Well, it’s official – I am finally…lonely. I can humbly admit that last night was difficult. This country is so amazing and I’ve done so many once-in-a-lifetime things and last night it really hit me how much I wish I had someone to share that with. Don’t get me wrong, I did’t let it get me down but it was the first time that I felt that ache since I’ve been here. In some ways, its a good thing. It means I’m ready to go home. Enough about that…more about another incredible day yesterday.
My morning was spent wandering around Reykjavik. I haven’t spent much time getting lost in the city so decided to do that. I also haven’t spent ANY time shopping and am now feeling a little pressure in that area. For those of you that know me, I always bring back some piece of local art from every place that I travel to. That way my home is filled with memories of all of the places I’ve had the fortune of going to. So I was able find a couple of places that I’ll go back to today and pick up a memory of Iceland.
In the afternoon, I was off to ride Icelandic horses with Islenski Hesturinn – a company that was recommended by Trip Advisor and by more than one person that I’ve met while here. The stable – which is run by a woman called Begga. She grew up in Reykjavik but has traveled the world. I’m not even sure how many languages she spoke. More than 4…Anyway, she was absolutely fabulous. She had a smile that could light up a room and was so passionate about what she does and her horses and that passion was contagious. She sat us down for around 30 minutes and spoke to us about what we’d experience and how to ride. There were only 4 of us on the tour so it was very intimate.
The Icelandic horse is different from any other horse in the world. They are smaller than other horses but very, very powerful. The real difference, however, is how purebread they are. No horses – in all of Iceland – are vaccinated. And, if a horse leaves the country they are not allowed back in. Iceland is very proud of their horses and rightly so. In addition, the Icelandic horse has 5 gaits. Most horses have 3 – walk, trot and gallop – which should sound familiar. The other 2 gaits are the unique tolt and the beautiful flying pace. We would be riding using the tolt on the tour but Begga showed us photos of horses using both the tolt and the flying pace. In photos of a horse using the tolt you can see that only one hoof is on the ground at a time. Unbelievable, right? And with the flying pace, NO hoof is on the ground at a certain point. Even more unbelievable – and gorgeous! The tolt is unique because the ride is smooth. Icelandics joke that you can ride and sip a glass of champagne at the same time – with no spilling. It sounded amazing and we were off.
My horse was named Ljosbra – a gorgeous white and brown female. We mounted the horses and were given a little direction before we left the gate. We were told to have our heels down and sit in the saddle like you sit on a couch – ‘heavy’ is what Begga called it. That’s how you communicated to your horse that you were ready to tolt. Well, it took me quite a while but I finally got the hang of it. I’m sure most people have trotted or galloped on a horse; you really do bounce quite a bit. But when you are tolting, there is honestly no bounce! Its the most incredible feeling in the world. So smooth and fast. I would go between trotting and tolting because my form would change and the horse would know and the difference was so stark. So yes, I was walking around last night like I’d spent time on horse 🙂 But by the end of the ride, I was like an old pro – thanks to Begga and her instruction and of course, practice.
The ride itself was over 2.5 hours long. We rode around some lava fields near the stable and by lakes and mountains made of volcanic ash. As with everything in Iceland, the scenery was fantastic and wild. Begga took photos of us the whole time and, although I don’t have any right now of me on one of these beautiful creatures, I will have some within 2 weeks and I’ll make sure I post them here.
This tour was definitely another highlight of my trip here. I think that I had a huge grin on my face the entire time I was riding – especially when we were going fast and I had the tolt down. And like I said, Begga’s passion was contagious and the horses were so beautiful and sweet.
I got back to my hotel for a quick shower and decided to take in the local art scene. There’s a show currently on at the Harpa in Reykjavik called ‘How to Become Icelandic in 60 Minutes’. It’s a one-man comedy show that makes fun of all things Icelandic. I had wanted to take some time to see the concert hall called Harpa and thought the show might be enlightening and entertaining. So off I went.
Harpa is a stunning concert hall near the harbor in Reykjavik. It was originally funded privately but when the financial crisis occurred in 2008, construction on the hall stopped. Finally, when things started to look up financially, the government decided to complete the construction. It is something the Icelandics talk about with a good bit of sarcasm because the development was intended to include a 400-room hotel, luxury apartments, retail units, restaurants, a car park and the new headquarters of Icelandic bank Landsbanki but now just includes the concert hall. Regardless, it is a stunning building and the show was so funny.
The show was put on by a Reykjavik local who provided 15 lessons on how to be Icelandic; all of them poking fun at the Icelandic. Some of the lessons included ‘Love the balls’, which refers to the tradition of eating Ram’s balls and the pronunciation for Eyjafjallajökull, which is the volcano that erupted in 2010. We also learned that on the weekend we should get drunk and have sex. It reminded me of an offer I got earlier in the week…the show was very funny and it ended with a video montage of why we love Iceland. The images of glaciers and volcanoes were stunning as you could imagine.
I made a quick stop at The Icelandic bar for a glass of wine and to watch the world go by. But by 11, accounting for the loneliness, I was asleep in my own apartment.
Below is an awesome video of the horses scratching their backs after the ride. They look like they are in heaven!
I’m also including a beautiful picture of a garden outside Parliament (not too much security, huh?) and a picture of the Settlement Exhibition. Notice it says 871 +- 2. That’s because they’re not positive of the year the Vikings arrived.
