Icelandic souvenirs

The souvenirs that Tomo & Chouchou found interesting

①Troll dolls with Icelandic flag

They're fairies called "Trolls".

We often find these dolls with Icelandic flag at the souvenir shops.

②Stuffed toys of Puffin

the Atlantic Puffin !
They are casually called ”Puffin”.
Many atlantic puffins live in Iceland.

They are very adorable.

③Winter accessories

We can find lots of bonnets, gloves, mittens, scarves 

in Iceland.
They are very colorful, cute and unique.
Their materials are very good and warm.
It's worth buying them in Iceland !

Please find a good and special souvenir for you !

Relating articles
 

＊Icelandic food

＊Northern lights tour in Iceland

Icelandic food

 

- Tomo & Choucho's recommending Icelandic foods -

 

 

famous Icelandic specialty "Lamb soup"

"Fish cake"

"Fish soup" made with lots of fish.
 

"reindeer soup"

"fish & chips" at Harry's

Episode of Icelandic foods

Tomo & Chouchou really enjoyed Icelandic foods in Iceland!  Actually everything was good! We would like to introduce some of them.

Firstly, famous Icelandic specialty is "Lamb soup" which made with Icelandic lamb. Icelandic lamb soup doesn't have any special smell of lamb. It was very mild and it was easy to drink. Lamb soup made our bodies warm.

Fish are rich in Iceland, so they are good at cooking fish. For example, "Fish cake". Don't imagine a cake as dessert ! It's like a croquette or a doughnut made with mashed fish meat. Surprisingly, we didn't recognize a particular fish smell.
We cannot explain the exact taste but it was just very good. We wanted to eat more !

Also, we recommend "Fish soup" made with lots of fish. It's very thick soup and it's very tasty. 

One day, Tomo & Chouchou went to the bar that serves soup. This bar has a good reputation of the reasonal price & good taste. They serve two different types of soup and change daily. We ate "reindeer soup" ! We had never tasted reindeer so we took advantage of it. Reindeer soup made our bodies warm and gave energy. It was very good. We didn't notice strong animal smell.

Lastly, Tomo & Chouchou stayed in Best Western Hotel in Reykjavik. We found a restaurant called "Harry's" beside the hotel. The server of this restaurant was very nice and friendly. Meals were also very good. Married mix-couple owns the restaurant. Asian wife cooks, so we can also find Asian meals there. We ate "fish & chips". It was really good ! As it was so good, we went there again ! At second time, we ate Icelandic "Lamb chops". Lamb meat was so tender and it was delicious !

FYI, Best Western Hotel was fine. We were satisfied with their breakfast and service. We could walk to the downtown so it was very convenient.

We didn't expect such delicious meals in Iceland before going there. We were totally wrong. Actually we didn't know Icelandic foods were good. We discovered that Icelandic foods were very delicious. Icelandic foods are basically simple. We can taste the ingredients. Because Ingredients were very fresh. Lambs were well-treated. Iceland protect their local foods. We love their mind. We can understand why Icelandic foods are tasty. It was a good discovery for us! We became a fun of Icelandic foods. :-)    

 

Please enjoy and discover Icelandic meals when you go to Iceland !



Relating articles

* Icelandic souvenir

* Reykjavik in Iceland

* Northern lights tour in Iceland

Northern lights tour in Iceland

Northern Lights Mystery tour

English guide
Organized by Gray Line Iceland Excursions

Iceland is the warmest place to see auroras in the world.

Gray Line picked us up at the hotel.

 

↓

 

Northern Lights Mystery tour bus departed.

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We got off the bus.

We walked with the small flashlights in the dark place.

 

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Tour guide took us to the best place to see the auroras.

We turned off the lights.

We waited for the auroras.

↓

We couldn't see the auroras...

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Tour guide took us to the place where we could see a legend.

The statue of Icelandic legend.
(Normally we cannot see this statue because of darkness.)
 

 

↓

We went back to the hotel with disappointment.

Episode of Northern lights tour in Iceland

Tomo & Chouchou went to Iceland to see northern lights !
Watching norhtern lights is one of our big dreams! Iceland is the warmest place to see auroras in the world. So we thought Iceland is the best place to see northern lights!
We participated "Northern Lights Mystery" English guide tour organized Gray Line Iceland excursions. Gray Line knows where and when we can see Northern lights the most. So they can take us to the best place to see auroras. Gray Line decides to carry out the tour according to the weather.
When we participated the tour, the weather was not so good. The tour was carried out though. Unfortunately we couldn't see auroras... It was a big disappointment... We watched carefully many times. We looked for the slight green wave or light. We couldn't find anything... (T_T)
We heard that Gray Line proposed to participate the same tour for free if we couldn't see the nothern lights at all like us. Free participation will be valid for two years after the tour date. We were unlucky not to see auroras but we decided to keep our pleasure for northern lights later.

Instead of northern lights, tour guide showed us the place where we can see a legend. Normally we cannot see a statue with our eyes because of darkness. After taking a photo with flash, we could see it on the photo.

We couldn't succed to see northern lights in Iceland at that time. However we could think that seeing auroras is more precious. We haven't given up seeing auroras in our lives. Our dream still continues! We will travel again to see northern lights for sure!! 

Tomo & Chouchou's advice for Northern lights tour

(1) Normally, it should be very dark to see northern lights, so we cannot use any lights. However we walk in the darkness during the tour. It was difficult to walk without the lights. So we advise you to bring a head light or a flashlight ONLY for walking.

(2) Tomo & Chouchou recommend you to stay longer in Iceland if you want to see auroras. Because you can decide the date according to the weather. We advise you to book aurora tour in Iceland when there's no clouds.

Tomo & Chouchou wish you would be able to see northern lights in Iceland !


Relating articles

* Reykjavik in Iceland

* Blue Lagoon (geothermal spa) in Iceland

* The Golden Circle, Iceland (1)

* The Godlen Circle, Iceland (2)

The Golden Circle, Iceland (2)

 

Þingvellir National Park/ Thingvellir National Park

 

↓

 

We walked to the Gullfoss Waterfall.

The way to go to the Gullfoss Waterfall was iced and slippery.

 

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On the way to go down the long stairs,

We could see the lovely landscape of Gullfoss waterfall.

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We went down the stairs to approach to the Gullfoss.

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We walked a bit more. We could be close to the waterfall.
We could feel the spray and splash of the Gullfoss waterfall.
 

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We went back up the stairs.

We had lunch at Gullfoss Café. 

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Geysir Geothermal Area

Geysir Hot Spring

Chouchou found several Little Geysirs.
Around Litli Geysir, we could see the landscape of snow mountains.

Geysir has a little bit western atomosphere.

the most biggest geyser "The Great Geysir" eruption
 Geyser erupted about every 10 minutes.

↓

 

We went back to Reykjavik.

← read back to The Golden Circle, Iceland (1)

Episode of Golden Circle tour

Tomo & Chouchou went to see the waterfall "Gullfoss" located in Southern Iceland with Gray Line English tour.
In Icelandic, gull means "Gold" and foss means "waterfull". So Gullfoss means translated "Golden Falls". Gullfoss is the most biggest, most beautiful and most popular waterfall.
To go to see the waterfall, we had to walk a bit. The way to go to the waterfall was iced, so it was slippery to walk. On the way to go down the stairs, we could see the lovely landscape of Gullfoss. It was the good photo spot.
Getting down the stairs and walking a bit more, we could be close to the waterfall.
We could get the spray and splash of the waterfall. The power of Gullfoss waterfall was amazing! We felt the greatness of nature.
The scenery was totally different when we looked at the waterfall from a close distance and when we looked at the waterfall from the hill. We enjoyed both views.
In addition, in this Gullfoss area, there are a restaurant and a souvenir shop.
We had time to have lunch in this restaurant. Our tour guide recommended lamp soup in this restaurent because it's famous as delicious lamp soup. We paid a lamp soup at the cash desk, we could get refills for free. We really enjoyed lamp soup and the beauty of nature at Gullfoss.
We also went to the geyser called "Geysir". Geysir is located in southwestern Iceland. In Geysir, we could see the eruptions or hot spring's boiling.
Around Little Geysirs (Litli Geysir), we could see snow mountains. Around there, orange or red brown earth made us feel we were in the old Western America. :)
The most biggest geysir "The Great Geysir" eruption was the best to see at Geysir. About every 10 minutes, hot spring erupted. The quantity of spout of hot spring changed each time. Sometimes a lot of quantity, sometimes a little. So we watched several times. Geyser eruption was very interesting and enjoyable to see.  The landscape around Geysir was also fantastic. It was very enjoyable tour. We could enjoy Iceland a lot through this tour.

Tomo & Chouchou's advice for Geysir

The quantity of geyser eruption changes. So it's better to see 2 or 3 times minimum. At least until you see the big hot spring eruption.


Relating articles

* Reykjavik in Iceland

* Blue Lagoon (geothermal spa) in Iceland

* Northern Lights tour in Iceland

The Golden Circle, Iceland (1)

The tour which Tomo & Chouchou joined in Iceland

"the Golden Circle Classic" English tour
organized by Gray Line Iceland Excursions
Departure from Reykjavik.
hotel pick-up service included.

<Itinerary>
1.Hellisheiði Geothermal Power Plant [Hellisheiðarvirkjun] ⇒
2.Lake ⇒  3.Skálholt Cathedral ⇒
4.((UNESCO)) Þingvellir National Park ⇒
5.Geysir Geothermal Springs ⇒　6.Gullfoss Waterfall

We joined this tour in winter.

Departure from Gray Line office in very early morning. 

The sky was still dark.

↓

The Hellisheidi Geothermal Power Plant/ 

the Hellisheiðarvirkjun Geothermal Power Plant/

The Hellisheiði Power Station 

[Icelandic: Hellisheiðarvirkjun] 

Hellisheidavirkjun is the largest geothermal power station in Iceland.

 

↓

 

 The sky was getting bright.

↓

The tour bus stopped exceptionally.

Our tour guide brought us to the lake.

 

The lake was covered by the snow but it was very pretty place.
 

 

↓

 

 

Skálholt Cathedral [Old Icelandic: Skálaholt].

Inside Skálholt Cathedral

Jesus was drawn on the wall.

The ceiling made with woods and white walls had a good harmony.

↓

((UNESCO World Heritage site))

Þingvellir National Park /Thingvellir National Park

[Icelandic: Þingvellir]. 

 

 

↓

to be continued... The Golden Circle, Iceland (2)

Episode of The Golden Circle tour

Tomo & Chouchou joined the popular English tour "the Golden Circle Classic" which is organized by Gray Line Iceland Excursions.
Departure was very early, so we worried if the pick-up bus will arrive our hotel or not... We didn't need to worry. They picked us up almost on time!
Gray Line sends many pick-up vans to the hotel. Those vans go back to their office. Then they ask the clients to move to the bigger coach there. Gray Line has efficient organization and very solid work. We felt Gray Line was reliable.

We left in the early morning, so the sky was dark. From the bus window, we couldn't see the scenery so much, but we could see white snow and snow mountains.
First, the bus arrived the Hellisheiðarvirkjun Geothermal Power Plant
(=The Hellisheiði Power Station). Hellisheidavirkjun is the largest geothermal power station in Iceland. It's the first or second largest geothermal power plant in the world. Iceland doesn't have any atomic power plant. Iceland uses mostly geothermal energy. In Iceland, there are earthquakes and Iceland has volcanic belts under the ground. Therefore Iceland uses the underground heat for the energy. We heard that the geothermal energy was safe. Tomo & Chouchou support such safe energy! We also wish Japan will use geothermal energy too.
While heading off to the next place, the sun rised and the sky became brighter.
Our tour guide stopped the coach exceptionally. We could see the lake. The lake was covered by the snow but it was very pretty place.
Next, we arrived Skálholt (=Old Icelandic: Skálaholt) Cathedral. Skalholt Cathedral was simple and quite different from European Gothic cathedrals. Colorful Jesus drawn on the wall was unique. The ceiling made with woods and white walls had a good harmony. Skalholt Cathedral was a beautiful Icelandic church.
We visited Þingvellir National Park designated by UNESCO World Heritage Site. We could see amazing view there.

to be continued... The Golden Circle, Iceland (2)

Relating articles 

* Reykjavik in Iceland

* Blue Lagoon (geothermal spa) in Iceland

* Northern Lights tour in Iceland

Blue Lagoon (geothermal spa) in Iceland

Blue Lagoon geothermal spa [Icelandic: Bláa lónið]

It's the biggest outdoor spa in the world.
Lagoon size is about 5,000m² (=4 times of 50m pool).
Blue Lagoon is situated about 39km/24miles south-west from Reykjavik.
From Keflavik International Airport, it takes about 20min. by car (13km/8miles).

Blue Lagoon water is rich in minerals like silica and sulphur.
Bathing in the Blue Lagoon can cure skin diseases such as proriasis.

Blue Lagoon is made by the waste water output of the nearby geothermal power plant Svartsengi.
 

 

Grayline picked us up at the hotel.

 

↓

 

It takes about 40 minutes by bus from Reykjavik.

 

↓

 

We arrived at Blue Lagoon geothermal spa.

 

↓

 

We went through the admission procedure.

Then we changed our clothes to the swimming suits. 

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Blue Lagoon geothermal spa [Icelandic: Bláa lónið].
It was really a huge spa and it looked like an emerald lake.

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Lunch at the restaurant in Blue Lagoon.

the view from the restaurant in Blue Lagoon.
 

 

to be continued... The Golden Circle

read back to ... Reykjavik in Iceland

Episode of Blue Lagoon geothermal spa

Tomo & Chouchou went to the Blue Lagoon geothermal spa [Icelandic: Bláa lónið] where we had been dreaming of bathing in the biggest outdoor spa in the world !
We booked Blue Lagoon day tour by Graline in advance. The admission and return bus tickets are included in the tour fee. 

The pick-up bus came till our hotel.
It took approximately 40 min. from Reykjavik to Blue Lagoon by bus.
As soon as we approached the Blue Lagoon geothermal spa, we could see the spa.
It looked like an emerald lake.
As soon as we arrived in Blue Lagoon, we changed our clothes to swimming suits and ran to the spa. Then in front of us, there was really a huge spa ! The color of the spa was white-emerald exactly same as the picture. We couldn't believe this was a real spa. The depth of the spa changed and it depended on the area. The depth of the spa was deep for Tomo. We sometimes couldn't reach the bottom of the spa. We felt something slippery on the bottom of the spa. We picked up mud with our feet and checked...We were surprised to see the color of mud was black!

Blue Lagoon water is rich in minerals like silica and sulphur. So Bathing in the Blue Lagoon can cure skin diseases. Inside spa, we can try mud esthetic/aesthetic treatment for free. This mud was white. We put lots of mud to get beautiful skin ! Probably Tomo put the mud too much. Moreover the mud was very soft. So the mud entered to her eyes. Tomo was wearing the contact lens. It was very painful! Tomo ran to the toilet, washed her eyes and removed the contact lens. She could protect her eyes. Anyway mud esthetic treatment was enjoyable.
In Blue Lagoon, there was a restaurant. There was sushi. It was a fashionable atomosphere. Fom the restaurant, we could see the emelard green spa. We could enter to the restaurant with bathrobes. But we forgot to bring the sandal. So we had to wear the shoes. :-)
We couldn't believe that Blue Lagoon was made by the waste water output of the nearby geothermal power plant Svartsengi. We were impressed such a good technology.
As Japan is on the volcanic belts/plate, Japan should change to use safe geothermal energy. We think Japan should also make more geothermal spa same as Iceland ! We should produce safe energy and reuse the energy!!
Let's save the earth with green energy!!

Advices for Blue Lagoon

(1)To go to Blue Lagoon by tour bus, you can ask the front desk of your hotel or you can go directly to the Grayline office in Reykjavik.
FYI, Tomo&Chouchou bought Blue Lagoon admission and return bus tickets through travel agency (Grayline) on the internet in advance.
Because we calculated the total fee with two currencies, and we found out it's more expensive to pay in Icelandic currency. You had better decide according to the exchange rate.
 

(2)To try mud esthetic treatment, please avoid around the eyes. It's very painful when the mud entered the eyes.

 

(3)We can rent a bathrobe there. We could even enter the restaurant with bathrobes. If you want to take a rest or go to the restaurant with a bathrobe, you had better bring a sandal.

Relating articles
 

 * Northern lights tour in Iceland

 * The Golden Circle

 * Reykjavik in Iceland

Reykjavik in Iceland

 

 

Icelandair 

(Flight from France to Iceland )

 

Icelandic pictures are painted on the door of the closet 

in the cabin of Icelandair.

 

 

↓

Arrived in Iceland

Keflavik International Airport
Keflavik Int'l Airport is located 50km west from the capital: Reykjavik.
Keflavik Int'l Airport is the largest airport in Iceland.

 

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We took an Airport express bus by Gray Line.

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We checked in the hotel.

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We walked until the harbar.

↓

 We found the big building "Harpa Concert Hall".

 

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While walking in the center of the city, 

we found a church called Hallgrimskirkja.

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We went up the tower of the church.

 the view from the tower of the Church of Hallgrimur/ 

Hallgrimskirkja [Icelandic: Hallgrímskirkja]

at 73 metres (244 ft).

 

Hallgrimskirkja [Hallgrímskirkja] is a Lutheran parish church
in Reykjavik, Iceland.
It is the largest church in Iceland,

and it's the sixth tallest architectural structure in Iceland.
 

 

↓

Inside Church of Hallgrimur /Hallgrimskirkja [Hallgrímskirkja].

 

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illumination of Hallgrímskirkja at night.

to be continued ... Blue Lagoon (geothermal spa) in Iceland

Episode of Reykjavik

Tomo & Chouchou went on a trip to Iceland from France. We had booked the airtickets & hotel together with special price through Icelandair website. We had also booked day trip tours on their website. We could prepare our trip well thanks to Icelandair.
It was the first time for us to take an Icelandair. Icelandic pictures are painted on the door of the closet in the cabin of Icelandair. It was very cute. I had never seen such a pretty interior design of the cabin.
We arrived at Keflavik International Airport in Iceland. Keflavik International Airport is located 50km west from the capital: Reykjavik. Keflavik Int'l Airport is the largest airport in Iceland. But we didn't feel that it was so big. Anyway it was a pretty airport with Icelandic decorations.
Tomo & Chouchou had booked an airport express bus organized by
Iceland Excursions Gray Line from Keflavik Int'l Airport to the hotel. We could find the reception of Gray Line in front of the exit of arrival gate. Then Gray Line sent us off the hotel that we had booked.
After checking in the hotel, we walked around in the center of Reykjavik. We walked until the harbor, then we found the big building "Harpa Concert Hall".
Interior design of concert hall was sparkling.
While walking, we found a church called Hallgrímskirkja in the center of the city. As it is said that Hallgrimskirkja(=church of Hallgrimur) is the largest church in Iceland and the sixth tallest architectural structure in Iceland, it was a very tall church. We had never seen such a unique-design church.
We could see the landscape of Reykjavik from the tower of the church of Hallgrimur.
To go up the tower by elevator, it costs 500ISK (at that time, it now costs 1000ISK in 2021). On the day Tomo & Chouchou went up the tower, there was a shower and strong wind. It was cold. But it was nice to see the sea around Reykjavik from the tower.
Inside church, white walls and illumination are very beautiful.
At night, Hallgrimskirkja is lit up and changes the appearance.
Basically Iceland is very safe even at night. We could enjoy Iceland all the day !

Advice for traveling in Reykjavik

(1) Icelandair sells airticket & hotel together with special price. Icelandair provides several plans according to the season. We can find many tours on Icelandair website. We could travel well with their tours. Please check it out !

(2) We recommend airport express bus organized by Iceland Excursions Gray Line from Keflavik International Airport to the hotel. We can find the reception of Gray Line in front of the exit of arrival gate. Gray Line can send us off almost all the hotels in Reykjavik. Easy to find the reception of Gray Line. It is just in front of the exit of arrival gate.


Relating articles

* The Golden Circle, Iceland (1)

* The Golden Circle, Iceland (2)

* Northern Lights tour in Iceland

Enjoyable activities in Europe

TOMO&CHOUCHOU's recommending interesting activities ! 

<in Europe>

＜ICELAND＞
★★　Blue Lagoon (Geothermal Spa)
Blue Lagoon is the largest outdoor spa in the world.

Blue Lagoon is located near Reykjavik. The color of Blue Lagoon is Emerald green and it is beautiful. At the bottom of the spa water, we could feel mud with feet.
This spa is very large, so some areas are not so hot. Also depending on the area, the depth changes, so please try to find your comfortable place. We recommend you to put white mud on your face ! It's free, so profit it !


＜FRANCE フランス＞
★★　Puy de Sancy hiking 
Puy de Sancy is the highest mountain in the massif central in Auvergne. There are many wild animals living in Puy de Sancy. When we hiked there, we could see a chamois and a marmot. It is the wonderful hiking course to see many mountains of massif central and to walk on the top of the mountains. It is excellent for day-hike !

★★　Walking tour Mont-Saint-Michel
Long time ago, pilgrims used to cross the sea to go to Mont-Saint-Michel. There is a group tour to retrace the foot steps of ancient pilgrims to Mont-Saint-Michel. Experienced guide who knows tidal current will take you at low tide. While crossing of the bay of Mont-Saint-Michel, you will discover amazing landscape. You had better wear short pants for this tour.

★　Marché de Noël de Strasbourg

Marché de Noël de Strasbourg is very big and famous Christmas market. In the afternoon, the atmosphere is like a fairy tale and it's very pretty. At night, many stores were lit up, so it's very romantic and beaufitul. Vin Chaud (Mulled wine) is famous there. It makes you warm.


★　Hiking in Pyrénées
Pyrenees are very wide and large so the scenery is totally different depending on the place, also the difficulty is wide from beginner to advanced. You can cross several mountains while staying in mountain huts.
You can try several day hike at several places too. Tomo&Chouchou stayed in the hotel in Andorra and hiked in Canillo, in Ordino and in Escaldes-Engordany. Andorra is located in high altitude, so there are lots of mountains, you can enjoy many hikings with nice landscape.

      Read "Enjoyable activities in North America" too

Recommended foods & drinks in England & Iceland

Foods & Drinks recommended by TOMO&CHOUCHOU

< in England & Iceland >

<England>

English tea and scone with clotted cream

Talking of England, everybody imagine English tea, right?
We don't know if it's because of water, anyway English tea in England is excellent !
When people order the tea, they also order scones. It seems that it's a tradition.
We ordered tea and scones when we travelled around Cotswolds.
Scones were served with the clotted cream and the jam.
It was the best clotted cream that we have eaten so far !
We tasted clotted cream in London but it was not same.
We can assure that it's the best to eat scones with real clotted cream !

 

<Iceland>

Lamb soup 

We thought the lamb soup has the smell of lamb but surprisingly we didn't smell any.

It was very tasty.

reindeer soup

Many people might hesitate to eat reindeer, but surprisingly raindeer soup was tasty.

We didn't taste original animal smell.
We had better eat something that local people eat.
It makes our body warm in the cold weather.

Fish cakes

Fish cake looks like a donut made with fish.

It was easy to eat and we didn't feel fish so much.


Relating articles

* Recommended foods & drinks in West Europe

* Recommended foods & drinks in North & South America