Last Words: Printed Cocaine for the Rich
More cocaine, please, and fewer books. That’s how we like it. Yes, let the good times roll. Decadence is hip again. Finally! It was only gone for a few years, […]
The Magic Of The Night Shift: Anecdotes From A Sandholt Baker
As the town falls asleep, the streets fill up with the alluring smell of freshly baked pastries and bread. This is when Ruji Leal, who moved from southern Portugal to […]
Beasts Of Iceland: The Puffin
After a mosey about the Golden Circle, you—our tourist reader—might be wondering, “How the hell does any animal survive on this godforsaken Atlantic rock?” It’s a fair qu
Ask A Physical Chemist: Why Doesn’t Iceland Have Massive Earthquakes Like Chile and Japan?
Though Iceland is known for having ample earthquakes, the largest one in known history didn’t even reach seven on the richter scale. In Chile and Japan though—other well-known
The Story That Could Never Be Told: Iceland’s First Son, The SS Officer
While Europe was gripped in the bloodiest war in history, WWII, the Icelandic nation was being redefined through its recent independence from Denmark. On June 17, 1944, Sveinn Bjö
Buy Shit: Kælan Mikla, Socks, Hákarl, And Nature Condoms
A stuffed puffin won’t impress your friends, will it? No. So ditch the tourist stores and pick up one of these Grapevine-approved purchases. Nothing makes you more happy than pos
Reader’s Letters: Your Icelandic Healthcare System Is Stupid
I just skimmed an article written by Ms. Davidson in early 2016, lauding Iceland’s national healthcare system that she immigrated into in favor of the expensive American most
Where Was It Shot?: The Fate Of The Furious
Do you like cars? What about muscles? What about cars driven by muscles? Sounds sexy, right? Well, lucky for you—our adrenaline-junkie reader—there’s eight movies devoted ent
Record Number Of Foreign Workers In Iceland
Figures posted today by Statistics Iceland show that the unemployment rate for July was 1% and hasn’t been lower since figures started to be compiled regularly in 2003. An expert
News In Brief
Our undisputed top story of the past two weeks has been the Icelandic reaction to the American reaction to Iceland’s abortion laws and Down’s Syndrome. A recent report on Ameri
Word Of The Issue: Hommi
Look up “hommi” in the dictionary and you’ll find the definition of a gay man. But colloquially this word refers to something else: a dustpan and broom with a long […]
Icelandic Facebook Groups: Æ On Springfield – Íslenskir Simpsons Aðdáendur
As with hot dogs and unprotected sex, Icelanders are bizarrely fond of the long-running American animated TV show ‘The Simpsons.’. For people in this country between their mid-
Yes, We Also Have A Horse Name Committee
Vísir reports that horse farmer Guðrún Hrafnsdóttir will not be allowed to name one of her horses Mósan. This was decided by a two-person Horse Name Committee, which judges na
Schroedinger’s Tourist: What Makes A Tourist A Tourist
We have often reported on the increasing numbers of tourists in Iceland. One overlooked detail is how we’re defining “tourist” in the first place. Vísir reports that using n
Comic By Elín Elísabet
Elín Elísabet is an illustrator with an abnormal interest in the mundane. You’ll find her around the streets of Reykjavík, documenting the everyday with her trusty sketchb
Island Life
If you’ve driven through east Iceland, you might have noticed that Borgarfjarðarvegur is in terrible shape. And by that we mean it is literally dotted with potholes, at least on
French Masters Do Distortion Justice
In our last column we wrote about ‘Take Me Down,’ the first single from the upcoming EP ‘Unravel,’ by electronic singer-songwriter Einar Indra. The EP is now out and it [&h
North Of The Wall: A Game of Thrones Tour Of Iceland
The Iron Island clan in ‘Game of Thrones’ are based on the Vikings from Nordic history—but they are both more ferocious and more useless. Theon Greyjoy’s dad berates those
Rewiring Design: Döðlur
Whether they know it or not, most Icelanders will have, at some point, encountered the work of the Döðlur creative studio. Founded in 2012 by partners Daniíel Atlason and Hörð
Best Of Iceland: Canyon, Restaurant, Hike
Canyon: Fjaðrárgljúfur This immense canyon, not far from Kirkjubæjarklaustur, is a sight to behold. The huge walls rear up vertically from the ground, with easy hiking trails f