Faroe Islands Day 2: All My Sci-Fi Children

After our 24-hour Copenhagen whirlwind and an eventful first day in the Faroes, it was time to really dig in and explore a few more islands. The was a day of many more tiny villages nestled into ocean-view cliffs, all with strange names that I'm certain we were pronouncing incorrectly. Names that I'll use some day to name characters in my semi-autobiographical Sci-Fi novel...

I shall name you Lambareidi and Glyvrar. And you will be the heroes of my story.

Wednesday

• Today's adventure map can be found here!
• After yet another carry-on reconfiguration (that's what we get for hotel hopping!), we had an awesome breakfast at the hotel (thanks, Europe for the filling breakfast goodies). Since we had only gotten to do a little sight-seeing the night prior, we wanted to do some additional hiking in Gjógv. 

Still struggling with the sand in my boots from the day before #outdoorsyAF

• This time we aimed for the cliff across from the cute little bench we'd sat at the night prior, and started up the other side of the gorge. However, as we got higher/further our, the WIND got so strong that we literally had to turn back. I was so sure we were going to blow off a cliff, that I was ready to just lay down flat and not move for days, til the wind subsided or I was eaten by a sheep (whichever came first). Because of the wind, we also decided against our potential hike up Slættaratindur (the highest point in the Faroes) and instead moved further south.

Little boxes, on the hillside

• We had a brief stop to admire Funningur, an adorable little town in which I had the most horrifying bathroom experience of my adult life. Due to this, we swiftly moved on. Which is really the beauty of the islands: there are so many cool things to see that if you're not feeling one spot, you can easily move on to something else!
• Our target: the city of  Runavík - a port city in the southern part of Eysturoy (the island we were already on). It was too early to check in at Hotel Runavík, where we were staying, so we went to wander the town. We found a trail around a large lake area (Lake Toftavatn) which was also a sheep / bird preserve -- jk, they don't have preserves, sheep and seabirds are just everywhere. It ended up being a very easy trail walk, and was a nice way to pass the windy morning.

Walkin' on water, Jesus style

• Despite out very chill walkabout, we still had more time before check-in so went to travel along the southernmost tip. We visited Æðuvík, Nes, Toftir, and several other little villages that I'll name the children in that aforementioned Sci-Fi novel after some day.... #jokesnotjokes 

Down south, looking out

• After a loop back and a speedy check-in (in which they were alarmed by our promptness, because no one in the Faroes rushes to do anything, those chill souls!), we hit the road for our day trip to Klaksvík, on the neighboring island of Borðoy. The second largest town in the Faroes, Klaksvík is roughly the size of my tiny hometown in northern Wisconsin (twins!). Which is... literally insane.
• To dodge the misty chill, we ate "lunch" at the cutest coffeehouse: Fríða Kaffihús (Kaffihús = coffee house?? Get it? Because we didn't... for like an hour...). The had awesome Faroese tapas (all the fish, all the lamb), plus it was BOGO happy hour, which meant ALL the hot cocoa I could handle! As an added bonus, they played only American oldies music, and I was the only one there who properly knew all the words. IE, I had the best time and likely terrified the locals.
• Once properly fed, I was of course ready to climb mountains... We hiked up a hill overlooking the town and hopped the fence* to head towards the further cliffs. From beyond the fence, towards what appeared to be a weather station, there was a clear view of neighboring islands of Kalsoy, Kunoy, and Eysturoy. Oy oy oy, was it gorgeous! Along the way we saw several locals. People just out for a stroll. Because those stunning views are just part of their daily routine.... Mind. Blowing.

Bench break for me, world conquering power-pose for him

• After our hike, we figured, why not keep going? So we got in the car and carried on to another new island and went to the little town of Viðareiði - the northernmost settlement. There, I was totally obsessed with yet another picturesque church and we walked through the town, observing the locals gathering at what appeared to be a school for a rousing game of "stick your children in squishy plastic and watch them bounce about" - aka bubble soccer. Apparently that shit is popular everywhere. Why? Well, because they're like hamster balls for people, and it's hilarious to what kids bounce around like that. But, I digress....
• At the edge of town, we awkwardly asked some sheep wranglers if it was cool that we ripped out a fence post so we could climb up another mountain - they were cool with it.* So, after pulling out said post and then returning it to it's hole after we crossed, we followed a sheep trail up above the town. There, I could get a bird's eye view of the little church I'd fallen in love with lower down. I obsessively photographed it like a creepy stalker, or a private eye hired to see if it had taken on a secret lover... and I have no regrets. 

Climb every mountain, ford every stream.

• Took a different route on Viðoy (the northernmost island) to make our way back to Runavík. Upon arrival back to our city of sleep, it was so late that the only place for food still open** was an "American pizza" joint. Which, we of course got. We closed the night munching greasy pizza in the hotel while watching random Danish television.

We had gone into the day without much of a plan, but somehow ended up exploring three islands, hopping from point A to B to everything in between. Thankfully, many of the islands are well connected, making it easy to roam. We spent the whole day reading unpronounceable names of unspeakably magnificent places. And we still had several more days to rove... 

Got the world on a string, sitting on a mountain...

* One of my favorite parts of our trip was hopping fences. No one is like, stopping you or yelling at you. You can just carry on through. Any fence or gate, we just assumed was for sheep.

** Many villages don't have restaurants at all, so, we did have our snacks just in case.