So, as it turns out, I didn’t actually travel the whole Diamond Circle, more like the Diamond Moon, and then I caught a little more of it the next day. I stayed at Guesthouse Stóru-Laugar for two nights allowing for a full ride on the Diamond Circle but I guess the hassle with the car did take its toll.
We’re doing the 29th now.
I liked Húsavík! When I first rolled through around 10am on Sunday it felt like a peaceful and prosperous fishing town. After having a look around I drove on for an hour or so, then drove back and by 1-2pm the place was buzzing with tourists and the port was busy with whale watching tours, their current claim to fame.
Here’s what visithusavik.is has to say: “The town of Húsavík sits on the eastern shore of Shaky Bay, known around the world as the Whale Capital of Iceland. In the past years whales have been spotted in 98% of all whale-watching trips.
“It is also the site of the first house built in Iceland, in the year 860, by Swedish viking Garðar Svavarsson. Húsavík is conveniently located for day trips to most of the major attractions in Iceland, part of the Arctic Coast Way and the starting point of the Diamond Circle.
“Húsavík served as the setting of, and inspiration for the song Husavik, in the 2020 Netflix film Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga.”
Before I came to Iceland I had heard that gas stations were the social halls of rural Iceland. And I experienced it myself!
The first time I went in I was just figuring things out when I noticed that all the locals who came in bought ice-cream cones and then sat outside or stood around in the sun to enjoy them and chat with their neighbors. So I got one too. And by the second time I sat in the sun too and it was Fun! On my third visit the folks in the shop were saying HI!
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