Iceland Day 4. Blue Lagoon

So today was my very last day in Iceland, and my very last day before I set off back home!

After a deliciously long lie in I woke up and head off to Loki Cafe, a traditional Icelandic Cafe specialising in 'Icelandic delicacies'! I opted for the Icelandic Platter...

 Featuring: 2 slices of  rye Bread one with mashed fish, another with smoked trout. Flatbread with smoked lamb, dried fish with butter and…. a bit of fermented shark (the menu didn't list fermented shark as I wouldn't have ordered it but the chef found out I wanted to try some traditional Icelandic food and added it on for me to give it a go!)

The meal was… interesting. The dried fish with butter was surprisingly good, as was the rye bread with mashed fish while the Rye bread itself was just amazing. The fermented shark was definitely not something I'll be recommending… urgh. 

 Right outside the Cafe is the Hallgrimskirkja Cathedral which is made to reflect the cliff faces I saw yesterday and it's really rather beautiful and startling. 

 I booked my bus to the Blue Lagoon for the early afternoon so I spent the rest of the morning pottering about Reykjavik for the last time as it really is a lovely city with lots of quirky corners

 There was an art exhibition going on in the middle of the city with photos from the mountains

 And I also spotted some lovely graffiti dotted around which really added to the community feel 

 It felt like I'd only been walking around Reykjavik for a few moments before I set off to get my bus and all I can say about the Blue Lagoon is wow. 

The Landscape around the Blue Lagoon is pure volcanic rocks and they just look amazing with the milky turquoise water that's naturally heated to around 40 degrees!

 I decided to completely pamper myself with this day at the Blue Lagoon and after getting my bracelet (which allows you to buy drinks and lock your locker) I didn't hesitate to make the most of the beautiful  pool and surroundings.

 I spent about an hour simply pottering about before I headed back into the locker room to grab my camera so I could get a couple of shots of the blue lagoon. 

 The water was lovely and warm, which given that every so often there was as cool freeze the contrast was amazing.. needles to say I spent the majority of the day in a luxurious state of bliss! 

despite it being quite busy, there were always deserted corners you could go to and just relax on your own - they also have a max so it never actually gets all that busy

I loved how the spa was a mix of natural ruggedness and modern stylishness so the bottom of the pool was smoothed but it was still kept 'authentic' so you often snubbed your toes since the floor was uneven and rocky! 

 The view from the pool more than made up for a couple of snubbed toes and bruises!

One of the best bits was that they had free mud available for face masks - needless to say I did several face masks and spent the day alternating between doing some lovely face masks and sipping a drink from the swim up bar! 

 I had the most amazing last day and I left completely relaxed ready for my crazy sleepless night and early morning getting back to the UK. The way back to reykjavik was pretty cool too as it was over the lava fields!

Iceland Day 1. Reykjavik

After some drama with my bank - yes I know, again. 

I paid for my accommodation, stored my luggage and set out to wander about the city. 

Although it's summer it was pretty drizzly, but I guess I should get used to that before coming back to the UK!

 This is the hostel cat who was dozing in reception when I checked in - complete cutie and just loved getting paid attention! :)

Reykjavik shopping was really fun, there were lots of touristy shops offering tax and cut free bits and pieces, as well as quite a few selling souvenirs. 

 But what I loved most was the great blend between modern european sleek designate that was really reflective of nordic style (think norway, sweden and finland), with traditional elements of Icelandic tradition 

There were quite a few of these big polar bears outside a couple of shops in town!

 I loved these graphic, almost boutique, shops - the downside was I wanted to buy everything!

These are a well known 'landmark' for Reykjavik!

 After wandering the streets for a bit I decided to treat myself to brunch in the oldest cafe in Reykjavik!

 Since I'd been awake ridiculously long I ordered the 'Hangover Sandwich' as I was feeling a bit hungover from lack of sleep! 

 Reykjavik is ridiculously expensive, so I'm not going to mention how much this cost, but it was a lovely treat to read my book (pride and prejudice) in the warmth before venturing out into the rain!

 I really, really liked Reykjavik with all the different restaurants and shops - it just had such a unique character and feel to it!

 This cafe had an interesting board outside!

 I think the Iclandic accent adds to me liking the city so much - it's just hilarious!

 After spending some time at the city I headed to the Marina and to the view point out over the bay

 There was this particular view point with a lovely feature, I think it's really appropriate to the Iceland's history as I thought it was a great mix of a viking boat, the nordic history as well as the reliance on fishing to survive!

 The view out over the bay was really lovely from this spot too

 random tie mural!

 All the streets in Reykjavik are just adorable as the majority of houses are painted such lovely pretty colours that they brighten the place up regardless of the weather!

 after spending quite a lot of time in Reykjavik I headed back to the hostel to the lovely hostel garden where I sampled some Icelandic sweets which were… interesting!

 I finally got into my room and was pleasantly surprised to find my 'dorm' only had one other person! Makes me feel a bit better about how much I'm paying! 

Travelling Day 68. To Iceland!

So I'm not really sure where to start todays post from, but I'm going to go from spending an hour going through security again in Reykjavik. On the plus side since I have an EU passport they barely glanced at me and just ushered me through

I had a bit of a nasty shock when my suitcase came out though. Complete. State.

I'm actually a little (more than just a little) mortified to be pushing/dragging it around.

So to recap: It's missing a wheel. As in the wheel just isn't there anymore. Another wheel doesn't do what it's told and makes terrible squeaky noises. The front is massive frayed from NZ. The edges are coming away from the frame after LA. The are several little tears from San Francisco.

And now, there is a massive rip in the back from Iceland!

I'm so glad it only has to survive one more trip because honestly I don't think it can make any more.

Aside from that… I found the bus booth and booked my return bus ticket and then I hopped on the bus to my hostel. I arrived at about 9am (having landed at 6am) so I couldn't check in yet but that was fine, and expected, so after rummaging round in my suitcase and getting a change of clothes I headed into Reykjavik centre to explore the city a little bit.

Canada Day 10. Mont Royal

I was promised a mountain today, instead I just got a big hill. Not overly impressed I was looking forward to a nice hike. Although given the way some people looked at the look out platform you could have easily been mistaken to think they'd just climbed a mountain!

The walk to the 'mount' was pretty, partly because I'm still revelling in all the older buildings

Once I got to Mount Royal there was some lovely landscaped sections before you get onto the trail, and I couldn't help thinking this would be the perfect spot for a picnic in summer!

There were also some roads than randomly ran up the hill (I guess if you can't be bothered to walk?)

I ended up taking these steps, and all i can say is they were a pain. And never ending. 

There were also always about 10 people one each platform attempting to catch their breath, which would have been a little funny if they hadn't been taking up all the space so you couldn't get past..

I wasn't really sure what to expect when I got to the top so I made sure to snap a picture of the view on the way up! - lots of people turned around here too which made me wonder if they simply couldn't be bothered walking the rest, or if they knew something i didn't! 

At the top the view was pretty good though!

You got great look outs over Downtown Montreal and the weather held too so no fear of rain!

The park was actually really pretty and I managed to take shelter in one of the park buildings (which was beautiful) while it rained briefly before I headed back to the hostel to back since I had an early wake up for my bus tomorrow

Canada Day 9. Underground City

Today was a lot cloudier today (although not much cooler) but that actually worked out pretty well since I was planning to enter the Underground City! Basically, there are miles and miles of shopping centres and tunnels running underneath Monteal 

Because there is so much snow and it gets so incredibly cold here in winter it's impossible to shop outside, it'd just be too dangerous. So they have 4 or 5 big shopping centres entirely underground and then there's connecting passages from one mall to another.

It's surprising the different shops they have as you really can find just about everything you need!

This one was called Complexe Desjardins and was one of the smallest!

After a lot of window shopping (got to keep an eye on that baggage weight allowance) I headed out down Sainte Catherine to the film festival that's being held. Since the films were all in french though i didn't exactly linger!

As I was heading back to the hostel I passed Plateau Mont Royal and saw there was a big street market going on! So I obviously detoured!

Almost every shop and cafe on the street had their own stall out which was really lovely as there was a definite atmosphere of neighbours doing the fair together

I had to take a photo when I saw this!

Turns out it was Mix Arts festival, which made sense as there was a little bit of everything 

There were also some really good sales with some of the boutiques having  40% off sales (so tempting)

I settled with buying a mango cut into the shape of a flower instead!

Apparently it's on for a few days so I'm definitely going to stop by tomorrow for dinner as the paella and some of the japanese food looked amazing!