Trip to Iceland, Sept 2, 2017

We looked at Harpa, again, and because it was raining, the Art Gallery in Reykjavik.

Reykjavik, the Smoky Bay

 

HARPA

 

 

Construction in Reykjavik

 

Detour – Hjáleið

 

 

 

Ingólfur Arnarson

From Wikipedia”

“Ingólfr Arnarson (spelled with a ⟨u⟩ in Modern Icelandic: Ingólfur Arnarson [ˈiŋkoulvʏr̥ ˈartnar̥sɔn]) and his wife, Hallveig Frodesdatter and together with his brother Chiorleif, are commonly recognized as the first permanent Norse settlers of Iceland. According to tradition, they founded Reykjavík in 874.[1]

According to Landnáma (The Icelandic Book of Settlements), he built his homestead in and gave name to Reykjavík in 874. (However, archaeological finds in Iceland suggest settlement may have started somewhat earlier.) The medieval chronicler Ari Thorgilsson said Ingólfr was the first Nordic settler in Iceland, but mentioned that “Papar” – i.e. Irish monks and hermits – had been in the country before the Norsemen. He wrote that they left because they did not want to live amongst the newly arrived Norse pagans.[2]

Landnáma (written two to three centuries after the settlement) contains a long story about Ingólfr’s settlement. The book claims he left Norwayafter becoming involved in a blood feud. He had heard about a new island which Garðar Svavarsson, Hrafna-Flóki Vilgerðarson and others had found in the Atlantic Ocean. With his step brother Hjörleifr Hróðmarsson, he sailed for Iceland. When land was in sight, he threw his high seat pillars (a sign of his being a chieftain) overboard and promised to settle where the gods decided to bring them ashore. Two of his slaves then searched the coasts for three years before finding the pillars in the small bay which eventually became Reykjavík (located in South Western Iceland).[3]

In the meantime, Hjörleifr had been murdered by his Irish slaves because of his ill-treatment of them. Ingólfr hunted them down and killed them in Vestmannaeyjar (Westman Islands). The islands got their name from that event, but vestmenn (west men) is a name that Norse men at this time sometimes used for Irishmen. Ingólfr was said to have settled a large part of southwestern Iceland, but after his settlement nothing more was known of him. His son, Torstein (Þorsteinn Ingólfsson), was a major chieftain and was said to have founded the first thing, or parliament, in Iceland. It was a forerunner of the Althingi.[4]

His name Ingólfr means “aristocratic wolf”, which would be translated as “royal or kingly wolf.” ”

architecture in Iceland

 

 

Everyone’s a critic. #cockandballs

 

Icelandic Prime Minister’s Office. Built 1771. Used as a prison until 1813. This is a good example of the Icelandic sense of humour.

 

 

 

Icelandic Center Hotel. I think this used to be the newspaper building. Reykjavik

 

Amanda and Ian console a statue by Steinunn Thorarinsdottir who looks like he is having a bad day.

 

 

Pipes under the streets of Reykjavik carry warm volcanic water to melt the ice and snow.

 

 

 

Woman in E art performance at the Reykjavik Art Museum

 

 

Hafnarhúsid, Listasafn Reykjavíkur ( Harbor House Museum )Tryggvagata 17

 

 

 

 

The Flea Market down by the Harbour, Reykjavik

 

 

Yes, they do have Horse meat sausage.

 

He says we won the Bronze medal for the long jump at the Montreal Olympics. I don’t think so…

 

 

Fabulous Icelandic Illustration by Ingi Jensson. The Touristificationof the Police. Icelandic Sterotypes…

 

Stern Icelandic Police Sheep

 

Harpa from the inside

 

The whole crew (minus Walter) at the Laugardalslaug

 

This is what we did every evening. Photo editing editing editing…

 

Kjötsúpa, Icelandic Meat Soup

 

A genuine old Icelandic dude. With a coffee of course.

 

Business parking. Reykjavik

 

laugardalslaug indoor swimming pool