After getting over the jet lag that had consumed us upon our arrival, we decided to take our first day slow and get to know the capital a little bit. Our bellies filled thanks to the granola bars we had packed in our backpacks before going on the plane, we stepped out. We didn’t really have a plan, except for the one according to which we would go with the flow. We started walking in the direction of Reykjavik’s most famous church: Hallgrimskirkja. We weren’t planning on going inside it and make use of the panoramic view it had to offer yet, we just knew it would be a good place to start since it’s located in the center of the city. After admiring it, we started our stroll through the streets. We were amazed by the diversity of the city’s color scheme. Houses, shops and (especially) restaurants bore unusual colours giving the architecturally mundane buildings a distinctive particularity.
Soon enough, we came across a wall that, not only was painted, but, exposed a work of art. We had finally found our day’s activity; we were
going to turn ourselves into street art hunters. In a place like Reykjavik, we had one of the easiest prays. In fact, it was so effortless and captivating
that we came back to our senses only when our stomachs made themselves heard. We had walked all over the place and now found ourselves stranded on some street corner the name of which none of us could pronounce. We started asking around in the hope of finding someone who spoke English.
Fortunately, the sweetest little couple heard us and came to our rescue. They were about to ask us if were new, but I guess our sheepish smiles made them realize it was our first time in town and they offered to show us someplace within our travelers’ budget to grab a bite. We spent the rest of the day with our new friends discovering the city until it was time for us to go our separate ways. As a parting gift, they gave a us a map of the city that contained their emails as well as a tip to always find our way back: look for Hallgrimskirkja, the city’s landmark that could be seen almost anywhere in it.
Photos:
http://www.canadianbusiness.com/business-news/from-the-editors-iceland-the-loonies-all-yours/
http://www.123rf.com/photo_3458024_downtown-reykjavik-iceland.html
http://www.flickriver.com/photos/opalsson/sets/72157608159887627/
http://www.plumdeluxe.com/living-like-a-local-in-iceland-for-a-day
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/96157602
http://www.salon.com/2012/08/03/the_wildlife_of_reykjavik_street_art_salpart/
http://www.theculturemap.com/colourful-buildings-street-art-reykjavik-iceland/
http://richardtullochwriter.com/2011/07/27/reykjavik-street-art/
https://www.pinterest.com/tinyiceland/graffiti-in-iceland/
http://overyonderlust.com/reykjavik-street-art-photo-friday/
http://www.silksofine.com/reykjavik-day-and-night/
http://blog.sculpture.org/2014/07/16/reykjaviks-street-art/
http://grapevine.is/news/2014/12/16/icelandic-parliament-urged-not-to-cut-art-funding-further/
http://www.cntraveler.com/galleries/2014-11-07/the-world-s-best-cities-for-street-art
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/5207355795805717/
threeroamingsouls 