Reykjavík Grapevine - 09.09.2016, Blaðsíða 56

Reykjavík Grapevine - 09.09.2016, Blaðsíða 56
Every tourist that comes to Iceland sets foot in Keflavík, but they rare- ly stay there—staring at the town instead through the windows of the Flybus. Not wishing to sugar- coat it: Keflavík has a questionable reputation. It’s not necessarily a place most Icelanders would visit in their free time. When I asked friends who had lived there for recommendations, most laughed: “Uh, leave?” Iceland 4 real But, not to be deterred, I ap- proached my visit to Keflavík with no bias, and I’m happy I did, be- cause I found it to be a delightful little city with a charm of its own. Unlike Reykjavík, dotted with Puf- fin Shops and tourist information centres, Keflavík feels more like a real town. There are coffee shops, hair salons, and an optician. It’s kind of refreshing, especially for those who’d like to see the “au- thentic” side of life in Iceland. I started my day at Kaffi Duus. Armed with a cup of coffee, I sam- pled the buffet, which had a selec- tion of fish, meat, and soup. The meal was satisfying, but I wouldn’t necessarily choose the place as a culinary destination. Rather, it was the location that made this place worthy of a visit. The café sits right on the harbour, with a beautiful view of the rugged sea and colorful fishing boats. We of- ten think of lava fields and volca- noes when thinking of Icelandic scenery, but the coastline of Ke- flavík is a treasure. Mother Atlan- tic is harsh and unrelenting, yes, but she’s also incredibly beauti- ful. There’s a path along the shore from Kaffi Duus that was abso- lutely marriage-proposal-worthy. I didn’t get a chance to walk it, but I certainly fantasised. A sleeping giant Attached to Kaffi Duus is the Duus Museum. There are a few col- lections housed in the museum, each vastly different than the other. The first contains a num- ber of model ships, but the word “number” fails to do it justice. The guide tells me that only one fifth of Grímur Karlsson’s work lies in this particular museum, which is insane, as there are model ships as far as the eye can see. There are also two temporary exhibits at the moment—one by Íris Rós Söring and another by Elínrós Blomquist Eyjólfsdóttir. I was par- ticularly fond of Elínrós’s flowers, made in kind of an O'Keeffe-rococo style. I was instantly in love. But walk down the road from Duus, and you’l l come across something unexpected. After a path sprinkled with massive foot- prints, a haphazard stone house comes into view. This is Skes- suhellir—the home of a giantess. Inside, fast asleep in a rocking chair, a massive lady lies. I’m not going to lie, I found the whole thing kind of creepy. But it was definitely an ex- perience I’ll remember—no magic beans required. So while you might not put Ke- flavík onto your must-see list in Iceland, you could definitely spend a lovely day there. Stop by the Ice- landic Museum of Rock ‘n’ Roll, en- joy a coffee on the coast, check out some beautiful art—what more could you ask for? DRIVE-THROUGH TOWN Keflavík, The Realest Town What happens when an entire town gets real Words HANNAH JANE COHEN Photos ART BICNICK Share & More pics GPV.IS/KEF14 The Norðurflug he- licopter tours com- pany has launched a new combination trip for the winter season, when the northern lights are often to be seen dancing their way across Iceland’s skies. Despite being prohibited from making helicopter flights af- ter dark, they’ve decided to team up with a boating firm and offer an in- teresting alternative: by day, they’ll take people for a panoramic birds- eye view of the city and the beauti- ful surrounding mountains; then by night they’ll shift onto boats to get away from the city lights and, hopefully, experience some aurora. Find out more at helicopter.is A survey was carried out by Fer- ðapúls Isavia, the Icelandic Tour- ist Board, and Gallup recently to see how satisfied visitors were after their Icelandic holiday. The results were subdivided by nation- ality, with Russian tourists turn- ing out to be the most satisfied, giving an average score of 90.8. Japanese tourists were the least satisfied, giving an average of 74. However, the methodology could explain why. Apparently, one key question was about whether the trip “exceeded expectation.” We’ve so many questions of our own: maybe the Russians just had low expectations? And are Japanese tourists in danger of a new version of Paris Syndrome? Despite the rumbling of the South Iceland volcano Katla, and the alarmed shockwaves it caused in the international press, there are no concrete signs of an imminent eruption. As such, the Mýrdal- sjökull area remains open for visi- tors. Even so, anyone going to the area needs to follow basic safety advice, such as: don’t venture onto a glacier without suitable attire and preparation; if hiking in the area, check the conditions ahead of time, and keep a mobile phone or track- ing device with you. And on the off chance an eruption should occur: seek advice on the safety of the area before ploughing in there. TRAVEL NEWS IN BRIEF The Reykjavík Grapevine Issue 14 — 2016 56
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