Springing back to Iceland to see it in the green! COMPLETED 6/29 - Page 12 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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That's quite a few countries for Mark! You can also include your home of the UK, Scotland (even though they're technically not separate countries) and Ireland as well.
Ah well, if you're going down that route, it's either the UK or Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland. We can't count Ireland, as believe it or not, we've only spent a day at Dublin and we didn't rent a car then. We do plan to explore Ireland a bit more one day....
After about an hour and a half, we were coming into Selfoss, which we’d passed through last year on our Golden Circle and Game of Thrones tour, so we were sort of familiar with it, but despite driving around it, we never really found the centre of it.
We did find somewhere we could pull over, and I was able to get these photos…
I had been using TripAdvisor to seek out places to eat near us, and came across this place, which was very well rated. As it had surf for me, and turf for Mark, I figured it would be perfect.
When we first walked in, I must admit I wondered what we’d done. It was definitely popular with the locals, as we seemed to be the only English speakers in there. There were groups of men, who I assume were builders. Eventually we managed to ask whether we just sat down, as there were no menus on the table, and the woman (the only member of staff serving, she later told us she was run off her feet) brought over our menus.
We later got talking to her, as she asked about my Disney tops (I had a T-shirt, and long sleeved top on), and if we worked there. Apparently she loves Disney, and every time she comes over to London (she’s been about five times), she has to go to the Disney Store, but she hates the fact they don’t have enough adult clothes (don’t we all? ). Because she was so skinny, by her own admission, she’s able to wear the children’s clothes though. Lucky her…
I went for the oven baked salmon with Icelandic butter (and seriously you could taste the butter in this dish and it was really good ), vegetables and baked potato. However, look what turned up! I couldn’t believe how much there was on the plate.
Mark was having similar problems, having ordered the baby back ribs, fries and coleslaw…
Honestly, it was such a good meal, and a real find. I’m so glad we tried this place, even if I was a bit worried when we first walked in.
Steakhouse Surf and Turf
Food 9 9
Atmosphere 8½ 8½
Service 9 8
Value for money 7 8
Average score: 8.38
We set off again, passing through the rest of Selfoss…
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What a great find of a restaurant! And of course you found someone who loves Disney too.
The landscape is everchanging there, I love that!
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Tanya
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That looked like a delicious lunch! I'm making note of the place - in case we're looking for food when we're near to it on our Golden Circle drive!
Definitely a good idea, as places to eat are sometimes few and far between. There is another place that I'll get on it in due course which is within the Golden Circle, which I adored... for reasons which will becomes obvious when we get to that point in the trip report....
Great update with so many scenery photos of Selfoss! You do it to me every time and now with two Iceland TRs, I must go here!
Just wondering if traveling solo in Iceland would it be enjoyable for me? Probably need to look into tours or ones that just hook you up for excursions as I can probably do the rest as I'm not the common tourist (like you and Mark and well versed in this)
The restaurant looks very good and your entrees look amazing. Even better as few were speaking English, that is a very good sign as where the locals go! I always go by this, when considering eateries in Europe!
You mentioned Tripadvisor and use I them so frequently. Recently V&A's was mentioned for best reviewed restaurants. For reviews they are #2 in the USA and #8 in the entire world! Quite amazing! to say the least They certainly deserve the accolades!
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October 6, 2017-Enjoying an amazing dinner at Victoria & Albert's with PP's Dot and Drew
My TR from my most recent trip is now underway. Includes: Universal Studios Florida, Disney World and Sea World Orlando Trifecta TR -Updated December 10th! TR is now COMPLETED!
Great update with so many scenery photos of Selfoss! You do it to me every time and now with two Iceland TRs, I must go here!
Sorry about that.
Quote:
Just wondering if traveling solo in Iceland would it be enjoyable for me? Probably need to look into tours or ones that just hook you up for excursions as I can probably do the rest as I'm not the common tourist (like you and Mark and well versed in this)
I think it would be perfect actually. On our first trip, we took the airport bus to Reykjavik and then used that as a base to day trips and I think those would work well for you. I'm sure there probably are tours available as well, but out of all the places we've visited, it's one that really lends itself to day tours, especially in the winter, when most people probably don't want to rent cars to get around.
Quote:
The restaurant looks very good and your entrees look amazing. Even better as few were speaking English, that is a very good sign as where the locals go! I always go by this, when considering eateries in Europe!
You mentioned Tripadvisor and use I them so frequently. Recently V&A's was mentioned for best reviewed restaurants. For reviews they are #2 in the USA and #8 in the entire world! Quite amazing! to say the least They certainly deserve the accolades!
Friday 28 April – part six: this is like being stabbed!
As we drove along, we spotted this, Seljalandesfoss.
At first, I thought it was Skogafoss, which is what we were heading for, but a quick look at Google Maps showed that we were still quite some distance away, so we pulled in to have a look. We were going to get out of the car, and wander over, but as we undid the windows to get some photos, the spray even from this distance was unbelievable. If we’d have got out, and walked any closer, we’d have got drenched, so we just admired it from a distance.
We left there, and once again, the weather closed in on us.
Soon we were literally right on the coastal road, with the water lapping very close to us – a bit scary given all the wind that was around. I don’t think I’ve mentioned that, but Mark was having to fight to keep the car on the right side of the road at times, it was that powerful.
What amazed us as we drove along were the sheer amount of colours everywhere. Obviously, this is an exceptionally fertile country, given it’s volcanic, as that’s how volcanoes leave the landscape – hence how Hawai’i is so lush and green.
We then started to see sun in the distance over some of the mountains, which was beautiful, but also quite eerie. It’s certainly true what our minibus driver said to us earlier as we headed to the car rental place, that the weather can change literally minute to minute.
By now, we were making our way to the black beach at Vik, or to give it its proper name the Reynisdrangur. It was off the main road by about four miles, and at first, the road was fine, and wide enough for two cars to pass, but the further along we got it, the narrower it got, and you could only pass at designated areas. At least it gave me the opportunity to wind down the window, and get some shots of the stunning landscape…
We parked up at the beach, and my goodness, the wind that hit us not long after we got out was really something. Not only did it take your breath away, but it was strong enough to almost knock you over. I was putting on my coat with the car door behind me, and even with that protection, I nearly went flying more than once.
I decided that I’d manage without the crutch, and in fairness, it was easier, given I was on sand. You know how hard it usually is to walk on sand? Well, I guess with my ankle problems, it was suddenly a lot easier. That was the good thing. The bad thing was the gust of winds that literally would come out of nowhere. Sometimes you felt it coming, and could prepare to be almost blown over. That meant turning your back to the sea, but worse than that was the fact that there was sand/grit being blown into you from that vicious wind as well. If you didn’t turn quickly enough, it felt as if you were being stabbed, and at times that’s how it felt on my legs.
As you can see from some of the photos, the sea was exceptionally rough, and goodness knows why they had to post warnings about going near the sea. You’d have to be nuts to – however I guess during the summer, if it looks calm, someone might be tempted.
Apparently fishermen used to launch their open boats from this beach, which must’ve been quite some feat! The columns you can see out to sea are columnar basalt, which is formed when magma cools slowly and cracks into columns., usually hexagonal, as the surface area decreases. The columns always stand perpendicular to the cooling surface, and this means they can be horizontal, spreading out from the centre, or vertical.
It was a shame the weather wasn’t more cooperative, as frankly the beach didn’t exactly wow me, but we’d seen it. I was very relieved to get back in the car, as I kept worrying the next gust would blow me over and finish my ankle off. Mark ventured further than I did though, and got this photo of the columnar basalt…
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Even with the clouds, the landscape is amazing. There's just so much variety!
That wind, wow! I'm trying to picture this all in blue sky and sunshine and I'm sure it's quite amazing. But your stories are funnier to tell about how you almost got blown over and the sand was pelting your face! Your selfies are so cute!
__________________
Tanya
Every click helps feed .6 bowls of food to rescued animals. Give a quick click every day and help animals in shelters! www.theanimalrescuesite.com
Registered Message Board Members Get Our Free Newsletter! When you register you'll have the option to sign up for our weekly PassPorter Newsletter. It's chock-full of feature articles; news; tips; contests; photos; and special offers in our online store.
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You can also include your home of the UK, Scotland (even though they're technically not separate countries) and Ireland as well.
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). Because she was so skinny, by her own admission, she’s able to wear the children’s clothes though. Lucky her… 
), vegetables and baked potato. However, look what turned up! 
I couldn’t believe how much there was on the plate. 
What a beautiful town!!
They certainly deserve the accolades!
Even given the weather though the drive looks beautiful and that beach is awesome!!
Your selfies are so cute!
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