We arrived in Iceland early this morning and went up on deck to watch as we sailed into port...
and another absolutely breathtaking part of the world...
Akureyri sits at the end of one of the longest fjords in Iceland, measuring close to 40 miles long. Akureyri is situated on the north side of the country, and is a city of around 20,000 people!
Grandma decided to stay on the ship today, as we did not have a planned shore excursion, and there was a bit of a walk to the city center.
We ended up getting off mid-morning and found an independent "combo" tour that looked pretty good, so we signed up, planning to head to Godafoss Falls, the Laufas historical site (turf house farm), and the Christmas House.
Our first stop was Godafoss Falls, and it was magnificent.
Though I've seen plenty of waterfalls, and Niagara Falls, this one was unique to me due to the color of the water. In places, the water seemed an icy blue that was just beautiful...
We enjoyed spending some time walking around the area...
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before heading on to our next stop...
According to the webiste, the Laufas community was settled shortly after Iceland was settled and is centered around the local church...
The large turf house, that is now a part of the National Museum of Iceland...
was a farmhouse owned by the local priest. He owned all of the surrounding land, not only running his own farm, but and leasing some of the land to other farmers, as well. Though it is considered quite large, as it was owned by a prosperous family, it is an excellent example of turf house construction.
Learning about the unique way this house was built...
and getting to go inside...
was so interesting and cool!
I was shocked at how many rooms were inside, including a wedding room used for brides of the family to get ready. One artifact that they have on display is the wedding dress of the priest's daughter. Unfortunately, she never got to wear the dress, as she died two weeks before her wedding...
Our guide pointed out that the dress was black and that the tradition of a white wedding dress had not yet caught on in Iceland since they were isolated from much of the rest of the world.
From there, we continued to our last stop, the Christmas House...
where we got some snacks...
{M's first candied apple!}
and Christmas ornaments!
We got dropped off in town so we could explore some more...
Check out these cute, heart-shaped, red lights...
We walked up to the main church...
(and I do mean UP ~ what is it about these Nordic towns?!?!?!? Ha!)
This Lutheran church is considered a symbol of Akureyri...
From the church we continued (you guessed it...UP ~ I sure do wish my Fitbit still calculated flights)...
to the local botanical garden...
which is considered to be one of the prettiest parks in Iceland...
and this is why...
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It was the most serene spot in the middle of an Icelandic town!
I'm so glad we hiked up there!
We passed several interesting houses...
and a smaller church...
as we headed back down to town...
The snow-capped mountains backdropped against the water made for such a gorgeous scene...
We reunited with Grandma and went back up on deck to get ready to sail away...
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For dinner, we decided to try a meal in one of the dining rooms...
and saw whales as we were eating!
Looking forward to seeing more of Iceland tomorrow...
More {EUROPE} 2025 Fun...
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