The Boys Are Back In Town
‘Valtari’—Sigur Rós’ much-anticipated sixth-release—is risky. Not that the band hasn’t, in its 18-years-active, established itself as a creative juggernaut of sorts, a
Our Summer Is Here!
It may have snowed last week, but summer is here at The Grapevine. It started about two weeks ago and it will continue all the way into October. This means […]
Training To Survive The Zombie Apocalypse? There’s An App For That
Software developers at Iceland-based Mindgames have created an iOS game that uses your brainwaves to play. Yes, your brainwaves. The premise of the game is as follows: A zombie is
Don’t Ask Nanna!
Disclaimer: This is The Grapevine’s BAD ADVICE column. It’s where Nanna Árnadóttir answers questions from our readers about traversing the Icelandic cultural jungle. She is u
Accessorised Fantasy Worlds
Hildur Björk Yeoman is a Reykjavík-based fashion designer and illustrator. We were taken by her show at this year’s Reykjavík Fashion Festival (RFF) where she created a fantas
Laugardalur: Not Just Home To A Swimming Pool
Laugardalur—“hot spring valley”—was so-named due to the prevalence of, yes, hot springs in the area. Some people even say that the name Reykjavík—“Smoky Bay”—deriv
So Who Is This Geir H. Haarde Guy I Keep Hearing About?
Geir Hilmar Haarde, Geir Haarde for short, was Prime Minister of Iceland when the economy sank back in 2008. His signature moment was addressing the nation on TV right after [&hell
Iceland And The Rest Of The World
For many centuries Iceland was a colony of Denmark. Due to its isolation, it was largely neglected until the nineteenth century when Danish cultural influence became overwhelming.
Out Of Africa
Ragnar Sverrisson is an engineer and technician who has been active in the humanist movement for thirty years, both in Iceland and abroad. In recent years, Ragnar has devoted his [
The Eight Presidential Candidates, So Far…
The Icelandic presidential elections are less than two months away and the race is heating up. For the first time ever it looks like incumbent President Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson wi
Tourists: The New Herring?
Siglufjörður is a beautiful fishing village, about an hour’s drive north of Akureyri on the northern coast of Iceland. The town’s museum tells the story of its herring fisher
Friends With Benefits
Many people speak of China and Iceland as if China’s interest in Iceland is only a few years old. This belief is forgivable—most China/Iceland relations have been decidedly low
News in Brief: April Edition
Well, Hamborgarabúllan, one of Iceland’s most treasured hamburger shops, will soon be opening in London. Owner Tómas A. Tómasson told the Icelandic business paper Viðskip
Sour Grapes and Stuff
MOST AWESOME LETTER: Hello guys, i was very glad to find your feature about rental market in Reykjavik (and capital area), since i was one of those in the search […]
Europe’s Ex-Best Kept Secret
Every now and then, Icelanders—and expats especially—complain about living on an island. The produce can certainly get old in every sense of the word, and then everything comes
What’s Happening On Laugavegur?
Inspired by urbanist William H. Whyte’s work in New York, a group of young Icelandic architects (plus one music composer and one graphic designer) decided to research city life i
Harpa As A Symbol Of Iceland’s Recovery
Iceland was recently described as a success story of the economic crisis in a Financial Times article. Just free from under the International Monetary Fund’s wing, Iceland was co
Save the Rats!
A friend of mine swears there are rats in Reykjavík, but in my ten years in this town I have never seen one. There is, however, another type of rat […]
Who Rules The Streets?
After Laugavegur was temporarily closed to traffic last summer, many are wondering whether the experiment will be repeated this year. Although it seems like people were happy with
The Future Is Here
When many people hear the words “online gamer,” the image that comes to mind is a socially crippled basement-dweller who is glued to his or her computer and probably hasn’t [