I arrived late last night in Reykjavik. The bus took me from the airport to the hotel driving through the lava fields on an empty motorway. The feeling was one of calm.

After getting a good night sleep today I got a chance to take a stroll through the city. The first thing that struck me was the lack of traffic. Naturally, there are cars, but I had the sensation that it’s pretty empty on the streets, probably that’s why they cross them wherever they please. When in Rome, do as Romans do, so I followed suit.

One street I crossed was this one:

I wonder how many Jesus Streets there are in the world.

Following the street of their main God, I reached the Cathedral:

It’s pretty impressive on the outside and very simple on the inside:

And they use crystal to keep the Holy water. Unfortunately, it was empty:

It was time to go the playing hall to register, so I started in that direction. The first thing I saw when I exited the Cathedral was this:

I suppose they opened it for the lovers of the film Thor. But by now I realised they were very fond of their Gods, even the nastier ones.

Further downwards I encountered The Pond. I couldn’t help but wonder whether Tchaikovsky had been to Reykjavik:

One pair of swans was very much in love:

I had to leave them and continued to the playing hall called Harpa, the concert hall and conference centre of the city:

It is equally impressive on the inside:

Eventually I registered with the organiser and at 4pm was the opening ceremony, followed by Round 1. I won rather easily against a weaker opponent. Tomorrow is a double-round day, so it will be tough.

Time to rest now. More stuff from the north when I get more time in the following days.