My parents are visiting for most of summer this year (escaping winter in the southern hemisphere) which means I get to play tourist a lot. To be honest, even after seven years or so, I haven’t quite shaken the tourist identity myself. Last weekend we decided to quit the city for a day and visit Reykhólt, famous for being where medieval saga-writer and statesman Snorri Sturluson lived, and where he was ultimately killed (visit the Snorrastofa centre or see snorrastofa.is for more about this).

When we arrived, there was a country market set up selling jams, fresh veggies, crafts and plants, and an accordion player entertaining everyone while kids nearby grilled ‘viking bread’ (a simple dough wrapped around long sticks and held over an open flame). We sat outside for a picnic afternoon tea but it started raining as we headed around to look at Snorri’s outdoor thermal pool (Snorralaug) and the warm water was very inviting…  (I don’t think it’s ever open for bathers these days alas, though there was a very happy Labrador in there when I visited once a few years ago!)  A very relaxing lazy afternoon and the drive, not much more than an hour each way, took us on a loop through the lava fields north of Borgarnes (we passed through Borgarnes on the Ring Road, Rte 1, turning right onto Rte 50) and then through the lovely hilly area east of Borgarnes on the way back (continuing south along Rte 50 instead of turning back). This area also has several grand waterfalls and a few lava-caves, but I’ll post something about them another day.