A night in Breiðdalsvík, Iceland

We arrived in Breiðdalsvík just before 15:00 on Saturday afternoon. We were expecting partial clouds and sun, but we encountered blizzard-like conditions. It was extremely windy and the snow was piling down on us. My boyfriend's work retreat was held at Hotel Blafell, which was a very nice log cabin styled hotel. I'm not sure if there are any other guesthouses in this small village, but this was certainly a nice one!

His work had organized a walk through the town, so we quickly unloaded the car, checked-in and waited for further instructions about this walk. Not long after all that we set out for the walk in the "blizzard." Luckily the outside part of the walk was not long. Our first stop was at a small monument, which symbolized the air strikes that hit the town during World War 2. Unfortunately I really didn't get to look around much because it was so hard to look up when the wind and snow is blowing in your face. Our next brief stop outside was at a house that was bombed during World World 2. In that era, a few British soldiers were stationed in this town, and that is probably why it was hit. 

The last stop on the walk was at the oldest house in the town, which is now a museum of the town and the surrounding area. We received information about the museum, but it was all in Icelandic, so I spent my time looking through the pictures and the exhibits. Most had descriptions that were only in Icelandic but some had information in English too. We were also offered a local beer at the start of the tour.

The house had two floors. The first floor focused mainly on the town, it's people, and products from different eras. It was really fun for my boyfriend since it brought back a lot of memories of things (for example coffee brands and old beverage containers) that he was able to share with me. The second floor focused primarily on  the geological surroundings of Breiðdalsvík. A nice rock exhibit was on display. Ash from each of the more recent volcano eruptions was also on display and you could touch it to feel the difference in texture. There was also an area that explained how and when Iceland was formed. This display was in English, and I found this particularly interesting. I didn't know that Iceland really isn't that old!

One thing I learned while on the tour is that the town and surround areas (including farms) have a population of only 190 people. I simply cannot imagine living in such a small village! Even though I complain that Hofn (at 1,900 people) is too small sometimes, visiting small towns such as this one really make me appreciate all that I have here in Hofn.

Following the tour we all went over to the bar/cafe/gift shop. I think this may have been the only establishment in town that actually had life. Some people sat down to watch a football game and have a few drinks while others roamed the gift store, which is actually more expensive than the gift shop at home in Hofn. However, we did see several of my boyfriend's dad's artwork. He turns wood and makes bowls, Christmas ornaments, and kitchen decor among other things.

Later that evening we had a lovely group dinner. We were served duck with roasted potatoes, lobster soup, and some kind of marzipan ice cream dessert with a blueberry sauce. Toasts were made and each person at the table was called up for having "done something bad," thus they were required to take a shot of their choice. I was "admonished for having moved to Iceland."

It was a late night of role playing, story telling, and chatter in the fireplace living room of the hotel. The next morning we awoke to a gorgeous sunny day in Breiðdalsvík! We took a quick drive around the town to see what was there (not much), took some pictures of the mountains that were pretty much right on top of us and then started our drive back to Hofn. While there isn't much to do in Breiðdalsvík. It is certainly a nice place to stay if you are traveling through eastern Iceland.