Day 2: Reykjavik June 21 2025
Breakfast at the hotel. Full day at leisure to continue your exploration of the region around Reykjavik. You can also opt for one of the optional tours ($) available, ranging from traditional sightseeing to soft adventure activities. (Breakfast)
The June solstice (summer solstice) in Reykjavik is at 2:42 am on Saturday, June 21, 2025. In terms of daylight, this day is 17 hours, 1 minute longer than the December solstice.
We have booked an optional tour at 9AM. It is a 15 minute walk to the meeting place and we need to be there for 8:30 therefore we left about 8.
Whale Watching Tour The meeting point for this tour is by the old harbour in central Reykjavik for the wildlife adventure of a lifetime. This tour is operated on a super comfortable specialized Whale Watching boat that is one of the fastest in Iceland, making the experience as fun, efficient and as safe as possible. You can expect to see great views of Reykjavik city and the coastline, rich birdlife and of course, the wild whales. From Faxaflói bay there are mainly Minkie Whales, Humpback whales, Harbour Porpoises, and Dolphins although other species can be spotted as well. And if you don’t see any whales, join in again for free!
We had missed out on a boat tour in Newfoundland in 2022 due to Hurricane Fiona!
We bundled up and wore our rain pants. Luckily we did not get any rain while on the water although it was a little brisk!
Before leaving we had filled our water bottles from the tap!! Imagine, it is delicious and perfectly fine to drink.
We were surrounded by whales as we saw many blowholes and we did see at least three humpbacks as they rose to the surface. We concentrated on seeing them rather than trying to ger photos.
The tour company will send the photos they took if requested, I did!
We would see them when they were coming up to dive further down, much like we do when we kick our legs to go under.
Walking back, the prime minister's office and house.
Our guide told us that there is great security around their "White House", see the big fence?? And there are 3 cameras and one is broken. He said "you could knock on the door and SHE would answer", kidding, don't do it.
For the first time in Iceland’s history, women lead all public and private universities, the government coalition parties, and the city council—a milestone in gender equality.
Silja Bára Ómarsdóttir prepares to take over as rector of the University of Iceland. Silja is only the second woman to hold the position since the university’s founding in 1911. Before her, 38 men served as rector.
As of this year, women also hold key national leadership roles. These include:
President of Iceland (Halla Tómasdóttir)
Prime Minister (Kristrún Mjöll Frostadóttir)
Bishop of Iceland (Guðrún Karls Helgudóttir)
National Police Commissioner (Sigríður Björk Guðjónsdóttir)
and State Prosecutor (Sigríður J. Friðjónsdóttir).
I had cancelled our whale/puffin tour and bought two separate tours instead. That allowed us to use our "free" included Hop On Hop Off voucher in the afternoon as we should be off the boat around noon and can grab a bite to eat.
We decided not to bother with the Hop On and instead just wander. We had seen or would see most of the sights on our own, plus it was raining.
First we went back to the hotel to get rid of our extra clothing then it was time for lunch. With no plans, John spotted this place, good light menu and "reasonable" prices.
Fish and chips
Lamb soup
Bride, in the pouring rain.
Wedding party.
After lunch, simply strolling in the rain.
Kaldi Bar, Grettisgata
Albert Einstein and TuPac Shakir and Albert Einstein by @juanpicturesart
We'd wanted to try their rye bread ice cream, but it was packed and too rainy to sit outside.
You thought a punk museum located in a former toilet was odd? How about a penis museum?
What I thought was a spelling mistake on a sign describing how he started collecting, was actually a new word to me PIZZLE - the penis of an animal, especially a bull.
Penis phone!
A short rest before we went to dinner at Fiskfelagid - The Fish Company. Funny, we had walked around this area several times and never saw the sign.
Dinner reservation 7:30 Fish Company
Our location, the old Zimsen building, traces its roots back to the year 1884 but back then it was a small store. 120 years later the building was moved from its original home and placed in the heart of Reykjavík. There it was renovated and refurbished with care and love.
If you want to know how expensive Iceland is, divide the price by 10 as a rough guide.
A shrimp amuse-bouche and JAPAN - WASABI 4.290 kr.
mixed 8 piece SUSHI platter, deepfried LOBSTERROLL tempura, SALMON & TUNA nigiri, SOFTSHELL maki with chili & TRUFFLE paste
Delicious bread and butter, we were told to butter the bread and then dip it in the granola! Seriously this was good.
ICELAND - FISH 7.390 kr.
finest FISH TRIO OF THE DAY, fresh from the sea through our old FISHERMAN friend. Please consult your waiter. Breaded plaice, ling and wolffish - for me.
ICELAND - MUSTARD 9.490 kr.
pan-seared LAMB RIB EYE & pressed SIDE of LAMB with lovage, caramelized celeriac puree & fondant celeriac, homemade MUSTARD & RHUBARB demi glace - John
Walking back in the daylight at 10 PM! A stop for a Guinness and some music. We didn't enjoy this band as much as last night. It was still pouring out as everyone arrived cold and wet.
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