City walk Akureyri

Davíðshús

The relatives of the poet Davíð Stefánsson from Fagriskógur bequeathed to Akureyri Municipality the house at 6 Bjarkarstígur which the poet built and lived in until his death in 1964. His living quarters are on the upper floor of the house, preserved in the same condition as when he lived in the house. This area contains the poet´s library, impressive in quality and number of volumes. On the lower floor is an apartment reserved for free use by artists and scholars on the sole condition that those who stay there are supposed to present in some form, here in Akureyri, the work they are engaged in within their field of artistic or scholarly expertise, in co-operation with the cultural representative of Akureyri Municipality on each occasion as is specified in the agreement on the use of the Davíð Stefánsson Museum. The cultural affairs committee of Akureyri Municipality is in charge of processing applications for the use of the apartment. Open from 1.6-31.8 - 900 krn entrance fee. Mon-Fri. 13.00-17.00. 10-15 min. walking distance from the town center. With bus, take bus number 3 or 4 and go out on Þórunnarstræti/Hamarstígur.

Church

The Akureyri church is the symbol of Akureyri. It is a Lutheran church and was designed by the famous architect Gudjon Samuelsson and consecrated in 1940. The central stained glass window above the altar formed a part of a set originating from England. The bas-reliefs on the nave balcony are by sculptor Asmundur Sveinsson and the baptismal font is a replica of a work by sculptor Bertel Thorvaldsen. The church is above the town center.

First television signals

On this place the first television signals that were broadcasted by the BBC were picked up by two engineers.

Akureyri Junior College

The Akureyri Junior College (Icelandic: Menntaskólinn á Akureyri [ˈmɛn̥taˌskouːlɪn au ˈaːkʏrˌeiːrɪ], regionally also [ˈmɛntʰa-, ˈaːkʰʏr-]; Latin: Schola Akureyrensis) is an Icelandic gymnasium (academic secondary school). It is one of the oldest educational institutions in Iceland.[2] The Menntaskólinn á Akureyri traces its roots to the ancient school in Hólar in Hjaltadalur valley, founded in the beginning of Jón Ögmundsson's episcopacy in 1130. Operation of that school was discontinued in 1802 but a campaign to reopen the school of the 'Northland' was soon launched. Success came in 1880 when a 'learned school' was opened at Möðruvellir in the valley of Hörgárdalur. The building in Möðruvellir burnt down in 1902 and the school was moved to Akureyri, where it is currently located. Today the Junior College is attended by about 700 pupils every year, and on the national day of Iceland, 17 June, approximately 120 students graduate yearly. The Junior College's headmaster is Jón Már Héðinsson. Tryggvi Gíslason (born 11 June 1938) was headmaster of Akureyri Junior College from 1973 to 2003. Tryggvi graduated with a mag. art. degree and taught Icelandic at the University of Bergen in Norway.

Statue in the old town

Mansion