Sour Grapes & Stuff
MOST AWESOME LETTER: Dear Grapevine, my name is Fabio, I’m from Italy. A few days ago I was in Reykjavik with Alina and Elena, two colleagues of mine. We are [&he
Haukur’s Last Editorial!
Dearest readers, friends, collaborators and contributors, I would like to start this little letter by sending you some well wishes. Happy coming 2012! Happy leaving behind 2011! Ha
Grafarvogur Has A Hidden History And Some Treasure To Boot!
As a kid I used to love visiting the district of Grafarvogur, mainly because Reykjavík’s garbage dump was located there and, as everyone knows, garbage dumps are great for treas
The Encyclopaedia of Icelandic Holidays 2011
Aðfangadagur (Ath-founga-dager) December 24th, Aðfangadagur, is the day Icelanders celebrate Christmas (as opposed to December 25th in most countries). The first half of the day
Christmas Away From Home
Christmas is surely a magical time of year—a time when people are more connected than usual. However, not everybody can be with his or her family during this special time. F
Icelandic Skating Culture Gets A Boost
After somewhat of a lull in popularity over the past decade, the art of skateboarding is gaining ground in Reykjavík, its streets and skateparks once again crowded with newcomer s
Radical Library As A Community Project
Seven years ago I started a library. The purpose was to sow seeds of radicalism in the community, to give people the opportunity to educate themselves on various issues that [&hell
Getting Rid Of ‘The Man Behind The Curtain’
Before we begin, let’s just go ahead and acknowledge the illustrious, dazzling elephant in the room: Björk. She’s always there. Our cultural ambassador: a symbol for independe
Let’s Go Shopping At Christmastime!
Winter has tumbled from the sky and the holidays are nearly upon us. Soon the tree will be up and stockings will require stuffing. Families will be rounded up and […]
SHIVER ME TORRENTS!
Despite their silly name and a platform originally focused on Internet issues, The Pirate Party won an unexpected 8,9% in the Berlin elections this September. Shaking things up muc
For The Greater Glory Of… Justice?
Criminal court cases, waged by The State against political dissidents for acts of protest and civil disobedience, can be understood in two ways. Firstly, the juridical system can b
The Fireworks Extravaganza
To celebrate the New Year, Icelanders buy hundreds of tonnes of fireworks and shoot them off in a completely haphazard fashion. As you can imagine, this makes for one hell [&hellip
Don’t Have To Wait Until Christmas
When Guðbjörg Kristín Ingvarsdóttir opened Aurum in a small backhouse off the main street Laugavegur in 1999, her nature-inspired designs were like a breath of fresh air to the
Calls for Media Policy On Cultural Diversity
The representation and participation of immigrants in the media was a recurring theme at the Integration and Immigrants’ Participation, held last month in Reykjavík. The issue h
Can The 99% Really Defrost A Scrawny Icelandic Chicken?
It looks good on the plate, but something simply doesn’t taste right. Much of the international media is hailing Iceland as an example of how to squeeze through the crisis [&hell
Our New Neighbours, The Johnsons
The Johnsons just moved to town! One thousand ISK and a sense of humour grants you entrance to the Icelandic Phallological Museum, which relocated from the north of Iceland to [&he
Celebrating December
For those of you visiting Reykjavík over the holidays who want to attend a Christmas mass, there are a couple options available to you. When thinking of witnessing a Lutheran [&he
Reykjavík Christmas City
If there’s one cause to which the perpetual dusk of Icelandic winter is sympathetic, it’s that of Christmas decorations. Indeed, no lights are quite as lustrous as those delica
Holiday Opening Hours
Since many of you reading this may be tourists stranded in Iceland over the coming Holiday season, we decided to compile a little list for you detailing what’s open, and [&hellip
Is The Government About To Collapse?
In many countries, the above question might lead to pundits punditing and even stock markets crashing. In Iceland, the possibility is taken in stride, and not just because we no [&
Tents Around The Tower
On a cold November evening, a large canvas tent lies half-collapsed in front of parliament. Small crates of food lie out in the open, and a young man in coveralls […]