Iceland Day 5–Puffins and Porpoises

We woke up to a bright blue sky, the bad weather and haze of the previous day having dissipated completely. We had a leisurely breakfast, and then strolled down to the harbor where I had booked a whale watching cruise. After doing a bit of research, I had chosen Elding, though to be honest, I don’t think there would be much difference between the various providers. Whale watching is such a chancy business, and the various boats are in constant radio touch to help all their passengers get a chance to see a whale.

We were quite early and used the time to explore the levels of the ship and find the best spot to sit. The bright sunlight made Reykjavik gleam, and spangles of light bounced off the deep blue waters of the bay. The ship gradually filled up, and soon our spotter climbed into the crow’s nest (or what passes for a crow’s nest in a modern ship) and we were off.

We renewed our acquaintance with a Chinese girl who we recognized from our Northern Lights tour, and we also saw our first other Indian group since coming to Iceland. (After UK and most of Europe, where we saw Indians everywhere, this was pretty unusual!) They were Telugu, and to my deep shame, not five minutes after our spotter had talked about the danger of plastic waste to marine life, they were happily chucking empty crisp packets and chocolate wrappers off the side of the boat. What is wrong with us?!

The waters of the bay were beautifully calm, but as we got out to open sea there was a strong wind blowing and the waves suddenly picked up.  Our position in the bow of the boat suddenly got a lot less comfortable, and we started pulling on our gloves and pulling the zippers of our jackets as far up as they would go.

Hardly 5 minutes had passed when our spotter pointed out White-beaked dolphins frolicking off starboard, throwing everyone into a frenzy of activity, camera’s being clicked frantically with one hand with the other clinging to the guard rail.

After about 15 minutes, the pod tired of toying with us, and descended to more peaceful depths, and we turned our attention to hunting for whales. We searched for around 20 minutes and it seemed we would be going back empty handed, when our spotter got word that the other boat had spotted a whale. We raced over and caught a glimpse of these majestic creatures just as they began their dive.

There were maybe around ten Minke whales in the bay, surfacing in random locations, and what followed was a race around the bay to try and catch up with them. As we crashed into the waves, several of the passengers turned green and retired below the decks. With only the tip of my nose protruding, I hung on to the guard rail with all my strength, but it was worth it to catch sight of these leviathans of the deep.

After an hour or so of chasing after the whales, we turned back, completely satisfied. Our luck had held, and we got to see the whales on our first attempt!

After de-boating, we spent a half hour in the gloomy, and rather uninteresting ‘Life of Whales’ museum, before wandering back into town, but not before grabbing a seafood chowder from a waterfront restaurant.

We spend the next couple of days wandering through the city, and the collection of weird, trendy shops which made up Reykjavik, finally ending up at the Hallgrímskirkja, which was made to look like lava basalt flows. A statue of Leif Eriksson stands in front. As imposing as the structure was from the outside, it was pretty austere and plain inside, except for a huge organ dominating one of the walls; rather disappointing after the lush cathedrals of France and Italy. What was awesome was the viewing area right at the top of the church, where Reykjavik stretched before us in the bright sunshine. I spent 15minutes happily clicking snaps before we headed down.

We spend the next couple of days wandering through the city, and the collection of weird, trendy shops which made up Reykjavik, finally ending up at the Hallgrímskirkja, which was made to look like lava basalt flows. A statue of Leif Eriksson stands in front. As imposing as the structure was from the outside, it was pretty austere and plain inside, except for a huge organ dominating one of the walls; rather disappointing after the lush cathedrals of France and Italy. What was awesome was the viewing area right at the top of the church, where Reykjavik stretched before us in the bright sunshine. I spent 15minutes happily clicking snaps before we headed down.

We also made a quick stop at the local wine store or Vinbuden to pick up a couple of bottles of Brennivin, the most famous local liquer, and a delicate berry liqueur. The Brennivin was a bust; super strong and harsh on the palate, but adding a touch of class to any liquor cabinet.

An hour or so later, as the evening light fled the sky, we made our way back to the Apartment to change for dinner. We planned for a Icelandic meal, and had decided on Laekjarbrekka, a classic restaurant situated in a building constructed in 1834. We got seated quickly, and after scanning the menu, decided to start off with a platter of smoked puffin, fried cod and picked beet. The smoked puffin was actually served in a jar full of smoke, which puffed out very satisfactorily as it was opened. The taste of the puffin, on the other hand was very fishy and oily, so I suspect it was a tourist sort of thing. The cod and the pickled beets were very tasty, though.

For the main, we decided to have the grilled Minke whale, with grilled root vegetables and a Brennevin sauce. To all the people exclaiming in anger: I agree with you completely. A lot of farming of Minke whales in Icelandcaters to the tourist population, and I urge you all to refrain from it. My mom was also horrified, but she doesn’t eat rabbit or venison either, as they’re ‘cute’. Having said this, the whale was delicious! I expected something fishy, but what I got was meaty, almost like beef, with a faint taste of the sea.

After dooming the whales and puffins to extinction with our starter and main, the dessert was pretty mild. We chose the traditional Icelandic Skyr, which was served with white chocolate, a lime sorbet and assorted wild berries, which when it arrived, was as pretty as a picture.

Sated and satisfied, we wandered into the chilly Icelandic twilight for a stroll along the sea, where I toll a last few pictures of the glass encrusted Harpa Concert Hall, before heading back for our last night in Iceland.

As usual the complete flickr set is below -