Life under the Midnight Sun - North Iceland's ... - Land og saga

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Enjoy Akureyri on a BudgetA Warm and Friendly Guesthouse that has All You NeedSúlur Guesthouse is popular with budgetconscioustravellers to Akureyri. It has 8rooms with both made-up beds and sleepingbag accommodation. With two kitchens, oneon each floor, it offers self-catering and has alaundrette. There is free wireless internet and TV.Set on the hillside next to the campsite,overlooking the town and the fjord, it isclose to the geothermally heated swimmingpool, the beautiful botanical gardens and agrocery shop. If you’d rather not walk, thefree bus service will take you down to thetown for quick access to all the amenities,or on a tour around the town.Súlur is open all year-round, so it makes agreat choice for skiers taking a winter breakto enjoy the slopes above the town. Duringthe summer months, from 1 st of June tomid-August, an additional 12 rooms areavailable which are ideal for families orsmall groups. They consist of 3 apartments,comprising 4 bedrooms each, again, withself-catering facilities in every apartment.Súlur Guesthouse–ASFÞórunnarstræti 93 • 600 Akureyri+354 461 1160sulur@islandia.iswww.sulurguesthouse.isWhere Fitness Folk EatBesti bitinn’s fresh food is a hit with health-loving peopleClose to Akureyri’s walking street andthe harbour is a good location forpeople who want to get their meal quicklybut eat something fresh and healthy.Besti bitinn is well known for its fish andchips, so I decided to try, too. It surpassedwhat I’d heard about it - fresh, firm butsoft and full of flavour. My partner triedthe chicken salad and I saw why so manypeople in the health and fitness communityin Akureyri come to eat here.Healthy food and prices don’t competeOf course, some people are not soconcerned about their health but justwant to eat something that tastesgood and isn’t expensive, so the usualcarbonated drinks are also available withtheir meals. Whether they realise it ornot, though, they are eating fish freshfrom the boats that just landed or thechicken that’s never been frozen or lostits food value in the cooking.The nice thing about this restaurant isthat you can sit in a friendly, comfortableatmosphere and mix and match theingredients to your own taste whenordering. We liked that and will be joiningthe regulars whenever we’re in Akureyri.Besti Bitinn–ASFSkipagata 2 • 600 Akureyri+354 578 6400fiskistjarnan@internet.ison facebookAkureyri 229
North IcelandThe Deep Valley in the NorthIn Eyjafjarðarsveit you can take part in the farm lifeAll is not always what it seems inIceland. A town is not merely atown and the countryside is not eitherwilderness or farmland. The valley southof Akureyri in the north of Iceland is oneof those areas diffi cult to defi ne. It has theatmosphere of farmland, offers a variety oftourist attractions and activities any townwould be proud of and accommodationranging from camping sites to lovely hotels.The Eyjafjarðará river runs through thisnarrow valley, which is surprisingly long atabout 50 kilometres. The farms are mostlylocated along the riverbank with the roadcrisscrossing the river via a number ofbridges, making access to everything onoffer to the tourist quick and easy.Comfortable guesthousesEyjafj arðarsveit has, of course, an excellentoutdoor swimming pool with hot tubs andfun slides, a lovely playground for youngsters,museums, cafés, an ice-cream factory with anice cream bar, a vegetarian restaurant whichalso offers a raw food menu, horse rentalfarms, river-fishing and two golf courses.When planning a holiday with your familyand friends in Iceland, the many guesthousesin Eyjafjarðarsveit are a real treat. There isBrúnalaug Guesthouse, a bungalow situated700 metres from the main road providingabsolute peace and quiet. Further north isÖngulsstaðir, where the old barn has beenrenovated and now houses a tiny hotel whereall rooms come with en suite bathrooms, andthe lovely Lamb Inn restaurant. Nearby, isHóll Guesthouse, an apartment with twodouble rooms and all necessary facilities andUppsalir Guesthouse which can accommodateup to ten individuals. Uppsalir and HrafnagilGuesthouse, 12 kilometres south of Akureyri,invite their guests to take part in theirbeautiful farm life, which is especially lovedby city youngsters. Family–friendly HrafnagilGuesthouse offers five large rooms andfacilities for babies and children.Then there is the Leifsstaðir, one of theloveliest hotels in Iceland. An hotel with a view,lovely verandas and its very own golf course.Kátur is a Horse Rental at Kaupangs bakkar,offering guided tours ranging from 1 to 3hours, every day of the week from 8 th June to1 st September each year. They also offer customhorseback riding trips for groups of any variety.Raw food and farm ice creamThe real treat in Eyjafjarðarsveit has gotto be Holtsel, offering their very ownfarmhouse ice cream, labelled Holtsels-Hnoss. The ice creams are made from cream,milk, yoghurt, full-fat, low-fat, non-fat andsorbets. Something delicious for everyone.A short distance away is Kaffi Kú or CaféCow, a bar specialising in whisky along witha vast selection of beer and, of course, coffeeand quite different cakes, like their liquoricecake. A truly original place.The Silva vegetarian restaurant issteadily becoming one of the mostpopular raw food restaurants in Iceland,offering a good vegetarian and raw foodmenu, fresh shakes and juices.When travelling in this area in latesummer, try not to miss the handicraftscelebration held each year in August.As you drive around Eyjafjarðarsveit,be sure to visit the various old churchesin the area, each with its own specialhistory and architecture.And last, but not least, do not missthe Smámunasafnið, an original and funmuseum containing one man’s collectionof odd and everyday pieces. A day spent inEyjafjarðarsveit is a day well spent.–SSEyjafjarðarsveitSkólatröð 9 • 601 Akureyri+354 463 0600esveit@esveit.iswww.eyjafjardarsveit.isBásar Guesthouse in GrímseyWhere Everybody Knows Your NameFor those used to living in metropolitanareas or even small towns, a visit toGrímsey will surely change the way youfeel about your neighbours. Grímsey isa tiny island of only two square miles,located 25 miles north of Iceland and has apopulation of less than a hundred. The smallpopulation ensures that everyone has a sharein the community‘s responsibilities and thateveryone knows everybody.For example one inhabitant, RagnhildurHjaltadóttir, shares the duties of being themanager of local guesthouse, Básar, operatorof a small banking branch in Grímsey,airport manager and chairwoman for thelocal women’s club. “In order to live happilyin such a tight-knit community, you haveto be 100% content with yourself and begenerous to the community. We have anextremely active social life and there isreally no other alternative than to take partin it. We tend to celebrate every occasion wecan think of and most people I know fromthe mainland tell me that the social lifehere is much more energetic. For exampleour community centre is sometimes evenbooked the whole week through and whenit’s someone’s birthday the whole island isinvited,” says Ragnhildur.Activities in Grímsey are plentiful. Youhave the option of going sea angling, whichcan be arranged in Básar. You can spend theday bird watching as the island hosts variousspecies of birds. If in doubt as to where thebest spot is, simply ask the locals who willgladly point them out to you. Then of course,you can just explore the entire island by foot,see the church, chat with the fishermen at thepier (though not all of them speak Englishbut they’ll welcome you anyway) or drop byat the community centre and see if there is abingo game or a lottery going on.Ragnhildur says island visitors areuniformly welcomed to the island andcommonly invited to join in on whateverevents the locals are celebrating. “We like tothink of this environment as more personalthan in many crowded populations. Forexample, I never leave my guests unattendedand I often take guests staying at Básar for adrive around the island and introduce themto our daily lives” says Ragnhildur.Básar offers 18 beds in eight different rooms,either made up or for sleeping bags. Breakfastis on offer, as well as full meals if requested.The guesthouse is located next to the ArcticCircle and you only have to take three stepsoutside the guesthouse to cross it. From 12thJune until 20th August, flights depart forGrímsey daily at 13:00 from Akureyri. Prior tothat time, flights depart three times a week. Aferry also leaves from Dalvík at 9:00 am threetimes a week (Mon, Wed, Fri).BásarBásum • 611 Grímsey+354 467 3103gagga@simnet.isnone230 231
Page 1 and 2: North IcelandLife under the Midnigh
Page 3 and 4: Skiing down TröllaskagiAkureyriThe
Page 5 and 6: North IcelandThe Life of SalmonAngl
Page 7 and 8: North IcelandRefreshments on the Ro
Page 9 and 10: North IcelandHorses, Historyand Nat
Page 11 and 12: North IcelandLight in the NorthHól
Page 13 and 14: North IcelandA Boutique Lifestyle i
Page 15 and 16: SiglufjörðurÓ laf s fjörð urOu
Page 17: North IcelandMore Iceland for less
Page 21 and 22: North IcelandTheOld Townof Akureyri
Page 23 and 24: North IcelandA Hundred Years of Flo
Page 25 and 26: North IcelandA PerfectDay in Hríse
Page 27: North IcelandRiding the NorthHorse
Page 31 and 32: North IcelandThe Magical MysteryLak
Page 33 and 34: North IcelandWinterlandWondersWinte
Page 35 and 36: North IcelandThe Biggest Bones You
Page 37 and 38: IngimarsstaðirÞórshöfnAs Far As
Page 39: North IcelandAskja caldera and the

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