Is Reykjavík Lacking that Special Kind of Qi?

The alleyway between Austurvellir and Ingólfstorg  

There are some spots in Reykjavik that have a sort of pull, and not always a good one. I suspect anyone versed in feng shui would know that it's a chi thing, energy that's stuck or abused in some manner, and can't flow as is its nature to do. This is one of those places, the part of Vallarstræti which has become basically an alley between Ingólfstorg and Austurvellir, with the well-known Nasa music venue there on the left. It's of course

Öskjuhlíð, Mount of Mystery in the Heart of Reykjavik

Öskjuhlíð Forest in Reykjavik

Click on the header to go to the main Iceland Eyes page, and be sure to visit the recommended pages below each post or use the archives feature down at the bottom as well. I reference my older posts quite a bit and try to find the most relevant and unique external info sources, so let the links in my articles take you even further into the adventure that is Iceland : )

Saturday was a perfect day for outdoor adventures here in Reykjavik. I started thinking of all the cool places we could go in the surrounding area for a nice walk or hike, including Heiðmörk, Esja (also take a look at the MountEsja.org webcam), Straumsvík, the Hengill area between Hveragerði and Þingvellir, or even just having Óðinn pick a trail out of the book I translated, Walking Trails of the Greater Reykjavik Area: 25 Beautiful Walks (...and lo and 

On Tide Pools and How Kids Play

The heated foot bath at Seltjarnarnes 

As if someone turned on the lights, or as if the tide of seasons has turned, life in our city is bustling again. We can't honestly say winter is over, but most of us who live in cold climates will admit that we're willing to handle cold. It's dreary, murky darkness of the post holiday season and its slicing winds that do our souls in. We hunker down deeper into our parkas and wait for the sun to return.

 Make no mistake, it's still hovering around the frost mark here on our island, and some regions, like at the east coast fjords, haven't even seen beneath the past winter's snows yet (here's a link to live cameras over in the Reyðarfjörður area where

Lovers on a Bridge

The bridge leading from Iðnó to the Ráðhús (Reykjavík City Hall)

Visiting lovers photographing each other on a misty rainbowy bridge. What more is there to say? : )

For some more sweet shots of love, there's this photo of a tourist girlfriend being coaxed onto our frozen town lake for the first time by her boyfriend, this one of a local penguin declaring his faith, and this one of a couple enjoying the view at Þingvellir National Park.

Bound, or What to Do When Your Roof Nearly Blows Away

Njálsgata, midtown Reykjavík

( Note: this is my 703rd post, so if you're a new visitor, be sure to follow the 'Older Posts' link at the bottom right side of this page. Or you can use the archives feature down at the bottom as well. I've just started collapsing older posts, so for full articles, hit the 'Read more' links . In addition, I reference my older posts quite a bit, and try to find the most relevant and unique external info sources, so let the links in my articles take you even further into the adventure that is Iceland : )

Well well, best laid plans, etc...

We haven't yet made it to lands east, as per my last post. Take a good look at this slightly awkward photo and you'll see that a portion of our house is bound to our tree, and that the roof and gutter are in bad shape. Gale-force winds in mid-March happened to be blowing at exactly the right angle to pry their surreptitious fingers under the corrugated iron and literally make red metal wings out of it, seeming to flap in some desperate take-off attempt, held down only by decades-old nails set in the much older wood frame. Luckily,... (click the super-small Read more link below to read more!)

Eastward! A New Life Calls!

The road in to Hveragerði

I wish I could say I'm heading into my future on the road less traveled, but to be honest, pretty much anyone who's visited Iceland, and everyone who lives here, has covered this particular swath of pavement. It's just at the top of the steep and winding section of the ring road, Highway 1, that leads past Hveragerði before continuing east into Selfoss and adventures beyond.

It's not, then, a hidden path or even a particularly inaccessible one, this road, although in winter time the heath that needs to be crossed before starting the descent into the lands to the east can be