oh, the tragedy

yes, the news reports on MSN and.. pretty much everywhere are true. Iceland is losing its McDonalds as of the first of November. The import costs what with the brave new exchange rate could no longer be justified, since they would have required a Big Mac to cost the equivalent of a rather decent meal downtown. Bargain meal no more.

Since neither S nor I had ever tried McDonalds here in Iceland we decided to swing by the one in Skeifan just to see what the woot was about. As we approached the fabled golden arches, I caught a glimpse of the line to the counter which stretched out the door and through the parking lot, then we got tangled in the takeout line which was winding round the traffic circle nearby, probably about 15 cars deep.

We abandoned that plan, first thinking KFC would satisfy our bizarre Tuesday evening whim for American fast food, but it seemed that we weren't the only ones with that thought, as the line there also stretched out the door. So, onto the much-lauded Saffron, a place with iffy service that we had tried some months ago. Inside, the high ceilings and noisy crowd gave the vibe of a fuglabjarg (squawking bird cliff), so we retreated to my favorite Bulgarian restaurant downtown, where we toasted our excellent decision over savory and delicious dishes where we were the only (and extremely happy) patrons.

so much for mcd's.