Day Eleven - Akureyri, Iceland Tuesday 22 July 2014

View of Port from Akureyri Church!

Phil and I both slept till 7:15 am -- late for us.   Phil's fever has broken but he still has the cough -- I still have everything (except the fever).  So --- we will soldier on into Akureyri.

This town has a population of about 18,000 -- it is spotless, neat and pretty.  The  combination of:   mountains with snow -- mountains with deep greenery -- colorful flowers -- and the sea all coming together in one vista is something to behold -- all of this is 60 miles south of the Arctic Circle.

Phil and Friends -- on the dock!

We wandered to the downtown area -- coming to the  Lutheran Akureyri Church,  consecrated in 1940.    The Church is a contemporary design and sits 108 steps above the town.  Several of this Church's components have come from other buildings such as: the centre window in the choir is from the old Coventry Cathedral in England which was destroyed in WWII; the altar piece above the baptismal font  came from the first church built in Akureyri in 1863.   It is a lovely place and from this vantage point you can see the enire town and harbor.   Back down the 108 steps -- we're moving on toward "old town".   

Pat approaching the 108 steps!

Akureyri was first mentioned in 1602 as a trading center -- but did not become an official township with 294 inhabitants until 1862.    Although the first house was built here in 1778 -- the oldest surviving house was built in 1795 -- at the time it was right on the water.   This house originally used as residences -- also was the library and used to house homeless people -- it has been "protected" since 1978  and after extensive renovations reopened in 1984 -- and is used for various functions.      

Akureyri's Oldest House - 1795

The gray house with red trim was built in 1900 with the caveat that townspeople could use its veranda as a walkway.  The yellow house to the right was the first two story house built in 1835.   In 1874 the owner donated it to the town for use as a hospital -- on Wednesdays people could also book a shower here.

Gray/Red-built 1900 and Yellow built 1835

There is a lot of history in this town and it is well documented.  There are plaques all over the "old town" in different languages and with photos of what used be in a particular location.   This area was about a 45 minute walk outside the downtown area -- it was a good walk.

We also passed a local carnival just getting set up -- I had a nice conversation with one of the women who spoke perfect English with a British accent.

Back downtown -- we stopped into a bistro at the Ikea Hotel -- to use their wifi and so Phil could have a beer.   The wifi was terrible so I never did get through.  Actually the wifi -- near the dock was terrible as well.  So I decided to wait till tomorrow.

Back on board -- we had a lite lunch and I went to a movie at 1:00 pm. -- "Winter's Tale" -- a fable with a time travel dimension.   I enjoyed it -- and it kept me still for two hours -- no coughing.

I took a short nap -- Phil is feeling not so great either.   But we managed to have dinner at 8:00 pm. -- bringing our dessert back to the room.

Thanks for Reading!

Pat with her new Troll Friends!

Pat