A bit about the town of Reykjavik

The 24 hour daylight is something you get used to pretty fast. It is kind of great when you can take a picture at 3am and have it look like its noon. Colors here are amazing. The sky is always really light blue, but the pinks and yellows that the sun makes are just so vivid, and there are always at least wispy cirrus clouds in the sky to reflect color. Reykjavik has some of the most longest, most beautiful "sunsets" I've ever seen. I use quotes because the sun is never really all the way down in the summer. Generally, sun here is worshiped. On sunny warm days people sit outside and drink beer outside of restaurants not facing each other, but facing the sun. The hot ground water is responsible for nearly all of the power generated in Iceland. It is maybe the only place in the world where you can take a long hot shower and NOT feel guilty about it, since it is the country's single most abundant and renewable resource thanks to the active volcanos. Most things are more expensive than they are back home (makes sense, most things are imported), especially restaurants.

Some of my favorite places:

Smiðjan pizza- They serve these flavor infused oils with the pizza, so good. One is garlic, the other is tomato/chilli. Brick oven, the real deal. Try cream cheese and jalapenos- an icelandic favorite.

The Delicatessen with a green awning on Skólavörðstígur - It has a small restaurant in the basement with a catch of the day special on weekdays. It was the best cheapest meal I've had in Reykjavik, totally a local secret, I doubt they have a website. When I went, the special was catfish with a wild mushroom sauce and mashed potatoes. I debated licking my plate in public.

Kaffibarinn- There are no pictures allowed at this bar, free hor d'oeuvres on Wednesdays with specials on red wine. It is a chill place to work during the day (free wifi) and a happening bar scene after eleven on the weekends. Brenavin, the Icelandic liquorish schnapps are a must-try. 
Seabaron/Sægreiffin restaurant. Their lobster soup really is freaking fantastic and deserves its fame. 
Sjávargrillið restaurant. Brendan and I had our last real meal in Iceland here. Maybe that is what made part of this place so good, but I'd come there before and really loved the presentation, prices and flavors of everything I ordered. They bring out bread with butter in this lava rock bowl, and they had great fish specials, super fresh, seasoned well, always with some kind of delicious sauce or salsa or both. 

Wifi here is free at every corner, which is so nice. No more paying for internet cafes like in South America. I refuse to try the national dish- putrefied shark fin, though I did try some whale meat and have to admit that it was the best steak I've ever tasted. Somehow the thought of eating anything putrefied just activates my gag reflex. Skyr is Icelandic yogurt, really thick and full of protein, they make for good fruit smoothies/daquiries. My favorites Thai and Indian food is popular here and spices and cooking mixes are readily available at the Bonus supermarkets (their mascot is a pig, and their commercials are hysterical).

In general Iceland veers from the rest of Scandinavia in its density. It is slightly more car-centric and more similar in attitude to America than Sweden, Denmark and Finland. They have a lot of space, and have grown used to that luxury. So much so that a curator at the hydroelectric plant warned us that Icelanders may seem pushy at the bars, but it is only because they are used to having a lot of space to themselves, and do not adjust when the bars become full, and personal space dwindles. Though, they do seem to use the spaces they have in terms of business for the maximum amount of time. I wonder if this is a product of the economic collapse. Restaurants turn to bars and stay open, changing moods and crowds throughout the course of a day. Bookstores with cafes, Deli's with restaurants. Lots of mixed use spaces, but in a different way than what I'd usually associate with that term.

Ancient viking culture is an ever present tourist trap, but I find the symbols and myths really interesting. I'm tempted to buy jewelry with Viking significance, but can't seem to legitimize spending the money on it, especially when it feels a little like a gimmick. The harbor area has a lot of this historic influence, and even a real blacksmith. In general that are has a lot of stores that are also workshops. The hand-knitting association does the knitting in house, which is why the Icelandic wool sweaters are ~200 bucks a pop. They are THE icelandic thing, but I would never wear it, I hate itchy wool. And, I have a sweater that looks like one of them that I was made fun of for wearing in undergrad (thanks 1135) so, I will pass. There is another jeweler on Laugavegur (the main shopping street) that is really good, and also does work in the back of his shop. I would recommend him to anyone that wants some cool Icelandic designed jewlery- he even uses lava rock beads in some of his stuff: Eureka Art by Simon Sverrisson.