Sour Grapes & Stuff
MOST AWESOME LETTER OF THE ISSUE Dear editor, We are 25 sixth-grade students writing to you from the Quatre Vents Elementary School in Manlleu, a city located in Catalonia, Spain,
“The Deep” And The State Of The Icelandic Film Industry
Yesterday I went to see Baltasar Kormákur’s ‘Djúpið’ (“The Deep”), an exceptionally well made docudrama based on the true story of a burly fisherman and his miracu
Iceland: From A “Kreppa” Basket Case To A Miracle Example
In the autumn of 2008, international media and famous economists descended on Iceland to watch the first European country plunge into crisis and become a financial basket case. Now
Keeping Downtown Wild
Two-dozen little girls in Icelandic sweaters are singing songs inside a small glass building just outside the Nordic House. To the north one can see Vatnsmýri (“water swamp”),
Seduced By The Silver Slipper At Selfoss
FISHING was impossible. The river had been running big and brown for a couple of days and as the rain continued to lash down, hope was in short supply. In […]
What Will Lifting Capital Controls Mean For Iceland’s Recovery?
If Icelanders wants to buy currency, say US dollars, they can only purchase $2,800 USD, and they must prove to their bank that they are travelling to another country. Icelanders [&
The Nazi Clause Strikes Again
Can an individual degrade a whole nation or nation state? Apparently the answer is “yes” as suggested by the 95th clause of Iceland’s criminal code: “Anyone who publicl
So What’s This Icelandic Tea Party I Keep Hearing About?
Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir, former education and culture minister, current member of parliament and recent vice-chairman of the right-wing Independence Party, said in a rec
The Revolution Growing On Iceland’s Farms
Sunday morning, 11:00. Þorvaldseyri farm. Autumn has arrived, but this morning is sunny and unseasonably mild. The waves of a golden field of rapeseed flowers undulate in the gent
Lost In Translation
This month marks the four-year anniversary of Iceland’s economic collapse of October 2008. In that time, as Sigrún Davíðsdóttir recounts on page 14, Iceland has gone from bei
Sour Grapes & Stuff
Most Awesome Letter of the Issue Hello: My name is Cindy Voss and I’m from Washington State. My grandmother, Laufey Magnusdottir, was born in Reykavik in 1898. Sh
The Impossible Feat
Director Baltasar Kormákur is to Icelandic film what Sigur Rós is to Icelandic music. After successfully making the Hollywood box-office hit ‘Contraband,’ starring Ma
Expat Diaries #1: Puddle Duckling
I had been expecting the latest care package from my mother for a couple of weeks when, this evening, just before dinner was ready, the doorbell rang. Moments later my […]
Erró At 80: Still Not Wearing A Tie
An entire cast of grotesque, comic figures watches us as we cross the room: exaggerated nudes in mock classical pose; portraits of misshapen Picasso-esque faces; towering, iconic s
Family Write-Offs
Icelandic legislators have been particularly kind to a certain social class of Icelanders. Its members, often associated with year 2007, don’t have to pay their debts, are able t
Nowhere Else To Turn
The half-dozen empty prams lined up by the front door at Kvennaathvarf, Iceland’s only shelter for abused women, paint a bleak picture. “We have fifteen here right now,” says
Well It Seemed A Good Idea At The Time…
It can weigh a little heavily when you know you’re responsible for corrupting a whole nation. To be honest, it was so long ago that I don’t lose much sleep […]
Stray Teeth
John Steinberg greets me at the Varmahlíð bus stop with a firm handshake. “Welcome to Varm-uh-hlid, welcome to Skagafjorder,” he says, noting the vast open fjord valley. He&#
So What’s This Earthquake I Keep Hearing About?
An earthquake of the magnitude 4.6 on the Richter scale struck on Thursday August 30th. Its epicentre was near Reykjavík and it was felt all over the city. It was […]
What A Load Of Old Rubbish!
While some consider Reykjavík to be one of the greenest cities in the world, generating electricity and heating houses with geothermal energy, it appears that locals have forgotte