FRIENDS FOR LIFE
July 14th, 1972, Hotel Loftleiðir. 1 am. Sæmundur: Oh, Bobby, look at the mess you made. Bobby: Yes. I’m a genius. Sæmundur: But was it necessary to do that to […]
ICELAND’S FINEST ENTER HISTORY
On June 1st 2004 the Icelandic foreign minister was present when Iceland took over control of Kabul International Airport from Germany. Hallgrímur Sigurðsson was made overall com
God is Corruption Funny
Brace yourself: the cast of Spaugstofan (the Joke Office) is up there with the Goons, the Monty Python Crew, and the original Saturday Night Live cast. The five-member cast has [&h
Bónus
When it comes to your daily staples, Bónus is the cheapest supermarket in the country. You probably won’t be able to find any of the finer imported goods that Hagkaup […]
BUY SHIT
Smekkleysa (Bad Taste) was originally an art collective that came together to produce the works of a group of local artists. They are responsible for helping spread the word on [&h
Kaffi Sólon
Location, location, location. Kaffi Sólon is a big, friendly space with a big upstairs bar and possibly the best window for people watching in Reykjavík. Originally a paint store
Angelo
This quiet modish bistro adjacent to the discreet Hotel Fron seems miles away from Reykjavík’s thumping party central while being right smack in the centre. Owner Hanna Magnúsd
Lækjarbrekka
The oldest house in Reykjavik, built in 1854 by a wealthy Danish merchant is also one of its oldest restaurants, going from house to bakery to disrepair to historical landmark [&he
Hótel Holt Offers Classic French Cuisine for Peanuts
“We don’t do fusion cooking here,” says chef Birgir Karl Ólafsson. “We have a framework for our menu. It’s alright to put one step out of the frame, but we […]
Pizza King: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Created by the family that, by introducing the authentic and cheap pizza store DeVito’s, single-handedly remade the Hlemmur area into the cultural capital of Reykjavík, Pizza Ki
Siv Friðleifsdóttir: Changing the Face of Icelandic Government?
“I want to make it a law that ministers can’t be members of parliament,” Siv Friðleifsdóttir tells me on the phone, and the first thought that springs to mind is: […
Growing Pains for the World’s Oldest Parliament
Sometime this year, Spaugstofan, the comedy program that is the country’s most popular television show, took on an eerie role. As it parodied the leaders of Iceland, we realized
The Positives of Fischer
In Fight Club, Tyler Durden holds a knife to an investigator’s genitalia and says, “We cook your meals, we haul your trash, we connect your calls, we drive your ambulances. [&h
Swinging to the Middle: The Coalition That Could Be
One of the best things about living here, for me, is the parliament. I’m used to having to deal with an either/or situation when it comes to government, which doesn’t […
THE BIRTHPLACE OF ROCK, PUNK AND SNOBBERY
Originally, only the most elite hotel in Iceland could afford a good band. “In the beginning, most of the in-house bands hired by the hotels were Danish and later English, [&hell
DEFYING GRAVITY: Can the Dollar’s Drop Be Reversed?
Like the Reagan administration twenty years previous, Bush’s strategy has been to give the 5% top earners the highest tax breaks and to try to shift Social Security to the [&hell
How to Make Like P-Diddy and Invest in ICE
According to Kauphöll Íslands, the Iceland Stock Exchange, all but three companies listed in securities trading group Kauphöll Íslands have gone up in the first quarter of 2005
IS THERE REASON TO WORRY ABOUT ICELANDIC VAGINAS?
The President was not the only politician to attend V-day. Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir, former mayor of Reykjavík, read a harrowing chapter from The Vagina Monologues, descr
Like Christmas, With Even More Consumerism
But do Icelanders really loathe religion? Why is it, then, that the island adopted Christianity without making a big fuss unlike any other “Christianised” nation? Why then is t
ADOPT-A-FISCHER
Bart Cameron The following major Icelandic companies dedicated time, money and other resources into bringing Bobby Fischer to Iceland. We would be remiss if we didn’t applaud the
Good Morning Reykjavík
Here’s a list of greatest hits up to now from the chess master’s repertoire: Dec. 13, 2005. Fischer gives a heart-to-heart on his love for Iceland, phoning it in to […]