Scoop
Oct 18, 99, 7:05 am
This promised to be an exhausting trip, and we weren't disappointed! Taking advantage of Icelandair 'Lucky' fares for a weekend concert in Reykjavic, we set out directly from work, leaving downtown YYZ at 4pm on Friday:
17:00 (YYZ):
Arrived at the airport with just enough time to grab a handful of cashews and a beer in the MLL - nothing special to report - we only had about 10 minutes to kill before boarding AC 808 to Boston, departing at 17:40.
17:40 (YYZ):
Pushback exactly on time. VERY short taxi to 24L, and we were in the air by 17:46 - the quickest departure I'd had in my life. Economy bulkhead row in a 319 means you can't see the screen very clearly, but we're too excited to watch TV; instead reading our literature on Iceland, things to do, places to see, etc.
18:50 (BOS):
Arrived 25 minutes early. The flight to Keflavik doesn't depart until 21:30, so we had much time to kill. Went to the 'Boatworks' bar in Logan, and drank some Goat Island beer, and played 10-trick until the flight was called.
21:30 (BOS):
Depart exactly on time, in the air and on our way before we can say "Bless Bless" (Icelandic for goodbye). Pleasant, punctual meal service, with a great vegetarian lasagna, and I managed to get 2.5 hours sleep on this 5 hour red-eye.
Saturday 06:00 (KEF):
Cleared customs, bought Krona, and caught our fly-bus to the Hotel Cabin Key, along with about 50 other concert-goers. Mood is sombre and sleepy. All four of us lost the room lottery at the Hotel, our won't be ready until at least noon. Not what you want to hear after taking the red-eye, no shower, no sleep.. At least the hotel had a decent breakfast buffet, we had some food, then decided to hit the streets and see what Rekjavic has to offer on a Saturday morning at 8am.
08:00 - 14:30 (Reykjavic):
Walked. Walked. Walked. The city was deserted, kind of reminds me of Toronto on a Sunday morning at 6. Nothing seemed to open until about 11am. We found out later that alot of younger icelanders stay out until 4 or 5 in the morning at bars, hence the late start on saturdays. Stopped at the Reykjavic flea market, where one of our companions bought a bag of 'Hakarl', an Icelandic delicacy, which involves burying shark meat or leaving it in a barrel for three months or more, until the flesh rots and becomes putrified. Our companion also tried the stuff, which made the rest of us retch... Stopped for some marvellous panoramic views of the city, harbour, and mountains from atop the church (sorry don't know the name) on the hill.
14:30 (Reykjavic):
Back to hotel for showers and a quick nap.
17:00 (Reykjavic):
Walked up to the hard rock cafe for some t-shirts, and were pleasantly surprised by a fireworks display, celebrating the renovation of a mall (we think). The echoes and booms from the exploding shells were very loud.. perhaps due to the air clarity? We then took a taxi to our restaurant for dinner, a place called 'Eider Ben' (I think I have the spelling right), where we relished in plates of lobster, salmon, cod, pasta, all washed down with Brennevin, an icelandic liqueur made from caraway.
22:00 (Reykjavic):
Taxi to the concert, which in and of itself was a bit of a letdown. Saw 'Thievery Corporation', 'Ensimi' and 'Gus Gus'. Ensimi rocked - an icelandic punk/metal band, but Gus Gus was kind of house/rave/stream of conciousness stuff which doesn't float my boat.
02:30 (Reykjavic):
Hit the club 'Kaffi Tommsen' for our post-concert party, some $10 beers, and alot of people watching.
06:00 (Reykjavic):
Bed.
Sunday 10:00 (Reykjavic):
Missed breakfast, and caught our taxi to the 'Blue Lagoon', an outdoor thermal sulphur bathing pool about 40 minutes outside of town, on the way to the airport. This is a DEFINITE must-do in iceland. We relaxed for a couple hours in the soothing hot water. Taxi took us on the airport.
14:30 (KEF):
Not much to do here at the airport, did a bit of shopping and had lunch, waiting for out 16:35 departure.
16:35 (KEF):
Departed on time, and had great service back to BOS. Except of course, that the vegetarian meal was a disappointment - two puck-shaped veggie patties with the consistency of refried beans, and the taste of sawdust. Can't win 'em all.
18:20 (BOS):
Arrived in Boston a bit late, and took forever to clear U.S. customs. By the time we cleared and re-checked in with air canada, there wasn't enough time to go to the lounge.
20:20 (BOS):
Flight departed about 1/2 hour late (which would have meant we could have lounged), and then proceeded to take another 1/2 hour to take off, then an abyssmal TWO HOURS to fly to Toronto. Bad turbulence, and a circuitous route conspired against us to put us until YYZ at about 22:45.
Off to park'n'fly, then home.
A great weekend, but I'm exhausted this morning! Would I do it again? Definitely. Iceland was a great place, except that it was ridiculously expensive!! For example our dinner cost about $300 CDN for four people, we didn't have wine, just 8 shots of alcohol. On average, I'd say everything was about twice as expensive as Canada...
17:00 (YYZ):
Arrived at the airport with just enough time to grab a handful of cashews and a beer in the MLL - nothing special to report - we only had about 10 minutes to kill before boarding AC 808 to Boston, departing at 17:40.
17:40 (YYZ):
Pushback exactly on time. VERY short taxi to 24L, and we were in the air by 17:46 - the quickest departure I'd had in my life. Economy bulkhead row in a 319 means you can't see the screen very clearly, but we're too excited to watch TV; instead reading our literature on Iceland, things to do, places to see, etc.
18:50 (BOS):
Arrived 25 minutes early. The flight to Keflavik doesn't depart until 21:30, so we had much time to kill. Went to the 'Boatworks' bar in Logan, and drank some Goat Island beer, and played 10-trick until the flight was called.
21:30 (BOS):
Depart exactly on time, in the air and on our way before we can say "Bless Bless" (Icelandic for goodbye). Pleasant, punctual meal service, with a great vegetarian lasagna, and I managed to get 2.5 hours sleep on this 5 hour red-eye.
Saturday 06:00 (KEF):
Cleared customs, bought Krona, and caught our fly-bus to the Hotel Cabin Key, along with about 50 other concert-goers. Mood is sombre and sleepy. All four of us lost the room lottery at the Hotel, our won't be ready until at least noon. Not what you want to hear after taking the red-eye, no shower, no sleep.. At least the hotel had a decent breakfast buffet, we had some food, then decided to hit the streets and see what Rekjavic has to offer on a Saturday morning at 8am.
08:00 - 14:30 (Reykjavic):
Walked. Walked. Walked. The city was deserted, kind of reminds me of Toronto on a Sunday morning at 6. Nothing seemed to open until about 11am. We found out later that alot of younger icelanders stay out until 4 or 5 in the morning at bars, hence the late start on saturdays. Stopped at the Reykjavic flea market, where one of our companions bought a bag of 'Hakarl', an Icelandic delicacy, which involves burying shark meat or leaving it in a barrel for three months or more, until the flesh rots and becomes putrified. Our companion also tried the stuff, which made the rest of us retch... Stopped for some marvellous panoramic views of the city, harbour, and mountains from atop the church (sorry don't know the name) on the hill.
14:30 (Reykjavic):
Back to hotel for showers and a quick nap.
17:00 (Reykjavic):
Walked up to the hard rock cafe for some t-shirts, and were pleasantly surprised by a fireworks display, celebrating the renovation of a mall (we think). The echoes and booms from the exploding shells were very loud.. perhaps due to the air clarity? We then took a taxi to our restaurant for dinner, a place called 'Eider Ben' (I think I have the spelling right), where we relished in plates of lobster, salmon, cod, pasta, all washed down with Brennevin, an icelandic liqueur made from caraway.
22:00 (Reykjavic):
Taxi to the concert, which in and of itself was a bit of a letdown. Saw 'Thievery Corporation', 'Ensimi' and 'Gus Gus'. Ensimi rocked - an icelandic punk/metal band, but Gus Gus was kind of house/rave/stream of conciousness stuff which doesn't float my boat.
02:30 (Reykjavic):
Hit the club 'Kaffi Tommsen' for our post-concert party, some $10 beers, and alot of people watching.
06:00 (Reykjavic):
Bed.
Sunday 10:00 (Reykjavic):
Missed breakfast, and caught our taxi to the 'Blue Lagoon', an outdoor thermal sulphur bathing pool about 40 minutes outside of town, on the way to the airport. This is a DEFINITE must-do in iceland. We relaxed for a couple hours in the soothing hot water. Taxi took us on the airport.
14:30 (KEF):
Not much to do here at the airport, did a bit of shopping and had lunch, waiting for out 16:35 departure.
16:35 (KEF):
Departed on time, and had great service back to BOS. Except of course, that the vegetarian meal was a disappointment - two puck-shaped veggie patties with the consistency of refried beans, and the taste of sawdust. Can't win 'em all.
18:20 (BOS):
Arrived in Boston a bit late, and took forever to clear U.S. customs. By the time we cleared and re-checked in with air canada, there wasn't enough time to go to the lounge.
20:20 (BOS):
Flight departed about 1/2 hour late (which would have meant we could have lounged), and then proceeded to take another 1/2 hour to take off, then an abyssmal TWO HOURS to fly to Toronto. Bad turbulence, and a circuitous route conspired against us to put us until YYZ at about 22:45.
Off to park'n'fly, then home.
A great weekend, but I'm exhausted this morning! Would I do it again? Definitely. Iceland was a great place, except that it was ridiculously expensive!! For example our dinner cost about $300 CDN for four people, we didn't have wine, just 8 shots of alcohol. On average, I'd say everything was about twice as expensive as Canada...