Iceland in numbers

I did this for Scotland and Canada, and now it’s time for Iceland. As I type this I’m in the National Library of Iceland, but since I’m scheduling the post in advance, by the time you’re reading it I’ll be in London. Wow.

As before, the food numbers are just for me, not Erik as well.

SLEEP
# of nights spent in Reykjavík: 49
# of apartments: 2

{as always, mouse over images for description/notes, or click to enlarge}

TRANSIT
flights: 1 in (Glasgow-Reykjavík), 1 out (Reykjavík-London)
travel time from Reykjavík to the UK: 2-3 hours

time zones crossed: 0
(However: daylight-savings time is not observed in Iceland, so in the summer there’s an hour’s time difference between Reykjavík and the UK.)

new stamps in passport: 1

cars rented: 1

bus rides: 2 (to and from the airport)

taxi rides: 1

EXERCISE
kilometers walked (approx): 190 (118 miles)
swimming pool visits: 7 (to 3 different pools)

Hot pots at Vesturbaejarlaug, the pool at 107 and my favorite of the 3 we visited.

photo from visitreykjavik.is

FOOD AND DRINK
meals eaten out: 26
in Icelandic/Scandinavian restaurants which did not specialize in seafood: 6
in cafes: 4
in museum cafes: 3

in Icelandic seafood restaurants: 3
at hot dog stands: 3
in Thai restaurants: 2
in noodle restaurants: 2
in other Asian restaurants: 2
at food trucks: 1

eggs boiled in geothermal springs: 1

# of meals which were repeat visits to the same restaurant: 1 (the famous hot dog stand!)
# of meals which were mediocre: 2
# of times we experienced subpar service: 1

food-buying trips: 52 (in other words, every day — and sometimes multiple times in a day)
at supermarkets: 28
at bakeries: 11
at 10-11 (the convenience store): 3
at markets or outdoor vendors: 3
at health-food or organic markets: 1
at tourist centers: 1
at Asian groceries (Thai or Vietnamese): 2
at a specialty deli: 1

AN ALTERNATE GASTRONOMIC RECKONING
SWEETS
# of times I purchased skyr, plain or flavored: 15

ice creams eaten: 2 (strawberry, rye bread)

BAKED GOODS
Types of pastries eaten: 9
muffins (chocolate, apple, walnut): 3
cheese buns: 3
various things with custard: 2
ham/cheese croissants: 1
small cinnamon rolls: 1
large cinnamon rolls w/icing: 1
kleina (knot): 1
Berliner: 1
waffles: 1

Types of cake eaten: 10
carrot: 5
eplakaka (apple cake or pie): 3
skyr cake (like cheesecake): 3
meringue: 2
chocolate: 2
roll cake: 1
hamburger shaped: 1

rum: 1

mousse: 1

Types of cookies eaten: 9
hafrakex (a crisp, slightly sweet oatmeal biscuit): 3
íslandskex (taste similar to American animal crackers) with chocolate coating: 1
marzipan things whose names I don’t know: 2
Napoleon’s hat: 1
sandwich: 2
florentines: 1
chocolate… not chip, but chocolate bits: 2
rice cakes w/chocolate & coconut on top (not reallllly a cookie): 1

Types of jam/marmalade purchased: 3
rhubarb: 2
strawberry: 1
imported orange and chocolate from Spain: 1

Types of bread purchased: 7
flatbread (regular or spelt): 8
normalbread: 3
multigrain: 3
muesli: 1
poppy seed roll: 1
rye (yogurt, Danish, malt…): 4
various scones/skonsur: 3

SAVORIES
FISH
ordered in restaurants: 5
purchased fresh (haddock, blue ling): 2
purchased as gravlax: 3
purchased as frozen fiskibollur (fish balls) : 2
purchased fresh but pre-breaded (always haddock, always super delicious): 3

NOT FISH
lamb entrees ordered: 2
lamb legs purchased: 2
packages of sliced smoked lamb purchased: 3
half-dozens of eggs purchased: 5
swedes (rutabagas) purchased: 4

open-faced sammiches purchased: 5
hot dogs eaten or shared: 15

orders of pizza (both seafood): 2

Types of soup eaten: 4
kjötsúpa (meat soup, which really means lamb): 1
húmarsupa (lobster soup): 4
onion soup: 1
lamb goulash: 1

Types of sauce purchased: 7
gravlax sauce: 1
mayonnaise: 1
alioli (imported from Spain): 1
remoulaði: 1
hot dog mustard: 1
yuzu jalapeño: 1
soy sauce: 2 🙂

Types of cheese purchased: 5
Maribó: 2
smurostur (spreadable processed cheese): 2
Tindur: 1
Búri: 2
Ísbúi: 1

CULTURE AND SIGHTS
non-Reykjavík towns/cities/parks visited: 6
museums/galleries visited: 5 (NOT including the below)

concerts attended: 8