Downtown Snapshots

Today, Reykjavík, the capital of Iceland, is home to just under 150,000 people. About a quarter of the city’s residents were born outside of Iceland. When Iceland gained independence in 1944, the country had a population of 125,000, with 44,000 living in the capital—most of them newcomers from the countryside rather than native Reykjavík residents.

Of the 400,000 people living in Iceland today, three-quarters reside in the southwest, stretching from Akranes to Selfoss and south to Keflavík. This region can be called the capital area, Greater Hafnarfjördur, or even Kjalarnesthing if one looks back to the settlement era.

But does one truly know Reykjavík? Yes—and no.

With daylight slowly returning, Icelandic Times decided to take a photographic stroll through downtown—playing tourist, capturing everything that came into view. Along the way, the only people encountered were in fact tourists, and the city revealed places this photographer never even knew existed! But there they were… now caught in the frame.

Laugavegur, the main shopping street