noteworthy for how old his potato looked, like it had been baked, frozen for months, and then re-heated. So, if you’re looking for low-end dining in Iceland, go for the fries.