Words by

Hannah Jane Cohen

Elísabet Hulda Snorradóttir is the reigning Miss Universe Iceland 2020 as well as a Chinese Studies student at the University of Iceland. Along with being a pageant queen, she speaks Japanese, Korean and Chinese fluently. We sat down with Elísabet Hulda to learn about her perfect day in the city.

Kick start the day

The moment I wake up, I always start every morning by drinking a ton of water and making breakfast at home. Now in Iceland, life can sometimes seem a bit boring, so you have to find ways to make it interesting. For me, I like to kick start everything with an outdoor run. I’m a really active person! I live in Mosfellsbæjar, so I usually run there, but otherwise I love going to Elliðaárdalur and the harbour in downtown Reykjavík. The path is long, it’s a nice view and there’s very few hills to get in the way of running far.

Elísabet Hulda

Soak the afternoon away!

After that, I’d head downtown to meet some of my friends for brunch or a late lunch. Right now, the places I frequent the most are Fjallkonan, Apótek and Duck & Rose. But anywhere you can sit outside and enjoy the weather is good.

We usually stay for quite a while, but afterwards what I lo

ve to do is head to a swimming pool, probably Laugardalslaug. If you visit Iceland, you have to go to a swimming pool—that’s just a necessity. Depending on whether I feel like it or not, I’ll swim some laps but usually the hot tubs are so nice I will just soak there. If the weather is really good, you’ll see everyone decked out on the edge of the pool trying to get a tan, but those are quite rare in Iceland!

Elísabet Hulda & her #1 combo

Traditionally, after swimming you need to get an ice cream or hot dog. There’s the Pylsuvagninn Laugardal right next to the pool, but I also love the classic Bæjarins Beztu. I actually used to work there for four years and you’re missing out if you don’t get the one with everything. Honestly, I used to hate it but after working there, I really love it and getting a hot dog with everything is traditional Iceland and just the way to go.

For ice cream, almost all the parlours are amazing. There’s Brynjuís in Kópavogur, Valdís by the harbour and Ísbúð Vesturbæjar in Vesturbæjar. People usually get a bragðarefur and if I get one, I opt for fresh (not frozen!) strawberries, Daim and a white lion bar. It’s an amazing combo.

Treat yourself

Then it’s dinner! My favourite places right now are Sushi Social, Fjallkonan (ok, if I went there for brunch I’m not going there for dinner) and Reykjavík Meat. The steaks at Reykjavík Meat are really great. If you want to treat yourself, that’s where you should go.

Now, usually, if I did not have an ice cream before dinner, then it’s time to go for an ice cream when we’ve finished eating. But if not, I like driving down to Grótta, the lighthouse, and just sitting there with my friends and chatting away.

Check out the Elísabet Hulda Snorradóttir on her Instagram. You can also check Elísabet Hulda out on the official Miss Universe page here. 

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