Before coming to Reykjavik, I didn’t have much of an idea of what to expect. Being in such a small city in a very small country, I didn’t think there would be much going on and thought we might have a hard time coming up with things to do in our free time. However, I was definitely wrong about that.
Today, when we had some free time, we walked around in the old city to do a little exploring. We had some food and did some shopping in the stores around the area. My favorite store we went to was a thrift store, where I was able to find a traditional Icelandic sweater for much cheaper than any other places we saw. It was fun to find some of these little stores that were off the beaten path and less traveled by many of the tourists. We also went into a couple of other stores where I got a few little gifts for my family. Even though there were many stores to get souvenirs at, many of the stores had the same things in them, so there was no need to go to every one. That’s why it was fun to explore a bit more and find the lesser-known stores.
With all the really fun things we did in Reykjavik, my favorite was definitely the Irish restaurant we visited. As soon as we walked in, I knew I’d like it because they had someone playing the guitar and singing. Surprisingly, he knew many songs that we listen to in America, even Sweet Caroline. The food was also so delicious that I ordered more than one meal. In other restaurants in Reykjavik, this would’ve been super expensive, but fortunately, the prices there were very fair.
Along with the great atmosphere and food, we met many different people from around the world. The first was a couple from London who were also in Iceland on vacation. It was really fun to talk to them and learn about how their lives and culture are different than ours.
I was so happy that we were able to get a bit of free time in our busy schedule to explore the city and learn more about Iceland. This has been an amazing trip, and I can’t believe tomorrow is our last day.
Swanson School of Engineering 