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Iceland

Popular corner to meet and people watch

Many neat shops to stroll around and visit

Great way to say pedistrian and bikes only

First view of the Iconic Church Hallgrímskirkja Church .

Great window shopping

Not quite sure what this was about

Hallgrímskirkja Church is without a doubt Reykjavik’s most iconic building. The church, designed by the state architect Guðjón Samúelsson, was constructed from 1945 to 1986. Hallgrimskirkja, which is 244 ft tall, is Iceland’s second tallest building, after the Smáratorg Tower in Kópavogur

This heroic-looking man is Leifur Eirícsson – the first known European to have discovered the continent of North America. According to Icelandic Sagas, he arrived in Vinland (now Newfoundland in Canada) around 1000 and established a Norse settlement in the new land

Hallgrimskirkja’s enormous size was also frequently debated; at that time there were few tall buildings in Iceland and the surrounding houses looked tiny compared to this huge church. The church was built during times of inflation and that made financing the construction hard. Disunity about the church’s design didn’t help either. When the church was finally inaugurated in 1986, 65% of the construction costs had been covered by parishioners. The façade of Hallgrímskirkja is, like several other buildings in Iceland, inspired by columnar basalts. Other elements of the church are also inspired by Icelandic nature, such as volcanoes, geysers and the vast wilderness.

Interior view with the magnificent organ pipes on the forward wall

The church’s interior is impressive too, although it hardly rivals the unique exterior. The most notable feature of the interior is probably the 50 ft tall Klais organ, which is the largest musical instrument in Iceland. It consists of 5275 pipes and weighs 50,000 pounds.

View of the organ with the keys closed for viewing.

The back of the Statue of Leif Eiricsson. Ironically the white building to the left there is a restaurant called Loki, which means in Icelandic, the God of Mischief. They make the best Fish Stew that I have had anywhere in the world. I had two dinners it was so good.

Walking back to the hotel I ran into the one and only in the world "The Penis Museum". I did not go in.

I looked up on line what could be inside. The Icelandic Phallological Museum contains a collection of more than two hundred and fifteen penises and penile parts belonging to almost all the land and sea mammals that can be found in Iceland.

There is also an Icelandic Punk Museum in town I discovered. Totally different types of museums.

Visitors to the museum will encounter fifty six specimens belonging to seventeen different kinds of whale, one specimen taken from a rogue polar bear, thirty-six specimens belonging to seven different kinds of seal and walrus, and one hundred and fifteen specimens originating from twenty different kinds of land mammal: all in all, a total of two hundred and nine specimens belonging to forty six different kinds of mammal, including specimens from Homo Sapiens.

Höfði was built in 1909. Höfði was originally built for the French consul in Iceland. The historical event that Höfði owes its fame to is the 1986 meeting of Mikhail Gorbatsjov and Ronald Reagan. This event, as you probably know already, marked the end of the Cold War.

Different view of Harpa Reykjavik's Concert and Conference Hall on the bay.

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