Waiting To Thaw
According to the figures on the table, things in Iceland are looking up. Yes, I know we’ve heard this numerous times before, and it seems that some of our politicians […]
Twists And Turns In The History Of The Icelandic Communist Movement
The Icelandic communist movement began earlier, had closer ties with The Kremlin, lasted longer, and was more influential than had previously been recognised. These are the main co
From Luxembourg To Reykjavík
I first heard of The Reykjavík Grapevine in 2009 when my significant other returned from a 10-day trip to Iceland and gave me a vinyl LP of the newest múm […]
We Will Always Love You
At 3:55pm on the eve of the 54th annual Grammy awards ceremony, Whitney Houston was found in her hotel room at the Beverly Hilton and pronounced dead at just 48 […]
Continental Rift
Observing Iceland from afar, say through Facebook or the local media, is interesting. A perspective is granted. There is a spasm in the discourse. People are so heated, they get [&
A Vicious Circle Of Victimisation
In late October last year, a group of burka-dressed women who called themselves Big Sister, announced that they had “gone underground” to collect a list of 56 names and 117 [&h
Sour Grapes And Stuff
MOST AWESOME LETTER: Dear Bart Cameron, I will attach “Laxness in Naples”. The old bard is still on the move. Best regards, Niels Hav http://www.othervoicespoetry.org/v
Time And Tides And Hotels
Although it is by no means a young city, Reykjavík has very few structures older than a century left standing. Perhaps it is for this reason that Icelanders feel a […]
Hello, My Name Is Anna Andersen!
Well, this is exciting. I wrote a couple of these last summer when Haukur went on vacation, but here I am writing my first editorial as ‘Managing Editor’ of The […]
E-Democracy Takes Off In Reykjavík
In the midst of heated protests following Iceland’s economic collapse in October 2008, two Icelandic programmers started dreaming about a more democratic Iceland. Their idea was
All Expression Reduced To A Single ‘Like’
Icelandic media reported yesterday that thirty-two year old Loftur Gunnarsson suffered a heart attack on Laugavegur last Friday, and died at a hospital a few hours later. Loftur, w
Your Weekly Eurovision Report
Well hello there! Saturday night brought us the second (of three) qualifying rounds in the selection process for ESC2012. As you vividly remember the last semi-final resulted in th
Thirty-Three Percent Of 2009’s Thirty-Three Look Back, And Forward
January of 2009 was an interesting month for Icelanders. The nation’s economy had just TOTALLY COLLAPSED along with its worldview, trust, confidence and self-image. The governmen
A Thank You, And A Plea For Change
My name is Mehdi Kavyanpoor and I came to Iceland looking for shelter. Recently, after a long struggle, I received Icelandic citizenship. First of all, I would like to thank [&hell
On To Greener Pastures, Hopefully
If 2011 taught me anything about politics in this country, it’s to take nothing for granted, and that it’s not easy being green—but it’s super easy to say you are. [&hellip
2011: The Year In News
This was a pretty big year in the news for a number of reasons, and while we don’t have the space to cover everything we found cool or interesting, there […]
Akureyri’s Got Heart
Joy comes from unexpected places in the north of Iceland, as 2011 recently gave way to what is rumoured by Hollywood filmmakers and Mayans alike to be our last year […]
Reykjavík Nights
New Year’s had me drunken, bemused and sullied—elated, angered and mouldy. The day after had me sheltering refugee emotions, outing a tit for tat spit spat of bored lusting for
Still Fiercely Independent People Living On The Edge of the World
In April of last year, the Economist ran an editorial comparing Bjartur, the protagonist of Halldór Laxness’ 1934 novel ‘Independent People,’ to the persistently hard-toothe
Does E-Commerce Have A Future In Iceland?
When’s the last time you heard, “Attention shoppers, the time is now 20:50 and the store will be closing in 10 minutes” over an intercom at a large department store? [&hellip
New Year’s Address
Now we bid farewell to the year 2011. It is expired. It is useless to contemplate it any more. It is gone. Memories. We leave it to the historians of […]