SIGLUFJORDUR

The rain was bucketing down as we left Lake Myvatn yesterday & for the first time this trip we had to unpack our rain coats.  We made our way around the southern end of the lake, where it heads to the sea via the Laxa River, where Jack Nicholson likes to pop in to go fly fishing!!  The lake itself is spring fed, so maintains it's water level.

 

We were en route to another body of water; Godafoss waterfall. Way back in the 10th century the law speaker of the time was asked to consider whether Iceland should convert to Christianity.  He went away to meditate for a few days & came back to the Parliament (Althing) & agreed that Iceland was to become Christian, however, those who wanted to remain pagan could do so in private.  He returned to his home, gathered up all his pagan idols & threw them into this waterfall.  Henceforth it became known as Godafoss.

Our next stop was a rather unusual one for us... the Christmas House.  One creative family had brought the Christmas spirit into the every day with a sense of fun & lots of humour.  Inside the house were endless decorations.  Outside the garden provided a giggle at every turn of the head.  The major features were a turret, where an artist had painted the whole interior into a large advent calendar.  In a quiet corner a mosaic wishing well was set with the specific purpose of wishing for a child.  And the toilet... that was my favourite 'additional extra!  Not only was it heated, but above ones head was a gorgeous chandelier & in front of the loo was a chess set on a table.  A sign explained that when Icelandic people need to excuse themselves from company to tend to ablutions, they announce that they are going to play chess with the Pope!!!!!!!

One of the fun things about travel is looking at different road signs!  We have been very amused by a set of lights that follows the speed limit signs. A radar has picked up the car's speed & if you are going over the limit, the sign flashes an angry red face.  If you are going at the required speed you get a green smiley face. (Jeff has had lots of smiles I'm pleased to say!!).  Driving through Akureyri, we were a little disappointed that it was too wet to stop, until we noticed their charming heart shaped stop signs.  The yellow & green lights are both boringly round, but the red one is a heart!!

The mist lifted a little as we travelled up the left side of Eyjafjordur, which allowed us to see a stunning mountain range across on the other side of the fjord, speckled with ice.  We passed several fishing villages along the way, each one advertising whale watching boat trips.  The stretch of water to the north is rough & neither of us want to get sea sick, so no whales for us!

At last we stopped in a quiet little village called Olafsfjordur.  Not only did we encounter a bittery cold wind as we stepped out the car, but...OH MY... the stink of fish!  It was so strong.  Along some of the walls were murals of trolls, some of which were quite sinister & one had to wonder whether it was safe to stop here!!

The reason we were here was to visit a small natural history museum, with a main focus on flight & Icelandic birds.  It was beautifully displayed & embellished with quotes from literature about flight.  Small as it was, we had a very informative & enjoyable look.  We also enjoyed hearing the story of this polar bear!

Polar bears do not live here in Iceland, but every once in a while, they get stranded on icebergs that float down from Greenland.  When they do reach land they are very dangerous because they are desperately hungry.  Whilst Icelanders don't want to kill the bears, they have had trouble capturing them to relocate back to Greenland & cannot let them stay here, because the polar bears carry bacteria that isn't found here & would consequently introduce disease.  When all else fails, there is no alternative but to shoot the bear.

One day a boat of local fishermen were out at sea, near the island of Grimsey, when they saw that an iceberg was floating towards the island at a rapid speed & on it was a polar bear.  Grimsey has a very small population & the fisherman knew that if the bear reached the island the people would be in great danger.  The best thing to do would be to shoot the bear, but they only had a small gauge gun on board.  If they shot it right between the eyes, it would die instantly, if they missed, the bear would be more angry & pose a greater threat.  Thankfully, the first shot got him right between the eyes!





 



On we travelled, past stunning scenery & then through two very long tunnels drilled through the mounting ranges.  One was a single lane tunnel, with intermittent passing bays, so it was a challenge to navigate through as there were more cars coming towards us than there were going the direction we were!
At last we came to the beautiful port of Siglufjordur & a Hotel room with this view!

At last the rain seemed to have abated, so we took the opportunity to explore this seemingly sleepy little community & stretch the legs at the same time.  Clearly, fishing boats had just docked with the catch of the day & there a lot of feathered friends waited to assess the quality!

Siglufjordur has had a booming  herring fishing industry in the past. Nowadays the area that used to employ hundreds of seasonal workers, be littered with pyramids of barrels, & alive with the activities involved in salting herrings & making fish oil & fish meal, have become an award winning museum about the Herring Era.  It was there that we spent a few hours today.

We were interested in the vital role of the Herring Girls.  These were local & regional women who were available when the herring boats came in.  They would stand at these trays, where some would chop off the heads, while others packed each fish in salt imported from Spain.  We watched some film footage & these women worked sooooooo hard!  It was amazing the speed at which they could slice that knife!

The museum was a community effort & that included local artisans.  There were such a fascinating array of artefacts, photos, film & stories. One sculptor created this Herring Girl out of wood & she sits having a breather (& a cigarette) after completing the packed barrel beside her.

The herring boat section smelled of wood & rope & was quite dark.  It gave an insight into the light level these fishermen had to work in a lot of the season.  Midnight sun only lasts 2 months.  Jeff had a go at being captain!

Back into the light, we then had a rather special experience.  The Folk Music Centre is a national treasure. Between 1861 & 1938 the Rev Bjarni Thorsteinsson started collecting traditional folk music. This collection is now showcased in a museum for the public to enjoy. 
Whilst there were photos of some of the older contributors & a few demonstrational replicas of traditional instruments, the REAL treat was sitting at computers with headphones on & listening to local people sing some of their traditional songs.  Sometimes it reminded me of Welsh singing, sometimes Irish folk songs, sometimes plainsong.  It was varied, unaccompanied & very special.

Siglufjordur is remote.  It is right up the very top of Iceland.  There are not a huge number of people who live here & the tourists aren't abundant either ( from what we've seen.). Therefore, it's not the place we would have expected to find artisan chocolates produced!  We rocked up to Frida's at opening time, eager to try out the chocolate that had got such good reviews in tripadvisor.  We were not disappointed.  The hot chocolate was delicious (in fact I became little miss piggy & had a second cup!) & our favourite chocolates included beer in the ingredients!  I am not a beer drinker, but the combination was surprisingly good!

 

There isn't a whole lot else to do in this town, so we ended the day in the Hotel hot pool that just so happens to look out over the fjord, where ice still clings to the mountains. Bliss!