iceland's topics - tribe.net

10/2/09-10/6/09

Kraig — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 18:16:00 GMT

Hi, my girlfriend and I will be trveling through iceland, briefly. our first night will be in Reykjevik, two days out west then our last night will be back in Reykjevik. Anybody know of cool local events or cheap rental cars? Cheers! -Kraig

posted in iceland - 0 replies

I'm visiting Iceland

Bobster — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 12:23:12 GMT

Dear All,

Thought I'd say hi and seek your advice and wisdom about what to do in Iceland. I'm arriving in Reyjavík on the 8th of April and leave ten days later — my trip, I believe coincides with Easter, so I'm not sure what problems or opportunities that presents. I plan to go to a few places such as the Blue Lagoon, Golden circle region, and possibly on a pony trekking and also travel to the north of the country or elsewhere. while I'm sourcing this from other sites, I thought I'd ask for advice here and ask you all if you have any suggestions. I'll also read through more of the threaded articles too.

All the best,

Bobster

posted in iceland - 11 replies

Government bank takeover increases threat of state bankruptcy

Steven — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 03:02:28 GMT

Iceland: Government bank takeover increases threat of state bankruptcy
By Jordan Shilton
16 March 2009

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2009/mar2009/icel-m16.shtml

On Monday, Iceland's financial supervisory authority was forced to step in and assume control of Straumur, the island's fourth-largest financial institution. The move came after the bank's liquidity had dried up, meaning it could no longer meet its obligations to creditors. The takeover means that the state now owns Iceland's four main banks.

Straumur was the country's only major financial institution to avoid a state takeover in the aftermath of the financial collapse that hit last October. The investment bank had operations in a number of European countries, including Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Poland, the Czech Republic and Britain, and in Iceland itself. At the end of 2008, the bank had a balance sheet worth US$3.4 billion and had been attempting to scale down its operations.

Revealing the state takeover of the bank, a statement said, "In spite of its strong capital position and the support of funding banks, Straumur believes its liquidity position is no longer strong enough to sustain activities."

As with the three banks that fell into state ownership last October, Straumur saw a rapid expansion in recent years into new markets throughout Europe. During 2006, its loan book increased by 160 percent, whilst in the following year it nearly doubled. Due to the restrictions of the size of Iceland's internal market, the bank raised fully three quarters of its income outside Iceland. The collapse of many of these markets, particularly in eastern Europe, Denmark and the UK, has been the main cause of its problems.

The Financial Supervisory Authority announced the suspension of the bank's entire board, adding that a "resolution committee" would be appointed to run the bank's operations, with the aim being to wind them down. Straumur's chief executive, William Fall, tendered his resignation.

In another sign of the continuing instability of the financial system, last month saw investment firm Baugur put into administration. The firm held stakes in a number of high street chains, particularly in Denmark and the UK, where it partly owned fashion outlets and the food supermarket Iceland. However, the company owed its creditors more than €1 billion, and although a deal had been attempted with nationalised bank Landsbanki, negotiations broke down.

Baugur founder Jón Asgeir Jóhannesson accused the former Independence Party-led government of deliberately seeking to put him out of business, declaring in the days prior to Baugur entering administration, "The plan that we put to Landsbanki was a good offer. Other holding firms have received positive treatment from the banks so one comes to the conclusion that there are some strange things happening here."

Such claims have received little sympathy since Jóhannesson was one of the most prominent figures during the years of economic growth, making billions out of his investment business.

Straumur's demise was also bound up with debts to the country's other three nationalised banks, Kaupthing, Glittnir and Landsbanki. The bank suffered losses of more than €0.5 billion euros in the fourth quarter of 2008. Just a week prior to Monday's nationalisation, Landsbanki had reclaimed €200 million of funds from Straumur as a result of market exposure. The final straw for the bank on Monday was the inability to access €33 million to meet its obligations, with the bank possessing only €15 million of disposable funds.

The takeover of another bank only increases the danger of Iceland going bankrupt. While the government maintained that all deposits in Straumur would be protected, there is considerable doubt as to whether the state possesses the necessary finances to meet its obligations. As Thomas Haugaard of Handelsbanken pointed out, "The risk of an actual state bankruptcy has moved closer. The government is now assuming responsibility for more deposit guarantees, and the question is whether the Icelandic state is big enough to bear the burden."

With the nationalisation of Iceland's three main banks last October, the state was compelled to assume responsibility for the debts of institutions that held assets worth ten times Iceland's GDP. Although an IMF-backed loan package worth approximately $10 billion was negotiated in November with support from a number of European states, much of this was directed towards repaying depositors whose funds had been frozen in Landsbanki and Kaupthing accounts. The IMF loan of US$2.1 billion is being paid to Iceland in instalments and is linked to the implementation of austerity measures by the government.

The assumption by the government of yet more debt compounds its precarious position. With an economy in freefall, whoever forms the new administration after upcoming elections next month will be compelled to launch drastic cuts in government spending in order to make the necessary funds available to the financial elite.

The current interim government, a coalition between the Social Democrats and Left-Green Movement, has been in power since the beginning of February and will continue until elections, which have been moved forward to April 25.

At the end of January, the former government, led by the Independence Party and Prime Minister Geir Haarde, was forced out after ongoing popular protests outside parliament in Reykjavik.

Conditions have not improved since then. Iceland's economy is forecast to contract by 9.6 percent this year, with unemployment already up sevenfold in the past 12 months. Many of those who were laid off last October and November are only now beginning to feel the effects, since employers must give 90 days notice to employees who are made redundant. According to government officials, unemployment could reach 20,000 this year, in a country of only 319,000 inhabitants.

Even prior to the nationalisation of Straumur, it was estimated that government debt was well in excess of 100 percent of GDP. This level could prove even higher when a full accounting of the collapsed banks' liabilities is completed. The problem has been compounded by the sharp slide in the value of Iceland's currency, the krona.

In this regard, there is growing pressure from the IMF and other international financial organisations for the government to lift capital controls on the trading of the krona. This would exacerbate further the plight of many ordinary Icelanders who have seen prices for foodstuffs and other essentials shoot up in recent months as the krona collapses. The currency lost two thirds of its value in 2008 against the euro, and in the event of the abolition of capital controls it is clear that a further devaluation would occur.

Since taking power following the mass protests that brought down the Haarde government, the coalition of the Social Democrat-Left Greens has made some cosmetic changes whilst maintaining the fundamental policies of the previous administration. At the end of February, after several weeks of acrimonious debate within ruling circles, chairman of the central bank David Oddsson and the remaining governor were persuaded to resign from their positions.

In their place, Prime Minister Johanna Sigurdardóttir has appointed an interim central bank governor, in preparation for the selection of a permanent head of the central bank. Rather than the political appointments that have characterised the selection of central bank governors previously, Sigurdardóttir has insisted that only economic "experts" will now be considered for the position.

Meanwhile, the government has pledged to continue implementing the IMF restructuring programme negotiated by the previous Independence Party-Social Democrat coalition. Despite posturing as a real alternative willing to renegotiate terms with the IMF, the Left-Greens and their leader Steingrimur Sigfusson have proven to be nothing of the sort. Sigfusson is now the finance minister in the interim administration and has stated that economic policy will be based on the IMF's terms. The likelihood is that his party will emerge from the upcoming elections as the largest party, although it will need coalition partners to form a new administration.

Regardless of who assumes power in Reykjavik, the first priority of the new administration would be to increase the pressure on ordinary people through spending cuts whilst making available ever-larger amounts of public money available to prop up the financial system. As the current business minister, economist Gylfi Magnússon, commented, "We have to make very hard decisions because we do not have any good options."

As this reality becomes increasingly apparent, ordinary Icelanders will once again come into conflict with their government. Sooner rather than later, the mounting social tensions brought on by the economic crash will raise the necessity of workers waging an independent struggle against the ruling establishment in order to defend their living standards.

posted in iceland - 0 replies

Social democrats to lead new Icelandic government

Steven — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 18:45:51 GMT

Social democrats to lead new Icelandic government
By Jordan Shilton
31 January 2009

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2009/jan2009/icel-j31.shtml

Iceland’s Social Democratic Alliance is to lead the country’s new government in coalition with the Left Green Party, following negotiations between the parties this week. The coalition will receive parliamentary support from the Progressive Party, giving it a total of 34 MPs out of 63 in parliament, a slim majority.

The coalition takes over from the Independence party-Social Democrat coalition, which collapsed last Monday amid mounting protests at the social crisis brought on by Iceland’s economic crisis. Elections could now be brought forward from the May 9 date previously suggested by outgoing Prime Minister Geir Haarde in a bid to placate public anger.

Elections are expected to see the Independence Party and the Social Democrats lose votes. Polls indicate that support for the Social Democrats has dropped by 10 percent since the start of the crisis. The Left Green Party is predicted to become the largest party in parliament.

While the Left Greens were the only parliamentary party to show support to the demonstrations that have taken place regularly since the economic collapse, they will not offer any alternative. Party leader Steingrimur Sigfusson has already indicated that his main priority is bring an end to “political instability” as quickly as possible, hence its coalition with the Social Democrats.

Such an alliance is not surprising when considering the party’s origins. The Left Greens were formed in 2000 when a number of MPs, opposing moves to unite four center-left parties to form the Social Democratic Alliance, split away to form their own party. Since its inception, the Left Greens have been based on various forms of single issue and identity politics, such as environmentalism and feminism. The Social Democratic Alliance was heavily influenced by the so-called “third way” promoted by Tony Blair and New Labour in Britain and the Social Democrats in Germany, which claimed that the free market could be utilized to the benefit of all.

As the Social Democrats and Left Greens negotiated the terms for their coalition, a clear warning was delivered to the incoming government from international financial circles of what was expected of them. International ratings firm Fitch stated that it would not tolerate political instability in Iceland, threatening a downgrade of the country’s debt rating if IMF-backed measures were not implemented as agreed.

The Financial Times had written on Monday that “A dramatic shift to the left could seriously undermine already extremely fragile international confidence in Iceland’s currency and trigger massive capital flight as investors bail out.”

It continued: “The absence of political stability and uncertainty over the ability of any new government to implement an economic rescue package devised by the International Monetary Fund as part of a $6bn rescue package could encourage capital flight.”

Fears have been raised that Iceland could run out of money, particularly since many commentators believe the IMF-backed loan deals to be completely inadequate to rectify the crisis. At the time of the $10 billion package, one observer noted that at least double that figure would be required to restabilise the banks. As tax revenues drop dramatically and demand for unemployment benefits jumps, the financial constraints facing the new government are tightening. Writing on the BBC website, economist Jon Danielsson warned, “It is hard to accurately evaluate current government debt, but estimates are well in excess of the annual GDP. If government financing is not brought under control, a sovereign default may happen.”

The fact that the incoming government will have the backing of the Progressive party is revealing. The Progressives, a centre-right party traditionally linked with farming interests, ruled in coalition with the Independence Party from 1994 to 2007, during which time it collaborated in the deregulation of the banking system and the opening up of Iceland’s economy to the international market. Between 2004 and 2006, then-party leader Halldór Asgrímsson held the post of prime minister. In exchange for its support, the Progressives will place pressure on the government to maintain controls on public spending, as well as encourage membership in the European Union.

A move towards EU membership is likely, with prominent social democrats making clear they would support such a course. While initial polls after the economic crash in October appeared to indicate widespread support for such a move, public sentiment is far from being strongly in favour of the EU. Rather, with the skyrocketing cost of living due to the collapse of the Krona (ISK), many simply saw no alternative. But as the months have passed, the numbers in favour of EU membership have begun to fall back, now standing at only 38 percent in the latest poll.

Reports on Friday suggested that preparations for Iceland’s speedy entry to the bloc are underway, provided a pro-EU government takes office in Reykjavik after the upcoming elections. If an application was submitted in the coming months, officials indicated that Iceland could be admitted to the EU as early as the end of 2010 or 2011. Olli Rehn, the EU’s enlargement commissioner commented, “On Iceland, I hope I will be busier. It is one of the oldest democracies in the world and its strategic and economic positions would be an asset to the EU.”

Although the Left Greens have generally remained opposed to EU membership, the party has shown itself during the negotiations to be willing to compromise on any of its policies in order to gain admission to the government. As Sigfusson stated on Wednesday, “I don’t see anything big that we might disagree on in a way that might break up our attempts to form a government coalition.”

This will apply no less to the domestic front. The new government will come to power confronting a rapidly escalating social crisis, the sharpest expression yet of the unfolding global economic meltdown. Figures released Wednesday showed inflation rising to 20 percent, brought about by the collapse in the value of the krona since the beginning of 2008.

A day earlier, statistics showed consumer confidence down by 80 percent from the same period last year. With Iceland forced to import the vast majority of commodities, the collapse in the currency’s value has seen prices explode for working people. Many who took out loans in foreign currencies during the economic boom to avoid high interest rates at home now find it impossible to pay back their debt. Interest rates continue to be high, with the central bank maintaining the rate at 18 percent this week.

Unemployment is spiralling out of control, up 45 percent in December from the previous month. With 70 percent of Iceland’s companies technically bankrupt, the number of those out of work will continue to rise. Given that pressure will mount from the IMF, the EU and international finance capital for the government to slash its spending in order to divert its resources towards economic “stabilisation”, many many people will find themselves out of work with very little if any support from government.

Comments made by Social Democratic and Left Green MPs indicated that one of the new government’s first moves would be to remove the board of the central bank. This has been one of the main demands of the protest organisers, with many placing the blame for the economic collapse on the central bank, and its governor David Oddsson in particular for failing to regulate financial speculation. Incoming Prime Minister Johanna Sigurdardottir, who was social affairs minister in the previous government, stated, “It is clear that one of the first things that this government will do is to replace the governor of the central bank.”

posted in iceland - 0 replies

Protests over economic crisis topple Icelandic government

Steven — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 20:46:56 GMT

Protests over economic crisis topple Icelandic government
By Barry Grey
28 January 2009

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2009/jan2009/icel-j28.shtml

The Icelandic government fell on Monday, becoming the first regime to collapse as a direct result of the global economic crisis and resulting popular opposition. Months of street protests over the devastating social impact of the collapse of the country's currency and banking system reached a crescendo last week, when thousands of demonstrators rallying outside the parliament building pelted right-wing Independence Party Prime Minister Geir Haarde with eggs, paint and rolls of toilet paper, and police responded by firing tear gas, the first time tear gas was used against the public in Iceland since 1949.

On Friday, Haarde announced that he would step down as prime minister, citing a recent diagnosis of throat cancer, and agreed to hold early elections, which he set for May 9. His coalition government with the Social Democratic Alliance Party had been scheduled to remain in power until elections in 2011.

However, Haarde insisted that his government would not resign, arguing that political instability would compound the worsening economic crisis, which has seen prices and unemployment soar and the savings of many of the country's 320,000 residents vanish. A fresh anti-government demonstration on Saturday, involving some 5,000 people, led to a fracturing of the ruling coalition and forced Haarde to reverse course. On Monday he formally announced the resignation of the government.

On Tuesday, the president, Olafur Ragnar Grimsson, asked the Social Democratic Alliance to form a new interim government, to rule until elections are held in May, or perhaps even earlier. It is expected that the Social Democrats will form a minority government in coalition with the Left-Green Movement Party, which had supported the anti-government demonstrations.

There is little prospect that a new center-left government will stabilize the economy or silence the mounting opposition of workers, youth and middle-class people who are being impoverished by the collapse of the heavily indebted economy. The Social Democrats are fully implicated in the "free market" speculative policies that brought the country to economic ruin, and the Left-Green Movement demonstrated its loyalty to the state and the capitalist ruling elite by offering to join a national government when the country's three major banks collapsed last October.

There are also unresolved policy differences between the two parties. The Social Democrats favor closer ties to the European Union, including a possible application to join, and have endorsed the severe austerity terms of a bailout organized by the International Monetary Fund in October. The Left-Greens have called for renegotiation of the $2.1 billion IMF loan and opposed entry into the EU. However, the head of the Left-Greens, Steingrimur Sigfusson, indicated that he would be willing to alter these positions in return for entry into government.

The collapse of the right-wing Haarde government is the sharpest expression to date of the growing social and political turmoil across Europe arising from the economic crisis. Iceland was hit hardest by the financial meltdown that followed the collapse of the Wall Street investment bank Lehman Brothers last September because nearly two decades of "free market" policies and financial speculation that transformed the country into a center for "hot money" from international investors had left its banking system highly leveraged and entirely dependent on foreign capital.

However, similar conditions prevail in many European economies and recent weeks have seen a wave of sometimes violent protests fueled by the impact of the economic breakdown. Earlier this month Greek students and youth held daily mass protests for several weeks following the police killing of a 15-year-old youth. The Greek protests were sustained by anger over conditions of mass unemployment and poverty, especially among young people, that have been intensified by the economic crisis.

Mass demonstrations and riots have shaken a number of Eastern European countries that have been devastated by the financial crisis, including Latvia, Lithuania, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Bulgaria. Hungary and Ukraine have both resorted to IMF loans in an attempt to stave off national bankruptcy.

In all of these countries, the governments have imposed austerity policies in an attempt to slash expenditures so as to meet debt payments to international banks and creditors. In Latvia, for example, the government this month announced wage cuts and reductions in social spending combined with tax increases.

Other European countries have also seen mass protests. In Spain, which was heavily invested in the housing and credit bubbles that have now imploded, tens of thousands of workers and youth demonstrated last week in the city of Zaragoza to demand relief from soaring unemployment resulting from the collapse of the country's construction and retail industries.

Other European economies with outsized banking systems that are immediately at risk include Austria and Ireland. Even in Britain, whose currency has fallen by 30 percent in recent months, public speculation is growing over the prospect of state bankruptcy.

Simon Johnson, former chief economist at the IMF and senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington, commenting on the collapse of the Icelandic government, told the Washington Post, "I think it's going to spread. We're in a phase now we're beginning to see the political fallout."

A worried New York Times in its account of the Iceland crisis characterized the demonstrations that have broken out in Europe "in all cases" as being "anti-capitalist."

The global economic crisis has broadly discredited the ideology of the capitalist market, but perhaps nowhere more suddenly and explosively than in Iceland. The Independence Party has ruled since 1991, with David Oddsson, now the governor of the central bank, heading the government until 2004. Under Oddsson, the international operations of the major banks grew massively, building up liabilities many times the size of the country's economic output. The country's big banks borrowed $120 billion on international markets early this decade, six times the size of Iceland's gross domestic product. The country's foreign debt peaked at ten times GDP.

The speculative policies of the government and the banks fueled an economic boom that lifted Iceland's per capita GDP to one of the highest in the world. Iceland topped the most recent United Nations Human Development Index.

But when the credit crisis erupted, the banks could not make their payments and the central bank lacked the foreign currency to bail them out. The collapse of the banks sent the currency, the krona, into free fall. Since most consumer goods are imported, prices soared. Unemployment shot up. Government statistics show the jobless rate up by 45 percent in December from the previous month. The finance ministry forecasts a contraction of 9.6 percent in GDP for this year and 2010 and an unemployment rate of 8.6 percent next year, although this figure is widely believed to be an underestimation.

A recent survey indicated that 70 percent of Icelandic companies are technically bankrupt, raising the likelihood of an explosive growth of unemployment. The same survey put the rate of personal bankruptcies at 40 percent of the population. About a third of the population is believed to have lost all or part of their savings.

In a commentary published Monday, the Guardian characterized Iceland as "the world's biggest hedge fund" and noted:

"Iceland had relatively high interest rates, so investors borrowed heavily in Japanese yen and bought Icelandic bonds. Money flowed into Iceland... The financial crash has put paid to Iceland's get rich quick scheme—known as the yen carry trade—and left Iceland saddled with debts it has no hope of paying without impoverishing its people for decades to come."

posted in iceland - 0 replies

Explain this video, please

pmatt — Sun, 09 Jul 2006 09:48:41 GMT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HH0awSk7i8Q

Based on the URL displayed on the screen, I am assuming it is Icelandic.

Can somebody provide a rough summary translation?

posted in iceland - 11 replies

Need help with my artwork from an Icelander

Poster_Boy — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 02:17:04 GMT

Hello Icelanders,

I am an artist who will be attending the Burning Man art festival in the desert of Nevada this year. I am doing an art installation there and I REALLY need the help of someone from Iceland.

All this entails is a photograph of yourself in an outdoor setting, in front of your town's sign, holding or standing next to a soccer ball with a sign that says "Promixa Centauri" on, beneath or beside it. You might want to wear some anntenas on your head and have a little toy rocketship or something with a science fiction theme in the picture, too.

This picture will be displayed at Burning Man, where it will be seen by thousands of people. Here is your chance to be famous!

posted in iceland - 0 replies

Nice, an Iceland tribe

John — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 21:41:27 GMT

Ok, thought to say Hi and send a link to a massive project I finished (in Iceland) recently - enjoy the photos ! Figured it would be a good intro and way to say hello to these "tribes" I discovered...

http://www.iceland-anothertake.com

JW

posted in iceland - 4 replies

Iceland travel groups???

treiops — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 23:44:33 GMT

Hi,

I want to go to Iceland this summer. But, I can't find anyone to go with me and I don't know anyone in Iceland. Are there any sort of travel groups I could get involved with? I'm not interested in a package tour from a travel agency but, I'd like to get together with people to do nature hikes, camping, that sort of thing.

Any ideas???

Thanks!

TTINLA

posted in iceland - 8 replies

I ♥ U.

AmyfritH — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 23:54:33 GMT

Yes, You Iceland. I love you as I know that you are one with the whole earth that I love so much... and you hotsprings! I live near hotsprings often here in Canada... it's nice to know that I can find them with you too ♥ xx (kisses for the earth ) ♥ ~

posted in iceland - 0 replies

Business networking and Events

Sun, 17 Feb 2008 12:44:07 GMT

i would like to invite my Tribe network to join me on www.connectture.com - its a social business network based in Europe with a growing base of users from all over the world. Easy way of keeping track of your Business Network.

Cheers

Sarah

posted in iceland - 0 replies

Going to IcelandAirwaves Music Festival This Year

Jen — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 19:54:00 GMT

All,

Hello! New to the tribe. Anyway, going to Iceland for the Iceland Airwaves Music Festival this October; will be there for 4 full days. Already have a one-day pass to Laugar Spa; what else should I do that won't take me too far out of the city or get me up too early in the AM (I plan on seeing as many bands as possible). I'm open to suggestions!

Also, I can't seem to find a good small Berlitz-style pocket guide to Icelandic. I realize it's a very hard language to speak, but having taken Old English (and read Beowulf in the original), I'd love to at least have a small guide for key phrases. Amazon only has textbooks and CDs. Can anyone recommend a title?

Thanks so much--very psyched about this trip; can't wait to go.

posted in iceland - 0 replies

Music and poetry in Iceland

Natalie — Sun, 13 May 2007 01:56:07 GMT

Hi Everyone,

I've always wanted to visit Iceland and I will. I just have a couple questions. I'm a musician and I wanted to know more about the music. The most that I've been exposed to is of course Bjork, Sigur Ros and Quarashi. I love all kinds of music. I'm interested in Icelandic rock/heavy metal, hip-hop, jazz and traditional music. Are there any artists you can recommend for me to listen to?

Can you also recommend any Icelandic poets I should read? Are their works translated into English?

Thanks.

posted in iceland - 0 replies

best place on earth to live...?

leonmac — Tue, 27 Mar 2007 06:25:26 GMT

Iceland may in the best shape of many developed nations for the coming cataclysmic oil sparse era...

All that geo-thermal power. Being made into Hydrogen...

The most well read people in the world. Hot scandanavian chicks. Lots of seafood. Hotsprings... Summer nights...Scandanavian values.

On the downside... those incredibly long dark winters... depression. Volcanically unstable.

I wonder what it would be like to live in a small community like that...?

L

posted in iceland - 3 replies

one thing

treiops — Fri, 20 Oct 2006 06:18:35 GMT

What is the absolute best thing to see in Iceland?

TTINLA

posted in iceland - 9 replies

Need Icelandic translation

bungalow1 — Sun, 18 Feb 2007 06:30:03 GMT

When I was in Hofn this summer, I came across a handwritten note, tied to a rock with a piece of string. It was out on a walking trail near the water, not really near anything. I am wondering what it said. I took a photograph of it.

If you can read Icelandic, please drop me a message with your email address and I'll send you the photo.

There's no reward or anything, but on the off chance it says something like "The treasure is buried under the third fencepost from the wall on the south side of Egill's farm in Akranes," you will have a better chance than anyone of getting there first.

Unless someone else read the note that day, as I left it untouched.

Thanks!

posted in iceland - 0 replies

Iceland for New Years and January?

Don — Sat, 19 Nov 2005 00:06:59 GMT

I am planning a trip to Iceland Dec. 28 to Jan. 8. Has anyone ever been there during this time? Suggestions on things to do in the winter? I have heard both extremely positive comments about going there in the winter,...such as the Aurora Borealis,...and negative comments such as some public transit and tourist functions not being active outside of the traditional summer tourist season.

Anyone been there in the winter? Is there still a lot to do and see? How many hours of sunlight are there?

Thanks for any help you can provide!

Don

posted in iceland - 9 replies

thrift stores In Iceland?

tigrefino — Sun, 11 Sep 2005 09:34:47 GMT

My friend is going in october and is more excited about what cool finds he'll get at a resale shop rather the glaciers that will be surrounding him. Anyway any pointers in the right direction? He says he cant find any info on it, They do have these shops there tho right? They 've got to.

All leads appreciaed
thanks,

tiger

posted in iceland - 3 replies

looking to travel possibly live in iceland

highballj72 — Sun, 11 Jun 2006 21:49:53 GMT

hey i am looking at travel, study, possibly living in iceland... words of wisdom? sage advice? help me obi wan kenobi....seriously and tips or ideas regarding school, life, and living there would be great!

posted in iceland - 4 replies

help, going to Iceland at the end of the week, with no place to stay yet.

suzi — Tue, 27 Jun 2006 21:15:00 GMT

Hi,

I'm arriving in Iceland on July 2, next Saturday and I don't have a place to stay the first week and I'm arriving alone.

I'm a photographer and more from San Francisco, born in Korea and a lovely, fun person and I would appreciate any help to find a place to stay even for the first few days until I can find my way around.

A couch, a mattress on the floor, a room, as long as its clean and friendly and I'd be happy.

Thank you.

-suzi

posted in iceland - 0 replies

Iceland for solstice - what's happening?

ElCatalyst — Tue, 30 May 2006 05:11:08 GMT

Hi all - I've been to Iceland once, two years ago, and loved it. I'm coming back this year with 8 friends for my birthday. We'll be there for the solstice and would love to find a good party. We are all veteran Burners and travelers.

thanks!
Daniel

posted in iceland - 0 replies

Skyr Anyone?

WaterDragon — Thu, 27 Jan 2005 04:42:43 GMT

One thing I miss about Iceland is the food! Does anyone know if it is possible to buy Skyr here in San Francisco?

C

posted in iceland - 14 replies

Hi!

nicolesara — Thu, 02 Sep 2004 19:57:24 GMT

Hey everyone, I'm from Canada and both of my Grandparents on my Mother's side are from Iceland. I am thrilled to have found this tribe and am sooo jealous of all of you have gone to visit. I've never been yet and I think i have to do all i can to plan a trip there!
just wanted to say hi
nicole

posted in iceland - 2 replies

ok..you Icelandic people have some explaining to do.....

Sigrid-DoriKelly — Tue, 23 Aug 2005 20:01:42 GMT

Have the descendents of vikings come to this.....?

http://www.hugi.is/hahradi/bigboxes.php?box_id=51208&f_id=1269

hahah Have fun!

posted in iceland - 8 replies

Help with translation!

Tue, 03 Jan 2006 16:05:33 GMT

What's the icelandic word for "Synaesthesia"?

posted in iceland - 1 reply

questions

Matthieu — Wed, 15 Mar 2006 00:15:48 GMT

Hello I am a french student in icelandic and I plan to go in Reykjavik next year. I am serching for a studio appartement in the town but I really dont know where to search... Does anyone could help me or tell me where to search for appartments in Reykjavik???

Thank you !

posted in iceland - 0 replies

Mountain Biking

Dyna-Mite — Wed, 08 Mar 2006 12:16:04 GMT

Does anyone have any insight to great places to ride/ must ride / trails in iceland???

posted in iceland - 0 replies

Carlos Hagen-Lautrup

Rudolph — Mon, 27 Feb 2006 22:52:50 GMT

Hello List;

I was wondering if anyone knows this man. He was a mentor of mine years ago, and was last heard about doing readings of Pablo Neruda in Iceland...

Best,

Rudy
http://rudycarrera.com/wp

posted in iceland - 0 replies

How expensive is it, really?

pmatt — Sun, 12 Feb 2006 22:01:13 GMT

Everything I read about Iceland basically says it is absolutely amazing, and amazingly expensive.

So realistically, how much does it cost to travel there? (preferably in US$). This would be for a couple, staying in half-decent private rooms, not dorms or camping.

Can you get by on public transport, or do you really need to rent a car?

posted in iceland - 1 reply

icelandia stream o' consciousness

selkiestar — Fri, 25 Feb 2005 16:43:53 GMT

hello to all my fellow scandophiles....
i went to iceland at a fairly young age - it was 15 years ago now (i'm 27) and it still is, to this day, one of my top five places to go.
i'm trying to manifest another trip out there. i've been to a lot - a lot! - of places and i like to collect a few in my heart that i would return to.
mongolia is my next conquest.
one of my greatest memories in iceland was being in that town where the houses got crushed by lava and setting some puffins free that the townsfolk had nursed over the winter.
anyhoo, just professing my love for this island and its little islettes - eyelets hey like lace!
love to all,
andrea

posted in iceland - 3 replies

icelandic summer

father-oceania — Mon, 19 Dec 2005 21:37:14 GMT

what are those like. im trying to go over there around the end of july..maybe eairly august. heavy coat or short, sandels and tees

posted in iceland - 4 replies

Gledileg Jol!

Don — Tue, 03 Jan 2006 21:58:49 GMT

Just a little Icelandic wish for the holidays!

posted in iceland - 1 reply

if you are here and love björk

boricualeenda — Wed, 26 Oct 2005 23:37:41 GMT

then join the björk tribe!

posted in iceland - 7 replies

Reykjavik for Xmas, Amsterdam for New Years

lucifer_pornosaurus — Fri, 25 Nov 2005 22:15:55 GMT

Hey Iceland tribesters!

I'm going to be in Reykjavik with my brother from Dec 26-Dec 31. Anyone want to hang out to enjoy the 20+ hours of night and 2 hours of daylight? Any recommendations of places to go, things to eat, clubs, etc to check out would be great too!

Happy New Year

Lucifer

posted in iceland - 3 replies

icelandic women getting the job done right

sig — Fri, 28 Oct 2005 18:32:23 GMT

all the women in iceland simultaneously give inequity the finger:

Oread Daily - More than 50,000 women in Reykjavik alone ranging from actresses to politicians to fish factory workers to teachers marked "Women's Day Off" and marched through the streets demanding equality yesterday.

The protest was timed to start at 2.08pm. Activists calculated that this amounted to 64.1 per cent of the working day. Icelandic women complain that the average female wage is 64.1 per cent of the male income, even though a large majority of women are holding down jobs as well as taking the largest share of childcare.

The Times of London reports that all the main embassies ground to a halt, as did the banks, government departments, most shops and kindergartens.

All this took place on the thirtieth anniversary of a strike by Icelandic women which became a milestone for the international feminist movement.

for the whole story, check out:

http://pej.org/html/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=3542
or
http://tinyurl.com/9v89o

just imagine what we could do if this sort of thing happed in the states. or even just in california.

posted in iceland - 2 replies

Informative Documentary On The Hidden Folk In Iceland

nordmann80 — Tue, 01 Nov 2005 07:17:38 GMT

For those of you who get the Sundance Channel check for a program that will appear as Investigation/Invisible when you do a search on the cable box (Investigation Of the Invisible World). It's all about the beliefs in elves, huldrafolk, trolls that people in Iceland still have today. It's very fascinating.

posted in iceland - 1 reply

greetings from toronto

makerofhappytrees — Wed, 14 Sep 2005 22:12:20 GMT

My name is Michael. I am the founder of Touch the Sun Productions--a global shared knowledge community of artists, healers and forward thinkers.

At present, there are over 15 councils representing various cities around the world. 6 countries are represented thus far. Each council is intended to be a meeting place for artists, spirituality,mysticism and ideas to intermingle.

each council will eventually host a venue--an open community space for art incubation and presentation, for education, and for the sharing of ideas. each venue will host a multimedia hub that will link that venue to the other venues in the network creating a private broadband which will later become a broadcasting voice for the network--film, music, publishing, and an online gallery for visual art.

I am seeking someone in Iceland--either an established artistic collective, artist, mystic, or anyone who understands what is being created and who would like to link Iceland into this network of growth.

please contact me

posted in iceland - 0 replies

Blond Haired Eskimos

Elizabeth — Sat, 10 Sep 2005 07:38:20 GMT

I saw a documentary about an Icelandic-American explorer who tried to look for blond eskimos. They are Scandinavians who supposedly wandered to northern Canada a really long time ago. What's up? Is this true?

Lots of people think this guy, Sigmundson (sp?) who supposedly discovered him was making it up? He is supposedly a national hero in Iceland. Anybody know the story of these blond haired eskimos?

posted in iceland - 8 replies

Viking Ship made from Popsicle sticks to sail in Atlantic

Sigrid-DoriKelly — Thu, 18 Aug 2005 03:02:34 GMT

What to do with 15 million popsicle sticks.....?

.......why, make a Viking ship and sail the Atlantic ocean for a good cause.

http://reuters.excite.com/article/20050816/2005-08-16T172442Z_01_EIC662676_RTRIDST_0_ODD-VIKINGSHIP-DC.html

I like it because it supports the theory of Vikings reaching North American shores 500 years before Columbus......

From Article.....

""That's still the ultimate goal, to sail across the Atlantic in the Viking-style," McDonald said.

Christopher Columbus was acclaimed for centuries as the man who discovered America in 1492.

But in recent decades, more evidence has come to light showing that Icelander Leif Ericsson and the Vikings were the first Europeans to set foot on the American continent in the year 1,000.

Viking longboats let Norse warriors land, pillage and plunder large parts of Europe and sail off knowing that no other vessels could catch up.""

Big Thanks to Wendy for sendng me this site! It's cool! :)

Here's his website regarding his ship and his cause. Cool guy! ( In English and Dutch)

www.seaheartship.com/eng/

ENJOY!!!

*S*

posted in iceland - 0 replies

Interview:Sveinbjörn BeinteinssonOn The Revival of Ásatrú, Iceland

nordmann80 — Sat, 16 Jul 2005 09:24:08 GMT

http://www.angelfire.com/nm/seidhman/beinweb.html
Sveinbjörn Beinteinsson, the son of the farmer Beinteinn Einarsson from Litlabotni-on-Hvaljardsbeach and Helga Pétursdóttir from Drághals in Svindal, was born on Apr. 4, 1924. He died on the 24th of Dec., 1993, from heart failure. In 1972 he founded the Ásatrúarfélag, the Icelandic heathen organization, of which he was the chief góði until his death. Since 1991, Sveinbjörn lived on his land in Drághals in Bergmassiv Skardheiði (approx. 60 mi. from Reykjavik), where the 6 ½ foot statue of Þor can be found.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(Interview with Sveinbjörn Beinteinsson lead by Gisela Graichen and taken from the book Die Neuen Hexen (The New Witches) by G. Graichen and translated by the Seiðman.)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
S. B.: "Here in Iceland heathenry it's a completely normal thing. I'm more scared of the fact that I smoke than that I'm a heathen. My religion was officially recognized by the government in May of '93."
G. G.: You were the founder?

S. B.: "Yeah, I was already interested in the old Gods when I was a child. I snatched up the wisdom out of the Sagas, the Edda and the old stories. By the time I could read I was already pouring over the Sagas and by the time I turned 16 I had published my first poems dealing with the Gods."

G. G.: What's your actual occupation?

S. B.: "Farmer, author, and poet. My forebears have always been farmers."

G. G.: You live here by yourself on your land. Isn't that kinda lonely?

S. B. : "Oh no, my nearest neighbor lives 3½ mi. from here, and, besides that, I'm completely surrounded by beings, Landspirits--the Hidden folk."

G. G.: What about when you're sick?

S. B.: "I go out into Nature and gather herbs to cure myself."

G. G.: What do you write?

S. B.: "Works about Iceland's history, songs, poems. I also have a scholarly book about the technical construction of Old Icelandic poetry. Historically, we have some pretty complicated poetry here."

G. G.: Are you baptized?

S. B.: "Baptized, confirmed, the works. I've always had pretty close ties to Christianity, at least, as it's practiced here in Iceland."

G. G.: Are you still in the Church?

S. B.: "No, before someone can join us, he first has to leave the Church."

G. G.: When did the idea first come to you to start a movement out of your belief in the old Gods?

S. B.: "In the winter of '71/ '72. At that time we were getting a lot of Jesus Children into Iceland, and I said to myself, 'Wait a minute, we have older beliefs in Iceland. Why should we not bring them back to life? How come we're bringing in all these other sects?' I gathered up a group of people (we were 12 of us at the time) and soon we had a few more. The idea quickly began to sound real good to us."

G. G.: Was this a conscious movement against the sects coming in?

S. B.: "Yes, in direct opposition to it. We wanted to give people a chance to belong to the old religion. The religion that was here on Iceland before there was Christianity, that was forbidden us in the same year that Iceland adopted Christianity."

G. G.: Was the old folk religion always kinds of wavering about under the surface of things?

S. B.: "Absolutely! It was alive and well all these years."

G. G.: Why were they practiced only behind closed doors for 970 years, and only now are they coming out in the open?

S. B.: "Because they were illegal. The old religion was practiced only in secret because the Church was feared as the strongest force in the country. Iceland was Catholic until 1550. Then came the Reformation and with it came the Evangelical Church of the State. Not until 1874 did we get religious freedom of choice and only then could one leave the Church. After that, all we needed was a little time to let the dust settle before starting our move."

G. G.: You said that the old religion lived on for a 1000 years; how was this expressed?

S. B.: "The country folk always believed in Nature, in natural experience, and in Beings that live in Nature like elves, gnomes, and good, positive-natured Beings which live near people and help them. It could also be that these the Dead as well. No one knows where these creatures live, but it is known that certain people are always surrounded by them."

G. G.: Not all people?

S. B.: "No, not all of them."

G. G.: For what reason do these Beings seek out the people that they follow?

S. B.: "Why this happens to only certain people no one knows. It's a special kind of luck, though, when one receives this kind of support. It has absolutely nothing to do with the "holy things" as we know them from the Church, though."

G. G.: Are there ghosts or spirits on your land?

S. B.: "I've never seen them, but I sense them."

G. G.: What do you call yourselves? Heathens?

S. B.: "We call our religion Ásatrú, the belief in the Æsir, in the old norse Gods. We don't want to just call ourselves heathens because there are so many different types of heathens. "'Heathen' is the overall term for it."

G. G.: How did you gain official, legal recognition for the religion?

S. B.: "We didn't have to demonstrate or have a revolution. We just founded a collective of people who believed in the Æsir. In the law, it's forbidden to go out and do missionary work. No one should be able to force his beliefs on another. They come on their own when they are minded to do so."

G. G.: What was the official reaction to the emergence of your collective?

S. B.: "At first they were skeptical. I had to go to the Minister of Justicewho happens to be pro religious freedom and explain our goals. Anybody can start his own religion, but to get the same recognition as the State Church, requires permission from the Minister of Justice."

G. G.: Was it difficult to get this special permission?

S. B.: "I knew the Minister of Justice. Earlier he had been a law professor at the university in Reykjavik. I reminded him about old, pertinent law cases where he had interpreted the law pertaining to religions in particular ways, because it was easy for me to read through them, that it was legal what we were doing. That's how we finally got our religion recognized. Then I had to apply for a License to Practice with the police, and since then we've had the same rights as the Church."

G. G.: Which rights are those?

S. B.: "I am able to legally marry couples , for example. In Iceland, you can't just go to the Justice of the Peace. The marriage between couples in our collective is legal."

G. G.: How many couples have you married? A lawyer explained to me that there might be similar problems in Germany as well.

S. B.: "Around 10 couples.

"I heard about a case where a couple got married sort of as a joke. The young lady was of legal age and found out the next day to her surprise that the marriage was legal. She held off for an annulment because was going to have to give up ½ all her possessions. The thing wasn't really a joke. The couple had to apply all the way up to the Parliament. They stated the they really weren't suited for one another and wanted them to declare the marriage invalid so they wouldn't have to go through with the legal proceedings of the separation, but the Parliament didn't come through with it. The marriage was valid and fully legal. They had to go through with a divorce just like anybody else."

G. G.: How did the State Church react to the legal recognition?

S. B.: "During the hearing the Minister of Justice called the Bishop to the witness stand. Naturally, he was against it. The Bishop also gave an official ruling against the legalization of the collective. But the Ministry struck it from the record. Then he wrote a lengthy article in the newspaper, but the publisher of the paper had reacted rather favorably to our bringing the old religion back.

"In Parliament there was also A bid by a member of the conservative party that our religion should not be legalized. There was a debate but the opposition wasn't able to pull it off. The Minister of Justice himself put in a good word for our religion and personally stood behind it and us."

G. G.: Does he belong to your movement?

S. B.: "No, but here in Iceland we're so tolerant towards the practice of different religions that we are pretty well understood. They also tried the same thing in Norway but they weren't successful."

G. G.: How many members did you have in May of '73?

S. B.: "40."

G. G.: How many members do you have today (1986)?

S. B.: "Eighty registered members. But a larger number than that goes to our meetings, to the blóts. They are 'Friends of the Félag' and they are in the majority, in other words, they are not officially registered. Blóts are out ceremonies; the old norse word for 'sacrifice.'"

G. G.: You still sacrifice in this day and age?

S. B.: "We don't know exactly how our ancestors conducted these feasts, but we don't sacrifice. First, when we gather, everything is blessed and made holy."

G. G.: Is the Function headed by a high priest?

S. B.: "There is an Allherjarsgóði, a chief-góði, of the highest order, or better: the highest Judge. In the past each district had its own góði. Once a year, they met together at the 'Judgment Place.' They held both priestly and legal functions in the district. After the christianization of Iceland, the religious function was dropped. The chief-góði, opened the meeting called the Þing and blessed it. This is he we also begin our meetings. Then the Sagas are read and the Gods are toasted."

G. G.: A lot?

S. B.: "Symbolically, out of a drinking horn. We prepare the mead, and then we drink. After that, anyone can stand up and say whatever he has to say. Here in Iceland, folks also like to recite poetry. Lastly, folks are gathered together, they feast together, and they drink together."

G. G.: Which Gods are prayed to?

S. B.: Mainly, Þórr (Thor). He gets the highest of praises. As a God, He is more common than Óðin (Odin), more people-friendly. He is the God of farms; He makes the earth fertile with His Hammer; The God of Strength and Help."

G. G.: Are there ritual items on the altar at the ceremony?

S. B.: We have a drinking horn and a small statue of Þórr.

G. G.: In Germany the religion is called Óðinism. What role does Óðinn play in your religion?

S. B.: "Anyone can pray to the Gods in whatever manner he likes. Óðinn stands for Wisdom, the Imagination, and great Knowledge."

G. G.: Isn't He also the God of magicians and sorcerers?

S. B.: "That is a part of His knowledge, yes, absolutely! The Gods are often talked about and discussed according to Their different functions."

G. G.: But the chief-God is Óðinn, i.e., masculine.

S. B.: "The Goddesses play a very large role. Freya, the Goddess of Fertility, is very important. She is the counterpart to Óðinn."

G. G.: Is She at the same level or is She subordinate to Him?

S. B.: "On the same level. There is no difference."

G. G.: What roles do women play in Ásatrú?

S. B.: "With the registered members now there is 80% men and 20% women. That might be because women are a little less likely to want to go up before the judge and other officials. One has to leave the Church first, and women often shy away from formalities. The visitors who come to the blóts are usually women. Society in Iceland was never very patriarchically structured. Women have always had more rights and were always looked upon more as equals than they were on the continent."

G. G.: What does the word "witchcraft" mean to you?

S. B.: "Not a living person; the concept stands for a type of power, a magical power."

G. G.: What kind of a power?

S. B.: "It plays a main role, whatever kind of power it is, especially when it mixes with our own strengths. It happens with that combination. My own energy is strengthened through that no matter what I do. The power which stems from close contact with Nature was readily available to people in the past. Over the years, we lost these abilities and attempted to replace it with pseudo things like more powerful cars and bigger houses. Now, we know that this power is inherent in us and we want to revive it. This is my own personal opinion. But, most of the members of this religion are going in this direction. All the ones who earnestly seek it out, find it to be true. Often we have to admit, that we can develop more spiritually. The ability must be cultivated, we can't afford to ignore it any more. If only science had recognized how much we can do much with our minds and our consciousness, they wouldn't have lead us off this path."

G. G.: Even thoughas you sayit doesn't ever come up, I'd like to talk about this magical knowledge a little more.

S. B.: "It is the special task of our religion to rebuild our ties to Nature, to all the powers that are within Nature, in order to better understand them. There a tree grows or a brook flows, and man is only a part of the process. He must be aware that he is a part of the natural flow of things. The old people, the kind I knew as a kid, who were surely Christians, but they didn't overdo it with the Christian thing. Normally, they had a mix of beliefs in Christianity but also in nature. They had a sense that there were elves and other Beings around them. There were much better relationships between man and nature and people among themselves."

G. G.: You have here in Iceland partially due to the island's isolation and partially to the political move for independencea Republic since 1944somewhat of a special situation.

S. B.: "Yes, technical advances in the world pushed us forward. Machines, cars, jet planes, modern shipsall of it came at oncein a single generation. We hadn't gone through any of the modern developments like the rest of the European countries. Take, for example, sailing. For a 1000 years man has been sailing. It took thousands of years for man to learn sailing. And, suddenly, in the space of one generation came steamships, then motor boats, all the way up to atomic powered submarines. That was all wa too fast, and much too much at one time. That can hardly be done in one generation. Amazingly enough, man adapted quickly to all the new things but at the same time lost his normal, intuitive relationship to Nature. Instead, man created a dead environment. He surrounded himself with a man made wasteland."

G. G.: Is Nature taking revenge while she dies because man has lost his relationship with her? Is that what you're saying?

S. B.: "Yes, I can well remember what the old people used to say to me as a kid: 'Let the tree stand; leave the moss on the rock; don't kill the fly in the window!' Nature was a part of our lives back then. After the arrival of technology and science, we have to wait because the soul comes in second. Mankind seems to me to be like someone who is being forced to dance. A long time ago, I knew of people who were forced to dance and couldn't stop dancing until they either fell completely exhausted or dropped dead. That how it is in the world today with all the its wars. The world is dancing itself to death and can't stop itself."

G. G.: People of your generation can still remember those times. In that case you guys have it easier on your conscience than we do on the continent.

S. B.: "Yeah, we remember the time before technical advances which came to us kind of late. These closer contacts to the old time and the closer contact with Nature and also our cultural past helped pave the way for our religion."

G. G.: Do you want to turn back time?

S. B.: "No. I don't sit down with my group and say, 'Now that we have recaptured the belief system of our past, let's start living like we did in the past.' I don't want to turn back time. I have to live my life in the present. We couldn't nor would we want to do away with the new technologies."

G. G.: You don't avoid driving cars or watching TV?

S. B.: "No, we have to learn so that we can make do. These things shouldn't be the destruction of our sense of well-being that man has has fostered up to this point. Science has to have a balance in our lives. We no longer feel whole. In my youth, I experienced this same balance still when I was living with the Elders. They conducted their lives so as to hurt no one. There are hardly any people left who conduct themselves in this way. Fast paced paced technology has destroyed that."

G. G.: You are trying to lead people towards this 'sense of well-being'?

S. B.: "That is one of our main goals."

G. G.: What are some of the others?

S. B.: "To be able to live with this sense of well-being, and not to lose the balance"

G. G.: Do you believe that you can bring people through your religion to such an awareness that they will be able to stop dancing?

S. B.: "In our religion I certainly see a hope. You've got an important point. You asked, at the beginning, why just now the old religion is being brought out of hiding and into the open. I answered that it was because of the fear of the Church's power. But, it was also because of something elsethe fear of the science which came up at the beginning of this century. The fear that one would make a fool out himself if he admitted to believing in elves and gnomes, that there are ghoststhat's spooky."

G. G.: Can people admit to it today?

S. B.: "Today, I think, science has been brought more into the question. Now a person can admit to believing in something that can't be seen. We're finally getting over the strict attention we've been paying to technological advancement and are able to see exactly what it has gotten us. It hasn't brought us what we'd been hoping for for the past 50 years."

G. G.: Is it that you want to create a "new society?"

S. B.: "No revolution. Science has also provided us with good things as well such as medicines, knowledge about epidemics. Although with it we've also caused some of the hunger and starvation in the Third World. Now we are attempting to take care of our spiritual side, to learn, to drive away our lust for aggression, to long for less instead of desiring everything. People can learn to be less aggressive with each other and help one another instead of going after one another all the time."

G. G.: Why do you think that through your religion you will be more successful than Christianity with its "Love thy Neighbor?"

S. B.: "Our religion is more in line with Nature, more closely tied to natural harmony. Christianity has officially set itself up against this harmony. For example, the Inquisition. It does not permit any normal, uninhibited relationship with those things that are around us all the time; instead it draws a strict clear line in front of us. That is what I am against."

G. G.: How would I, through your religion, find this harmony? Will it change my everyday life if I put your religion into practice?

S. B.: "Everything will get easier. You feel better. People take themselves far too serious when something goes wrong. You learn to take things as they are, to be responsible and to put your own energy to better use. It's not possible to be this way all the time. To do that one also needs to be completely at peace with himself and the environment."

G. G.: After the ceremonies does a person feel a special energy?

S. B.: "It's not only the blóts, the official ceremonies, but also by being together with like-minded people. That's where the energy is felt. One senses the positive energy of the others and it strengthens him. It's like being in tune is for instruments, a single note or a chord, a harmony. For me the relationship between Nature, Iceland's ancient history and the language is also very important. We strive to speak a beautiful good Icelandic language. Often we say jokingly that we should speak the same beautiful language that Óðinn did."

G. G.: Can you direct this positive energy towards something in particular?

S. B.: "Careful! I can help other with the energy that I get, but I mean that in a general sense in that I emit kind of a positive radiance around me not in the sense that I could heal someone or the like. We're are not going in the direction of "the occult." People have to take care not to be tossing all these things together or it'll become like a watered down soup or a stew."

G. G.: To accept things as they are, that sounds so much like fatalism.

S. B.: "Yes, a type of fatalism, in a sense. I'm not in a constant battle with things, but, then, I also don't run away from problems either."

G. G.: But, if you hadn't fought your religion would never have been officially recognized.

S. B.: "It's difficult to say which method a person should use. People need to look to themselves to decide what is happening and where we stand. People must make this perfectly clear for the power holders."

G. G.: And do you do that?

S. B.: "I express my stance in newspapers and other publications. When everybody knows all the details, then we are at a point where we can put some pressure on those in power, but we need to be careful. Too much pressure can make it go badly as well."

G. G.: What do you think about the new heathen movement going on in Germany right now?

S. B.: "If they go in the right direction, I think it's good. It's on everyone's mind that we can't continue going the way we are, destroying the environment and Nature. Now, we have to say "Stop!" and try to regain a closer relationship with Nature and recognize ourselves as being a part of Nature. But, people have travel this new direction without extremism, without aggression."

G. G.: Do you believe that your newoldreligion will catch on and spread?

S. B.: "I think so. We'll wait quietly and patiently."

posted in iceland - 1 reply

Iceland Art/ Music

Graeme — Sun, 15 May 2005 20:23:09 GMT

Any fellow fans of the arts in Iceland? I spent way too much on CDs in 12 Tonar! Mugison, DJ is a Musician, The Funerals, Minus etc. Also saw Singaplore Sling do a show. Unfornatunely the art museum was closed in Reyjavik, but I did get to one in Akureyri, and hang out in the Caroline Cafe. And Myvatn is just mindblowing in February! And then there's Noi Albinoi. What a great film. Nowhere seems to stock Angels of the Universe though.

posted in iceland - 1 reply

Iceland Airwaves 2005

Sigrid-DoriKelly — Wed, 27 Jul 2005 15:25:32 GMT

Icelandair Holidays | Special Interest

Iceland Airwaves 2005

It's about the time of year that the Iceland Airwaves itch begins to hit again... we feel your pain. One of the most intense Europe music festivals, Iceland Airwaves will take place in Reykjavik from October 19 - 23, 2005.

Icelandair packages fro US to Reykjavik.....

http://www.icelandairholidays.com/main/view.jsp?branch=14356&e342RecordID=1141&e342DataStoreID=9704&bhcp=1

:)

posted in iceland - 0 replies

Iceland in July

Foxybrown — Fri, 01 Apr 2005 19:20:25 GMT

I am going to Iceland in July, any suggestions about cool things to see? Cheap places to stay in the country side? Good clubs in Reykjavic?

posted in iceland - 7 replies

hotels in reykjavik

cpq — Wed, 15 Jun 2005 19:00:48 GMT

my boyfriend and i are planning on visiting iceland for 4 nights in december/january. do any of you have any suggestions for safe cheap hotels? i'm not interested in staying in a hostel.

also, we will be there for New Years Eve. any suggestions of cool ways to ring in the new year?

thanks!

posted in iceland - 3 replies

anyone see "The Girl in the Cafe"?

flowerdew — Mon, 11 Jul 2005 20:33:16 GMT

It's sort of sad...the film was made to try to influence people to try to influence their leaders at the G8 forum but some dumbass terrorists have to derail the meeting. Anyway...the film is good. I believe it's a Channel 4 production (or was it BBC?) and it's airing on HBO here in the States this month. In the film the G8 summit happens in Iceland and it was shot on location.

posted in iceland - 0 replies

seems dead here...but i'll ask anyway

father-oceania — Tue, 29 Mar 2005 05:26:07 GMT

what is the best time of the year to go and to buy tickets? where could i get cheap lodging, places to visit and and eat? how long does daylight last and how hot does it normally get?

posted in iceland - 4 replies

Icelandic movies/movies about Iceland

Tue, 13 Jan 2004 16:30:06 GMT

Hey all!

I've recently seen some films that took place either in Iceland or were Icelandic productions. I thought I'd share them and see if anyone else has a film recommendation as well.

My favorite is <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0109028/">Cold Fever</a>, which actually draws some pretty interesting parallels between Japan and Iceland (at least I think so!).
Also < a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0237993/">101 Reykjavík</a>, which seemed to make quite a splash a few years back.
I also saw a silent film, that for the life of me I cannot remember, about criminals who hide out in the middle of Iceland (or attempt to, at any rate). Quite interesting as apparently many criminals have tried to flee and live in the center of Iceland, the silly fools!

Ok, that's it, or all I can remember at present.
Any other recommendations would be most welcome, especially if they have English subtitles. Thanks!

posted in iceland - 9 replies

Grimsvotn eruption

bobs — Tue, 02 Nov 2004 07:25:09 GMT

Eruption of Grimsvotn volcano

Release of overburden pressure triggers an eruption of Grimsvotn volcano,
Iceland, November 1, 2004

The subglacial Grimsvotn volcano, Iceland, started erupting on November 1,
2004 around 22 GMT. An intense swarm of volcanic earthquakes that started
about 3 hours earlier changed at that time to continuous low frequency
tremor, indicating onset of an eruption. Weather conditions prohibited
direct observations of the beginning of the eruption at this remote volcano
situated near the center of Europe's largest ice cap, Vatnajokull.

The eruption was preceded by both long-term and short-term precursors, and
finally triggered by release of overburden pressure associated with a
glacial outburst flood (jokulhlaup), originating from the Grimsvotn
subglacial caldera lake, that preceded the eruption. Accumulation of magma
in a shallow magma chamber under the Grimsvotn caldera has been ongoing
since its last eruption in 1998 (Sturkell et al., 2003; Sigmundsson et al.,
2004). GPS measurements show uplift of 5-10 cm/year in the caldera center,
and horizontal displacements away from the caldera. Earthquake activity
increased in middle of 2003, at about the same time uplift exceeded its 1998
maximum. Pressure in the Grimsvotn magma chamber is likely to have exceeded
its pre-eruption level from 1998 at this time. Additional uplift and
expansion of the volcano since then suggested approaching failure of the vol
cano. Earthquake activity increased further in late October, 2004.
Geothermal heat sustains a lake in the caldera that intermittently causes
glacial outburst floods. On October 26 high frequency seismic tremor
indicated increased water flow from the caldera lake and suggested that a
glacial outburst flood was about to begin. On October 29 discharge
increased in river Skeidara. The outburst flood was caused by high water
level in the Grimsvotn caldera lake from ice melting by geothermal activity.
The release in overburden pressure associated with the outburst flood
triggered the eruption. The drop in water level in the Grimsvotn caldera at
the onset of the eruption is uncertain, but is probably on the order of
10-20 meters, corresponding to a pressure change of 0.1-0.2 MPa on the
volcano surface. This modest pressure change triggered the eruption because
internal pressure in the Grimsvotn shallow magma chamber was high after
continuous inflow of magma to the volcano since 1998.

Background: Grimsvotn volcano (N 64.41°, W 17.33°), situated near the
center of the Vatnajokull ice cap in central Iceland, is one of Iceland's
most active volcanoes. It has a complex of calderas (Gudmundsson and
Milsom, 1997), and a subglacial caldera lake sustained by geothermal heat.
Small eruptions have occurred at the volcano in 1983 and 1998 (around 0.1
km3). In 1996, the Gjalp subglacial eruption occurred north of the volcano
(Gudmundsson et al., 1997). The most recent eruption triggered by a
pressure release as the current eruption occurred in 1934.

posted in iceland - 1 reply

what time of year?

cpq — Wed, 15 Sep 2004 00:43:21 GMT

i've never been to iceland but would love to go sometime in the near future. what is the best time of year to go? i'm thinking winter would be out because i'm a bit of a sissy when it comes to frigid temperatures.

posted in iceland - 7 replies

Hellooo!

mofo — Wed, 14 Apr 2004 17:13:19 GMT

I'm going to be in Iceland for a week in June and I need recommendations for places to go, things to see. I'm mostly interested in volcanoes, glaciers, geology, etc, but I know that there is also some sort of national holiday while I'm there (June 17) and I'll be in Reykjavik for that. Any ideas?

Also, any ideas on less expensive travelling in Iceland? Most of the hotels seem pretty expensive, and even the hostels aren't cheap.

Last but not least, do I really have to eat pickled sheep testicles and putrified shark meat? There must be some yummy smoked salmon or something too, right?

posted in iceland - 18 replies

Island Northern Lights Photos

FollyOvBirth — Wed, 23 Jun 2004 22:15:12 GMT

Here are some incredible photographs by one of Iceland's finest photographers.
http://www.iww.is/art/shs/pages/thumbs.html

posted in iceland - 1 reply

ok now that theres others besides me here...

Tue, 25 Nov 2003 15:09:23 GMT

if anyones interested, ive got several pages of my pics from my short trip in 2002 up at http://www.blackbirdsf.org/2002tour/iceland.html

iceland is a remarkably photogenic country, which saves the fact that most of those pics were taken from a moving car with a digital camera set to "crappy" resolution so i could take as many pictures as possible on my one memory card... i now wish id actually taken out the film camera more often than i did, but such is the nature of things when youre trying to figure out what to cram into a mere week.

still planning to return this coming summer. hoping it will actually be financially feasible, cause i need another fix!

posted in iceland - 3 replies

i´m totally serious now

Fri, 16 Apr 2004 09:58:22 GMT

is there anyway to abdicate being an icelandic demi-god?

frankly i´m just tired of it and kinda busy. can i appoint someone else?

it´s stressing me out as you can see, the lines under my eyes, it´s taking away from my tennis game.

i LOVE and ADORE the icelandic people so i wish to do this gracefully but i am seeking your aid and wisdom in how to go about it.

bjmf

posted in iceland - 2 replies

a subject that matters...

Wed, 25 Feb 2004 20:04:31 GMT

who among you has icelandic blood? i am trying to acertain what you people look like. who do you know who has icelandic blood? my current points of reference are bjork and a girl i went out with in 12th grade (half icelandic---which my nature dictates assigning, for these purposes of spectulation: THE GOOD HALF).

so far your people have some merit in the looks department but i haven't the data to submit an earnest report to anyone i know on the subject and, as you can tell, it deeply troubles me.

and this consternation bodes poorly for my looks, which is currently all i trade on in the literary department.

come to my aid.

posted in iceland - 41 replies

Hello, an offer for pictures of Iceland, and language

Rahvina — Fri, 23 Jan 2004 05:11:54 GMT

I am a new member to Tribe, and was just poking around to see what interesting groups there were. I am an ethnomusicology student that will hopefully be doing research on Icelandic music for my PhD. I just came back from a month in Iceland, and I have many gorgeous shots of the country. If anyone is interested in seeing them (they're mostly landscapes), I will happily provide a link.

I am still working on learning Icelandic, but am sadly out of practice. If any of you have studied modern Icelandic NOT in a school setting, what courses did you find useful? I've been using Neijmann's Colloquial Icelandic, and while it's useful, the lack of having someone to actually speak to has really pulled down my skills. So, for the time being, Ég tala smá Íslensku. But I'm working on it :)

posted in iceland - 7 replies

like icelandic music/culture?

troywalker — Mon, 15 Dec 2003 01:29:21 GMT

check out Múm - stellar icelandic band - tribe for the fans: http://mummusic.tribe.net

posted in iceland - 0 replies

New Pics In Album

spiritualquest — Wed, 10 Dec 2003 00:11:46 GMT

Just put some new pics in the album...more to come...

posted in iceland - 0 replies

Joel's notes

gentiana — Sat, 29 Nov 2003 16:16:01 GMT

Just sympathy here--hope you get back to Iceland and can stay as long as you wish. I, too, have always wanted to go there, and have never been. Have heard they read a lot there, not surprising, really. What language is spoken there?

posted in iceland - 1 reply

starter...

Thu, 06 Nov 2003 04:56:58 GMT

figured id start this up and see what it attracted. i waited 25 years to visit iceland, and spent a week there last year - my advice? go for longer. spending a week in a place youve wanted to go since you were 7 is just cruel. im hoping to go back for a month next year to cycle around the whole country - looking for contacts, suggestions, anything...

posted in iceland - 0 replies