Susan and I were fortunate to find ourselves with a third day in Reykjavik. Our flight home was not until 8:10 p.m. and our airport transfer not until 4:40 p.m. We planned to use the time by visiting the National Museum of Iceland.
Breakfast in the Vox restaurant of the hotel was unhurried, There did not appear to be the large and conference crowds of the previous Sunday. Four other members of our tour were also still here and we breakfasted with them. Two individuals were going to remain in Reykjavik another two days.
We took a taxi to the museum and arrived shortly after opening. The museum is adjacent to the campus of the University of Iceland and across the street from the National Library. Principally the museum tells the story of inhabited Iceland. As such, it very neatly picks up where the Perlan and its telling of the natural history of Iceland leaves off. There were no indigenous peoples when explorers from Norway arrived about 870 and soon settled the island. This period is known as the Settlement Age. Iceland adopted Christianity in place of the Old Norse Religion in 1000. (Sagas attest to the date.)
Catholicism was then observed in Iceland until the Reformation established Lutheranism in the 16th century. Decorative arts and objects of material culture from these eras form the greater part of the permanent exhibit Making of a Nation - Heritage and History in Iceland. The is little period clothing shown, principally a Skautbningur womans costume from 1860. More items of material culture are displayed from the late 19th and 20th centuries.
We enjoyed a pleasant lunch at the museums caf. After returning to the hotel, we waited in the lobby for our ride to the airport. Globus had arranged a taxi for us. It arrived a bit early, which was nice and off we went to Keflavik Airport. There were two long queues waiting to check in for Icelandics evening flights to North America. One was for flights to the USA (which required Coivd test results) and one for Canada (which did not require a test). The positions were late in opening, but we still had time to visit the before proceeding to the gate. Our flight to Washington Dulles was delayed a few minutes waiting for connecting passengers from Zurich. Icelandic continues to provide a discount gateway
After returning from our trip to Iceland, we watched the two seasons of the Icelandic detective show Trapped. Having visited Iceland added to our enjoyment of the series. I read Njls saga, a tale of honor and revenge set against the annual meeting of the Alþingi and of Christianity to Iceland.
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