Screaming Viking, Ignoring the Volcano
That their majesties the Beckhams did not turn out was only the first of the ominous signs of the evening. The complete lack of fashion also suggested something was wrong. [&hellip
When You Own It, You Might Not Break It
When the guy that used to come by my house and steal my hard boiled eggs got a 15 million ISK loan to buy an apartment, I knew things were […]
GRAPEVINE’S PURCHASES THAT JUSTIFY EXISTENCE
1 Used books Mál og Menning might be the biggest bookstore in the country, but that doesn’t mean that you’ll always pay top dollar. There are frequent clearance sales where [&
LETTERS
Dear Sir/Madam, I live in India — thousands of miles away from Iceland’s shores. Tonight there was a special Oprah Winfrey show in which she interviewed an actress from my
Healing the Wounds of Violence
Why did you go into this line of work, assisting battered women? It all started three years ago. I am a rape survivor, but I hadn’t dealt with my experience […]
Guide to Travel Food
Harðfiskur: Lightweight, won’t go bad, chock full of protein. On the downside, your clothes could end up smelling like fish if you don’t double-bag it. Bread: Whole grain brea
Here Comes the Snoop
With an album finally catchy and G-rated enough to be radio friendly, and with an X-rated porn career in full swing, Snoop Dogg is bringing his Rhythm and Gangsta Tour […]
Sick Bags to Icelandic Scrabble,
Would you believe me if I told you that there is a man out there who collects air sickness bags? That he has over 1700 different ones? Yes, it appears […]
Here Comes the Flood
Protests against the project so far have mostly been a few peaceful, largely ignored, demonstrations. One group, SavingIceland.org, is appealing to protestors both in Iceland and a
THE FLEECING OF A NATION
In an even bolder move, in 1996, representatives from the three oil companies wrote up an agreement among them detailing how they would divide the gas market among themselves at [&
So Who Owns SHELL?
Within the course of our research into the oil scandal, we came across this press release on Shell’s website (www.skeljungur.is), dated October 25, 2004: “Hagar hf. has bought
The Cintamani Road Test
We’ve been looking at the ads the last few months, we’ve seen Icelanders walking around in the gear. When Paul and I realized that we had to tour the whole […]
Celebrate!
The last issue of the Grapevine was our most popular issue in the three-year history of the paper, by far. I give much of the credit to the writers, Þórdis […]
The End of Black-and-White
I’ve received some interesting feedback from the co-editorial I wrote in the last issue, “What the Hell is Going On with The Progressive Party?” Conservatives I know were hap
Sunday Times Shocked that Blue Lagoon Doesn’t Cure Cancer
The May 22 travel section of London’s Sunday Times openly mocked an Icelandic national treasure with a full-page photo and the tag line “This place stinks.” The body of the [
Dirty Secrets Made Public
It is true that Oprah Winfrey has an estimated 30 million viewers and is one of the most influential people in today’s entertainment. It is also true that when it […]
Giving a F%$& Less
Whether I turn on the television, the radio, open up the newspapers or travel online, the same questions keep forcing themselves on me. These questions have one thing in common: [&
Svanhildur on Oprah
Here’s the transcript: Winfrey: Wonderful. Thank you, Thorunn. Mm. I think it’s fascinating. Svanhildur is an anchorwoman on IBC Channel 2 in Reykjavik (pronounced Rock-a-vit
Human Rights of Paedophiles
Child molesters undoubtedly commit one of the most loathed and brutal crimes known to humanity. Their photographs are front-page material for local newspapers, so worried parents c
Getting To Know Them
Tell me how the two of you met. Jana: I was living in Uzbekistan, and Ramin’s sister was staying with me. Ramin: My family had a company in Uzbekistan, and […]