(For a recap of days 1 and 2 check it out here)
Day 3:
Much to my delight, today was BLUE LAGOON DAY! No hiking! We got to sleep in a bit since we didn’t have to be there until 11. We got our stuff together and made the 45 minute drive to Keflavik (near the airport) to the Blue Lagoon.
We had booked the second tier reservations (aka #PremiumAF) , which included a robe, flip flops, towels, two face masks in the lagoon, a free drink, AND the ability to make a reservation in the very nice restaurant: Lava. We arrived along with a tour group of elderly people. We made jokes about not wanting to be with the “Olds” and were delighted when we saw them not get into our line, but just wandering around site seeing. We are checked in, handed our robes, and escorted to the separate changing rooms. Everyone gets an electronic wristband, much like our Asian spas here in Dallas, that you use to lock and unlock your locker as well as charge drinks and snacks to your account.
We arrived in the locker room and are promptly told to shower in the nude before putting on our swimsuits. I had read about this on other blogs before I showed up, so I understood the drill. I didn’t really expect the staff to stand there like parents and make sure we showered, yet they did. After the showering and changing, we put on our robes and headed out to meet the boys who had also shared a similar experience.
After gathering our free beverages of choice from the inside bar, we proceeded out to the lagoon. The air was a crisp 50 degrees Fahrenheit, but the water was 97 degrees. It made for a nice juxtaposition if you became too warm from the water. Our little group made our way around the lagoon noting the differences in depth and warmth in different areas. We settled in a far spot where it was quite shallow and even the shorties in the group could sit #itme. We didn’t stay there too long before we needed more drinks, this time from the swim-up bar, and wanted to take pictures. Blair (pro-planner and Carly’s other half) is the ultimate IG BF and proceeded to go back and get his iPhone so we could get that perfect shot for our Instagram feeds. We took a variety of hilarious and cute pictures and then found an employee who took several for us as well with the official Blue Lagoon iPad.
Once Blair returned after putting away his phone we proceeded to get our two included face masks. The first one is the basic one that everyone gets no matter what package you bought. That one on it’s own is awesome. I was under the impression that this mud was already on the bottom of the pool and it was just going to be easier to scoop up from a person. In reality, much like my experience with the Dead Sea in Israel, there is no mud and you have to buy it from someone. In this case it was already included with the package, but it had me wondering what this mask even had to do with the spa. Was it made with the water? Who’s to say.
We left the first face mask on the required amount of time, washed it off, then went back for the second. On this round they have several different options depending on your skin type. All of the girls were well equipped to answer the face mask lady’s questions about our different skin issues, while the guy’s answers varied from “I don’t know, pale?” to “skin?”. In the end we all ended up with the various different masks. I very much enjoyed my Mineral Mask, while the others enjoyed their Volcanic Exfoliating mask and the Aquamarine mask. Of course these are also available for a nominal fee in the lagoon gift shop as well as various stores around town and in the airport.
Once we completed Step 2 of the face masks it was time for our lunch reservation at Lava. I had heard really good things about this restaurant and apart from our previous day’s soup, we had not eaten out since arriving in Iceland. Lava is AMAZING. Be prepared for steep prices, but that’s to be expected in Iceland (as previously stated in my last post). Also: if you eat before 2pm you get to wear your robe to lunch! We all got starters, mains, and dessert. The bread and butter is even amazing! The reservation also came with a free glass of Champagne so you know we were really feeling the #FancyAF vibes. I got the Langoustine Soup, Kent and I shared the Mussels, I got the Lamb main, and for dessert the Creme Brûlée. Obviously, I was so stuffed afterwards. I wasn’t even sure if I wanted to go back into the hot spring, but, after awhile of digesting I followed the group back into the water.
We wandered back to our spot where we could sit and just continued to enjoy the heat for probably another hour. Once we all agreed that we were tired of the heat we got out and went back to the changing rooms to shower and dress. I wandered around the gift shop a bit before we left and was ASTOUNDED by how expensive the masks we had just used were. They did tell me that there were about 20 uses in the big jars of them, but at around $80 a bottle I wasn’t so sure that was worth it. (spoiler alert: I bit the bullet and bought a bottle at the airport right before we left. #yolo #thisiswhyimpoor).
That night was our one and only night to go out in Reykjavik. We headed home and leisurely got ready for our night. Ben’s only request on the trip was that we go to this Big Lebowski themed bar in town. We decided to start there and see where the night took us. The bar was actually very well themed and since all of us were made to see the movie before the trip, we understood the jokes. There were around 24 different kinds of White Russians (all around $20 so I declined) so that was new. We stayed long enough for several people to partake in the White Russians and for Rachael to make it most of the way through a chocolate shake.
We then just meandered our way through the town stopping at shops that were still open, getting a drink at a pub, then we decided we were hungry and went to this Italian place that happened to have seats. We had a great time there and were seated right next to this room that had a curtain dividing us and the room. We could glimpse laser lights and could hear exciting music so we all assumed some fun party was going on in there. I peaked in and it was literally one smallish table of people. No dancing. So weird. After we finished we all headed back to our cars to go home and prepare for another day of Iceland!
Stay tuned to see what happens next!
-Savvy
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