101rvk

Issue 6 × 2013 

March 24 - June 6 

YOUR FREE COPY 

THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO LIFE, TRAVEL & ENTERTAINMENT IN ICELAND 

ECONOMICS LITERATURE MUSIC TV TRAVEL 

Is Iceland for 

startups 

Alive and well in 

Iceland 

Reykjavík Music 

Mess is back! 

Homer Simpson eats 

shark, has a "frábær 

hugmynd!" 

Go explore Reykjanes, 

while you still can… 

Andri Snær on The Dreamland 

and its discontents 

Taking Shelter In 

The Land Of The 

Wild Boys 

+ 

Download 

Complete 

Reykjavík Listings 

Lots of 

cool events 

the FREE Grapevine Appy Hour app! 

Every happy hour in town in your pocket. 

Available on the App store and on Android Market.

CYOUR FA 

The Reykjavík Grapevine Issue 6 — 2013 

2 

Editorial | Anna Andersen 

THE HAIR OF THE DOG 

Anna’s 25th Editorial 

It didn’t really come as a 

surprise when our new 

Prime Minister Sigmundur 

Davíð Gunnlaugsson 

decided to form a 

coalition government 

with The Independence 

Party. That is, after all, 

what we voted for in the 

last election, and is actually a return to the precrash 

status quo when these conservative forces 

governed the country (read more on page 6). 

Since then, we’ve been kept abreast of their 

many meetings, sometimes learning more definitive 

facts about what they’ve been eating 

(waffles, if you must know) and what songs they 

like to boogie to, than about their plan to deliver 

Sigmundur’s lofty campaign promise to write off 

everybody’s debts. 

What exactly this new government will bring 

is uncertain, but some think the local atmosphere 

is starting to become reminiscent of what we experienced 

in 2006 and 2007, two years that immediately 

evoke images of extravagant parties, 

flat screen TVs and Range Rovers in the minds of 

many Icelanders. 

Author, writer and filmmaker Andri Snær Magnason 

says the feeling really sunk in when a local 

radio show called up Sigmundur and Bjarni, 

presumably at one of their meetings, and offered 

them a request song. Being the gunslingers they 

are, they asked for Duran Duran’s “Wild Boys.” 

“I Googled the lyrics, not quite remembering 

the lines, and got a nice chill down my back,” Andri 

Snær writes in this issue’s feature article, “In 

The Land of The Wild Boys,” (page 18). “I got this 

strange flashback feeling and decided to revisit 

the state of mind that we used to call normal in 

2006. When the economic policy, the energy policy, 

the expansion of our towns, the mortgages 

on our homes—almost all aspects of our daily life 

had become totally mad.” 

It seems that the burgeoning startup community 

too is feeling this “boost,” as it gets ready 

to put on the second annual Startup Iceland conference 

with the added bonus of President Ólafur 

Ragnar Grímsson’s blessing (page 14). And 

they’re not the only ones flying high. Our music 

journalists at Straumur are also getting buzzed 

on the roster of international acts scheduled to 

play in Iceland this year (page 37). 

Whether or not the new government is a harbinger 

of a return to the collective madness that 

took hold of the country before the crash, Andri 

Snæri hopes we don’t sacrifice our nature on the 

altar of easy profit. And I hope so too. 

FUN TRIVIA QUESTION 

Taken from the educational trivia game Instant Iceland 

Q: The most serious terrorist attack in Icelandic history occurred in 1986, when 

Canadian Paul Watson and his cohorts… 

A 

B 

C 

Sank two whaling vessels in Reykjavík harbour to protest 

Icelandic whaling. 

Kidnapped Iceland’s Prime Minister and demanded Quebec 

independence in return for his release. 

Poured massive amounts of oil into the Blue Lagoon to 

protest its high admission prices. 

We are now officially accepting nominations 

for “Tourist of the year 2013.” Please submit 

your nominations to editor@grapevine.is to 

be considered. We will read them, post them 

to our website and print the best one come 

next January. 

Note: To be eligible, the tourist (this can be 

you) must have visited Iceland in 2013. 

Submit your entry at www.touristoftheyear.is 

TRACKS OF THE ISSUE 

Reykjavík Music Mess 

Sampler 2013! 

Download for FREE at www.grapevine.is 

E HERE 

WILL YOU BE 

GRAPEVINE’S 

‘TOURIST OF 

THE YEAR 2013’ 

Every once in a while, we go above and 

beyond the call of duty of bringing you 

fun new tunes and don’t get you just one 

track, but a whole damn album! This issue 

we are very pleased to grace you with this 

super fun sampler for the Reykjavík Music 

Mess, taking place this weekend (May 24- 

26) in—you guessed it—Reykjavík! 

This short and sweet festival will feature 

a nice selection of cool, low-maintenance 

bands who wanna look formal but are just 

here to party, like Sykur, Muck, Boogie 

Trouble, Bloodgroup and Mammút. There 

are even a couple of bands from Australia 

who flew Up Above to bring us some 

southern hemispheric grooves. Download 

this mix to rev you up for the concerts or 

just to jam out if you can’t actually go. 

Enjoy the mess! RL 

Turn to page 28 for the answer! 

Hafnarstræti 15, 101 Reykjavík 

www.grapevine.is 

grapevine@grapevine.is 

Published by Fröken ehf. 

www.froken.is 

Member of the Icelandic Travel Industry Association 

www.saf.is 

Printed by Landsprent ehf. in 25.000 copies. 

Editor In Chief: 

Haukur S Magnússon / haukur@grapevine.is 

Managing Editor: 

Anna Andersen / anna@grapevine.is 

Editorial: 

+354 540 3600 / editor@grapevine.is 

Advertising: 

+354 540 3605 / ads@grapevine.is 

+354 40 3610 

Publisher: 

Hilmar Steinn Grétarsson / hilmar@grapevine.is 

+354 540 3601 / publisher@grapevine.is 

Contributing Writers: 

Valur Gunnarsson 

Kári Tulinius 

Larissa Kyzer 

Atli Bollason 

Thomas L. Moir 

Björn Teitsson 

Patricia Þormar 

Snorri Páll Jónsson Úlfhildarson 

Bob Cluness 

Ari Trausti Guðmundsson 

Vera Illugadóttir 

Davíð Roach 

Óli Dóri 

Andri Snær Magnason 

Scott Scholz 

Journalist & Listings editor: 

Rebecca Louder / rebecca@grapevine.is 

Editorial Interns: 

John Wilkins/ johnwilkins@grapevine.is 

Tómas Gabríel Benjamin / gabriel@grapevine.is 

Parker Yamasaki / parker@grapevine.is 

Art Director 

Hörður Kristbjörnsson / hordur@dodlur.is 

Design: 

Guðmundur Úlfarsson / giu@grapevine.is 

Photographer: 

Alísa Kalyanova / www. alisakalyanova.com 

Sales Director: 

Aðalsteinn Jörundsson / adalsteinn@grapevine.is 

Helgi Þór Harðarson / helgi@grapevine.is 

Distribution manager: 

distribution@grapevine.is 

Proofreader: 

Jim Rice 

Listings: 

listings@grapevine.is 

Submissions inquiries: 

editor@grapevine.is 

Subscription inquiries: 

+354 540 3605 / subscribe@grapevine.is 

General inquiries: 

grapevine@grapevine.is 

Founders: 

Hilmar Steinn Grétarsson, 

Hörður Kristbjörnsson, 

Jón Trausti Sigurðarson, 

Oddur Óskar Kjartansson, 

Valur Gunnarsson 

On the cover: 

Andri Snær Magnason 

Photographer: 

Ari Magg – www.arimagg.com 

Assistant photographer: 

Axel Sigurðarson 

Make up: 

Vigdís Jónsdóttir 

Special thanks: 

Farmers Market 

The Reykjavík Grapevine is published 18 times a year by Fröken ltd. 

Monthly from November through April, and fortnightly from May 

til October. Nothing in this magazine may be reproduced in whole 

or in part without the written permission of the publishers. The 

Reykjavík Grapevine is distributed around Reykjavík, Akureyri, 

Egilsstaðir, Seyðisfjörður, Borgarnes, Keflavík, Ísafjörður and at 

key locations along road #1, and all major tourist attractions and 

tourist information centres in the country. 

You may not like it, but at least it's not sponsored (no articles 

in the Reykjavík Grapevine are pay-for articles. The opinions 

expressed are the writers’ own, not the advertisers’). 

Be in your 

element 

GEOTHERMAL 

STEAM ROOMS 

THERMAL 

BATHS 

SAUNA 

Visit the Laugarvatn Fontana wellness centre. Relax in steam rooms over a natural 

hot spring and open air thermal baths. Afterwards try local delicacies in our café. 

Ask us how the locals at Laugarvatn use the steam baths! 

The perfect rest stop between Thingvellir and Geysir 

Opening hours: Weekdays 13-21 and Weekends 11-21 

Make sure your Golden Circle tour completes the geothermal experience 

www.fontana.is

E&Co. – Mynd Ari Magg 

ICELANDIC WOOL 

WORN OUT 

FOR CENTURIES 

We offer clothing & other merchandise that 

reminds us of good old Iceland 

– Visit our stores: 101 Reykjavík, Akureyri and Geysir, Haukadal. www.geysir.net –

y the sea 

and a delicious lobster 

at Fjörubordid in Stokkseyri 

At the seashore the giant lobster makes 

appointments with mermaids and landlubbers. 

He waves his large claws, attracting those desiring 

to be in the company of starfish and lumpfish. 

Reykjavík 

Stokkseyri 

Eyrarbakki 

> Only 45 minutes drive from Reykjavík 

- The Seashore restaurant 

Eyrarbraut 3, 825 Stokkseyri, Iceland · Tel. +354 483 1550 

Fax. +354 483 1545 · info@fjorubordid.is · www.fjorubordid.is 

Summer opening hours: Mon - Sun 12:00 to 22:00 

Spör ehf. 

The Reykjavík Grapevine 

Hi 

I hope this finds you well. 

I live in the UK and am looking to open 

an Icelandic themed cafe bar in a Southsea 

Hampshire. Having visited Iceland 3 times 

in the last 4 years I am always struck by 

the similarities between Reykjavik and 

Southsea in terms of the appreciation for 

music, sense of humour and laid back attitude. 

I think the bar would sit perfectly in 

this area and am hopeful it will promote a 

great country and encourage customers to 

consider visiting Iceland in the future. 

I am really keen to ensure that I keep as 

much as I possibly can true to the Icelandic 

culture and believe the Reykjavik Grapevine 

publication to be an integral part of 

this. Is it possible to subscribe to the magazine 

and have a few sent over to the UK 

once a fortnight that I can store in my bar 

Hello, 

I was with my brother and two friends 

in Iceland, in 1986, for three weeks. 

It was a hard trip, by foot and bus. It is still 

now the most beautiful voyage of my life. 

Time passed. I have the impression that 

I owe something of visual to Iceland. 

I perhaps have it now. Here it is. 

I am a french artist, and my last work 

(that took me 7 years) was to take photos 

of clouds. 

I saw a lot of faces and things, so I decided 

to built a sort of tarot. 

There are 253 cards, coupled with a random 

soft. It is free if no commercial use. 

Each card has an interpretation (in 

french), but with the clouds, each one can 

imagine his (so the language is not so important). 

Here are examples : 

Here is my site : 

http://cherrytree.free.fr/ 

The soft (Think of a question and 

press on the red button) : 

Say your piece, voice your opinion, send 

your letters to: letters@grapevine.is 

Sour grapes & stuff 

MOST AWESOME LETTER OF THE ISSUE 

for the clients to read I would be looking 

to stock approximately 4-5 and wondered 

what the price for this would be (including 

shipment cost) Obviously as I am not selling 

them, but offering them as added value 

for clients to benefit from whilst on-site, I 

am trying to keep this cost relatively low if 

possible. 

Many thanks in advance for your assistance. 

I look forward to hearing from you. 

Kind Regards 

Lisa 

Dear Lisa, 

How cool is that! It’s always a pleasant 

surprise to hear the random places 

that this town is similar to around the 

world, and honestly, we can’t say we 

had any clue about the connection to 

http://cherrytree.free.fr/pages/rudolf/index.html 

I must say that I accentuated the colors 

of some photos, because the forms were 

often very difficult to see, like the astronomers 

with stars. That's why there are black, 

dark-blue and fire parts. 

The white and clear blue parts are 

natural colors. 

I never make artificial forms, except 

5 ones, that I explain here, at the foot of 

the page: http://cherrytree.free.fr/pages/ 

rudolf/modifs.html 

So, some people saw ghost forms in 

trees, in windows, in rocks... 

I am able to do that too, but I prefer talk 

with clouds. They are more funny than usual 

ghosts. That is perhaps my way to have 

strange encounters (). Friendly ones :-) 

(sorry for my bad english) 

Rudolf Wehrung 

Southsea. Is your town also known for 

overpriced beer, an abundance of tourist-oriented 

design shops and rampant 

felines running wild in the streets Will 

you have overpriced beer, Icelandic 

design and a random cat in your bar! 

That would be really neat. (Well, not 

the overpriced beer part.) 

We are just plum chuffed that you 

want to have our paper over there for 

your Icelandophile patrons and luckily 

you can easily set yourself up with 

copies by going here: http://grapevine. 

is/sub/Subscriptions/ 

Also, here’s a little present for you 

because yay! 

Love, 

RVK GV 

Dear Rudolph, 

That is very kind of you to share 

your cloud-tarot with us, but unfortunately, 

we can’t really share it with our 

readers because it is in French, and we 

are an English-language paper! Well... 

some of our readers are francophone 

(quite a few in fact). And one of our 

staff is too! She checked it out... we 

think she’s still figuring out the answer 

she got from your ‘soft’. It might have 

been a bit rough, actually. 

In any case, you should come back 

and visit us soon, with or without your 

brother and friends, because 1986 is a 

really long time ago! Our clouds are 

much prettier now. 

Sincerely, 

The Grapevine 

4 

Dear Sir 

I recently had a 10 day stay in an Iceland 

hospital Landspitali University Hospital 

Divison of Infectious Diseases 

I had been on a 3 day visit to Iceland to 

see the Northen Lights which I didnt see but 

the lights over Reykjavik werer amazing. 

I would like to thank the A&E for seeing 

me so quickly within minutesd after my 

arrival 

Also thanks to Dr. Anna Thorisdottir 

for her care. 

To all the day and night staff who looked 

after me so well. 

Thank You All. 

Josephine Chapman. UK. 

Dear Josephine, 

What do you know – the doctor who 

cared well for you is our managing editor’s 

aunt! Small world, eh Iceland is like 

that, full of quirky connections. Those 

pesky aurora borealis are a quirky connection 

too, admittedly, and that’s too 

bad that you didn’t get to see them. Next 

time Tell all your friends about the nice 

doctors in our hospitals! (Maybe that will 

make the not-so-nice ones give better 

care. Humph.) 

Take care! 

The Grapevine 

MOST AWESOME LETTER 

TWO FREE PAIRS OF WOOLLEN SOCKS! 

Yes, this lovely prize will keep your feet warm and cosy throughout your stay in Iceland and 

in any subsequent places you might go that sometimes get cold. And these aren’t just any 

old woollen socks either, these are the colourful, wonderful, extra-long kind from Geysir. 

Congratulations to this issue's MOST AWESOME LETTER. Drop us a line at letters@ 

grapevine.is to find out how to collect those free socks! And if you’re in the market for some 

socks come next issue, why not write us a wonderful reader letter to that same address. 

Like Axl Rose said: “It’s so easy!”

Þingholtsstræti 2-4 - 101 Reykjavík » Fákafen 9 - 108 Reykjavík » Austurvegi 21 - 870 Vík » icewear.is


6 

Iceland | Simpsons 

The Simpsons Go Iceland (feat. Sigur Rós) 

almost–LIVEBLOG! 

by Haukur S. Magnússon 

Back To 

Normal 

Iceland’s election gamble 

As a nation, Iceland has suffered some hardship over 

the past few years (after a few pretty sweet ones, oh, 

those cruelly luscious bubble years, when we collectively 

renewed our fleet of luxury SUVs, high-end stereo 

equipment, flatscreen TVs and edible gold flakes). 

First, all our vast fortunes just sort of up and vanished 

for no discernible reason. We were laughed off 

the high streets of London and Copenhagen, Danish 

newspapers made really mean jokes about us and some 

impatient Brits and Dutchmen put really harsh pressure 

on us to repay some money they claim we were 

responsible for losing. 

Then, a bunch of our volcanoes exploded through 

no fault of our own, spurring a drunken Scottish man 

to proclaim he hated Iceland on live television. These 

volcano explosions also resulted in our prized (and 

[00:17] The show starts with the shortened 

version of the classic intro. Despite my hopes, the 

couch gag doesn’t reference Iceland, although it is 

fish themed. People in Iceland catch and eat a lot 

of fish, and many people say Icelanders’ memory is 

goldfish-like. Our coins also have fish on them. So 

maybe that’s a reference 

[00:43] Homer watching women play tennis on 

TV. Makes vaguely sexist remarks. Oh, Homer. No 

Iceland yet. 

[00:53] A joke about TiVo ‘recording conflicts’. 

Homer can’t watch sexy tennis anymore. I had 

this happen once, when I was visiting some dude, 

although I wasn’t watching sexy tennis. During a 

pivotal moment in Goodfellas, the TV switched to 

‘The Man Show’ and commenced recording. This 

was infuriating on every level. 

[01:53] Simpsons is so much better than Family 

Guy. They started becoming a bit like Family Guy, 

adopting its non-sequitur humour, a few seasons 

back. I, in turn, mostly stopped watching. But the 

first two minutes of this episode feature no Family 

Guy style humour. This is promising. 

[03:33] No Iceland yet. 

[04:14] Holy moly! The gang won the Springfield 

lottery! “200 grand! That’s fifty thousand 

bucks each!” 

[04:43] Carl is already acting way suspicious. 

Wonder if I would spot this had the plot not been 

revealed beforehand. 

[06:12] It’s official! Carl has abandoned the 

gang! He’s leaving on a jet plane! 

[06:14] No Iceland yet. 

[07:45] No Iceland yet. But this is pretty funny 

nonetheless. Nice juggalo reference a while back. 

[08:17] “Moolah-stealing jackpot-thief.” Lol. 

No Iceland yet. 

[08:38] WHOA! ICELANDIC! 

[08:45] Lisa: “The geyser is one of the most famous 

natural wonders in... Iceland! I guess that’s 

where Carl’s from.” 

[08:53] Moe: “Iceland Is that even a real 

place” Reference to genealogical database. 

Thankfully this isn’t Family Guy, so incest app 

jokes might not show up. 

[09:06] Lisa’s pronunciation of Reykjavík is 

pretty good. A lot of first time Reykjavík-sayers use 

a hard “J”. “Reyk-dja-week.” Good ol’ Lisa went 

with the classic “Rehkjavehk.” Nice (I even once 

met a couple of tourists who proclaimed their love 

for “B-djerk’s music!”). 

[09:20] Valhalla Air. Lol. 

only) possession, the Icelandic language, being mercilessly 

butchered and mocked by just about every television 

personality in the Western world. 

Life was tough. Food got expensive. The iTunes 

store was inaccessible for the longest time. The cars 

got older, the flatscreens were appallingly two-dimensional. 

McDonalds up and left. We kept losing the Eurovision 

song contest and notable sports events (even 

handball!). Life was tough. 

Things are finally looking up, however! We finally 

have a feisty, go-getting government that plans on 

pumping the economy full of vulture cash so we can 

upgrade our flatscreens to 3D. And, WE FINALLY 

HAVE OUR VERY OWN SIMPSONS EPISODE 

DEDICATED TO THE ONE AND ONLY US! 

It involves the show’s Icelandic cast member, Carl 

THE LIVEBLOG 

[09:30] Marge is concerned that Homer is going 

“so far away.” While Iceland does sound like a super 

remote destination, it’s actually a shorter flight than 

going coast to coast in the US. It may be remote, but 

it ain’t that far. 

[10:25] “Iceland is green and Greenland is icy” 

anecdote put in its place, finally. THANK YOU! 

[11:03] Icelander English accent represented in a 

mostly acceptable manner (although still too Swedish 

sounding). Also, it’s odd for an Icelander to call 

out the Icelandic name Ingimar in an Icelandic English 

accent. 

[11:20] First Björk reference. Boy, that swan 

dress really made an impression in the US, huh 

[11:43] A “Fjord Fiesta” drives through some 

pristine looking nature soundtracked by an original 

Sigur Rós composition. Yup. 

[12:04] Good job on pronouncing the “æ”, Moe 

and Lenny! Odd that the “ö” was left out, but whatever. 

[12:15] Aurora spotted! Check! 

[12:20] Elves and... fairies Check. 

[12:45] More Sigur Rós. Lava fields. Check. 

That bridge might be the one to Borgarnes. 

[12:50] Jökulsárlón. Check. 

[13:06] Sigur Rós background music really creating 

some nice drama. Simpsons should probably 

get them to score every show. This would rejuvenate 

the series. 

[13:28] The restaurant is called Yukki’s Grossfud. 

And it’s serving yecchy, gross food. Figures. 

Rotten shark: Check. 

[14:18] They’re not friends 

[14:20] Carl: “Friends know their friends are 

from Iceland!” 

[14:50] Homer is eating the shark. Good one, 

Homer. It’s really not that bad. You just have to think 

of it as a kind of cheese. A fermented, rubbery, super 

old cheese. 

[15:04] Yukki’s Grossfud interiors look a 

lot like Hressó. But it seems to be located on 

Skólavörðustígur (could it be... Mamma Steina). 

They forgot to draw in US café Babalú and the two 

noodlehuts and all the tourists and tourist shops. 

Looks like this show happens in the Iceland of fifteen 

years ago. That was a pretty great place. [UP- 

DATE: having reviewed the footage, I can attest that 

(of Lenny and Carl fame) eloping to his native country 

with the proceeds from a lottery ticket he had bought in 

cahoots with Homer, Lenny and Moe—and it features 

original music and cameos from Sigur Rós! Whoa! 

This is great good fortune! To celebrate Iceland’s 

victory over loser countries that will never get their 

own Simpsons episodes, countries like Denmark specifically, 

we have liveblogged the twenty-first episode 

of The Simpsons twenty-fourth season (Simpsons episode 

#529). Read on for fun liveblog-style action! 

Things haven’t been so exciting for Iceland since 

Bill Cosby donned an Icelandic wool sweater on an 

episode of his wonderful sitcom back in the ‘80s. 

We’re back, baby! 

at least one of the noodle huts is depicted. Fancy 

that! Noodle Station on The Simpsons!]. 

[15:55] OK so Sigur Rós sounds great on The 

Simpsons, but Reykjavík geography is all messy. 

This humorous cartoon is somewhat inaccurate! 

D’oh! 

[16:25] Moe just proposed making soup out of 

the page of calfskin Carl had bought with the lottery 

winnings. If this is a reference to Iceland’s history, it 

is a super deep and clever one. 

[16:59] This sort of makes me miss Reykjavík :( 

[18:01] Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir is on The Simpsons! 

IN YOUR FACE, DAVÍÐ ODDSSON! 

[19:25] This redemption ceremony in front of 

Hallgrímskirkja is really something. 

[19:43] Looks like the gang had at least half of 

their lottery winnings left, since they could afford 

cocktails at Blue Lagoon. 

[20:38] Cue Sigur Rós’ take on Danny Elfman’s 

Simpsons theme! 

--- 

[20:58] Pretty damn good job, Sigur Rós! 

OK. That’s over. This was a good show, and not just 

because it seemed tailor made for a) Icelanders and 

b) people interested in Iceland (given The Simpsons 

still-massive audience, that doesn’t count for a lot, 

so you’ve got to give them props for that). Nope, 

this was in fact a generally pretty good episode of 

The Simpsons, free of the Family Guy-isms that 

have plagued it, possessing one of the qualities I had 

thought the show had mostly given up on: heart and 

character. 

Valur Gunnarsson has been following 

Icelandic politics closely for almost 

a decade, was Grapevine’s first editor, 

and works as a journalist for various 

Icelandic publications. 

“I haven’t smoked a cigarette since 1995, but I am 

going to have one now,” says a woman at an election 

party held by the Icelandic expat community 

in Berlin. “I guess this means we will be staying 

away from Iceland for at least another four years,” 

another says. 

Icelanders living in Berlin tend to be artists and 

more left leaning than the majority of the country. 

Nevertheless, many at home had the same feeling 

watching the election results. “Icelanders voted 

for a lottery and they are fucking going to lose,” 

said rapper and TV personality Erpur Eyvindarson 

to local media. 

The lottery goes back to the booming economy 

of the years leading up to 2008. In the autumn of 

that year, it all came crashing down. Everyone remembers 

where they were at that moment when 

former conservative Prime Minister Geir Haarde 

gave his speech and, in a country where religion 

is kept firmly out of politics, asked God to bless 

Iceland. No one seemed to know what the speech 

was about, least of all the PM himself, but we all 

knew we were in trouble. 

It was a time of fear; it was a time of hope. Everyone 

took it for granted that this was some kind 

of paradigm shift, that the long reign of the conservatives 

and free market forces in Iceland would be 

over for at least a generation. Geir Haarde seemed 

to be on the wrong side of history when he refused 

to leave his post. 

Mass protests, a rarity in Iceland, turned into 

a revolution of sorts when people gathered outside 

the Parliament building and banged on pots 

and pans for a week. Eventually, Haarde resigned 

and elections were held, leading to Iceland’s first 

ever purely left-wing government. The only thing 

missing was the Scorpions singing about winds 

of change. 

But four years later, we are back to normal. And 

normal for Iceland means a government of the 

conservative Independence Party, usually flanked 

by the smaller Progressive Party. The latter used 

to be the farmers’ party, but has recently rediscovered 

itself as an anti-EU nationalist one. The corpulent 

party chair even went on a diet in which he 

only ate Icelandic-made products. 

He also opposed paying back the Icesave debt 

to British and Dutch depositors, and when European 

courts upheld this stands, the party’s popularity 

surged to the extent of reaching parity with the 

Independence Party. This was the biggest change 

wrought by the recent elections, which were saw 

a record 15 parties in the running. So much for the 

revolution. 

“ 

“‘Icelanders voted for a lottery and 

they are fucking going to lose,’ said 

rapper and TV personality Erpur 

Eyvindarson 

„ 

to local media.” 

Most experts agree that the two left-wing parties 

have done a good job of managing the crisis, 

which turned out less severe than anyone dared 

hope. Yet their combined vote only reached 24 

percent, down from 52, the greatest decline on 

record in a single election. So how did the government 

win the battle of managing the economy but 

lose the war for voter’s hearts 

The economic collapse was as much of an 

ideological shock as an economic one. Icelanders 

still have it pretty good by most standards, but 

the illusion that we could all be fantastically rich 

died on that October day in 2008. Something had 

to replace the dream. Cutting spending and raising 

taxes might keep the economy going, but it 

doesn’t give people much to believe in. While the 

government was busy putting out fires, it was the 

opposition that led the debate, from the EU that we 

now won’t join, to Icesave and to the new constitution 

that most likely will not pass. 

Sensible management keeps the boat afloat, 

but it doesn’t keep the rowers happy unless they 

have a clear idea of where they are going. No one 

has so far offered a simpler alternative than the 

conservatives, with their repeated message of 

less regulation and lower taxes to stimulate the 

economy. This is where the left failed, by not offering 

a clear antidote to what had come before. 

And so the remedy is the same elixir that 

caused the disease in the first place. It seems that 

Icelanders have decided to bet everything on one 

more round at the lottery, hoping that this time 

they will be luckier than the last.

Descend 120 meters into the 

dormant Thrihnukagigur volcano. 

I have never been anywhere 

underground that matches 

the grandeur and impact of 

this place. 

- Sunday Times 

Standing inside a volcano 

is a strangely emotional 

experience. 

- The Guardian 

One of twenty places in the 

world you must see before 

you die. 

- CNN 

Inside the Volcano 

Journey towards the Center of the Earth 

For the first time in history, travelers have the opportunity to see what 

a volcano looks like on the inside. Descend into a 4.000 year old 

magma chamber and experience a new underground world. 

• Tour departures: 8:00 / 10:00 / 12:00 / 14:00 

• Maximum 14 people in each tour 

• Duration: 5-6 hours (up to 1 hour inside the volcano) 

• Minimum age: 12 years 

• Fitness level needed: Moderate. No knowledge of 

hiking or climbing is required. 

Price: ISK 37,000 per person 

Book now at InsideTheVolcano.com or 

at Book your now nearest at InsideTheVolcano.com Tourist Information Desk. or 

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administration of Occupational Safety and Health in Iceland. 

InsideTheVolcano.com


Iceland | FAQ 

So What's This Hunting Of Endangered 

Whales I Keep Hearing About 

by Kári Tulinius 

8 

MAY 

NEWS IN BRIEF 

by Rebecca Louder 

The month of May swept in with 

bad weather and grizzly news, as 

whale hunting resumed and the 

first minke whale of the season 

was shot. International animal 

welfare groups expressed outrage 

over Iceland’s whaling practices 

and called for the EU and the United 

States to impose sanctions on 

the country. 

More macabre news came in from 

the east as the first murder of the 

year was reported. A man in his fifties 

was found on his porch having 

been stabbed to death. Another 

resident of the man’s apartment 

building was taken into custody to 

try to explain why he had the victim’s 

blood all over his shirt. 

But bloodshed was 

not the only unfortunate 

news. With 

no place else to 

go, five homeless 

people sought shelter at a Reykjavík 

prison. This poignant situation 

was made all the more absurd by 

the fact that several were turned 

away from staying at the city’s 

homeless shelter because they 

were not registered city residents. 

Because that would probably 

mean they had, you know, 

homes. 

Hvalur hf., an Icelandic whaling company, has announced that this summer it will resume hunting fin whales, an endangered 

species. Icelandic whalers also hunt minke whales, which are not an endangered species, though this is perhaps not of particular 

concern to the individual whales that will experience the distinctly unpleasant feeling of a harpoon surprise. 

HAS HVALUR'S ANNOUNCEMENT 

CAUSED DEBATE IN ICELAND 

Icelanders have been arguing about whales since retired Vikings 

settled the island in the 9th Century. Lately, whalers on 

the one hand, and whale-watching guides on the other, have 

been arguing whether whaling is a danger to the livelihood of 

whale-watching guides. The tour guides maintain that the fact 

that Icelanders hunt and kill whales could keep tourists from 

going on whale-watching tours. 

JUST LIKE THEIR VIKING WHALER 

ANCESTORS FOUGHT WITH VIKING 

TOUR GUIDE ANCESTORS 

The tourist industry was somewhat primitive in 9th Century 

Iceland, so this was more about who got to own beached whale 

carcasses. In the Middle Ages, that was serious business. One 

whale carcass could enrich its owner considerably. In fact, to 

this day, the Icelandic word for a great, unexpected stroke of 

luck, "hvalreki," also means having a whale beach itself. 

INSTEAD OF SAYING, "THIS WAS LIKE 

WINNING THE LOTTERY," ICELANDERS 

SAY, "THIS WAS LIKE FINDING A WHALE 

CARCASS" 

Pretty much, and like winning the lottery, historically speaking, 

coming into possession of dead whales has brought nothing 

but trouble. The medieval Grettis Saga has accounts of 

two separate battles over the possession of a dead whale, with 

multiple men dying in both incidents. This whale-connected 

blood-letting did not end along with Viking Era. In 1615, a 

large number of Basque whalers where hunted down and 

killed by inhabitants of the Westfjords, for reasons petty and 

spurious. 

HAS THIS WHALE-BASED HUMAN 

BLOODSHED CONTINUED UNTIL 

THE PRESENT DAY 

The only blood deliberately spilled in the pursuit of whale 

meat and by-products in the last few centuries has been that 

of whales, which is hardly any consolation for the whales. Not 

that there has been any lack of strife. The most famous incident 

is the 1986 sabotage of an Icelandic whaling station and 

sinking of two whaling ships by activists from environmental 

group Sea Shepherd. 

HOW DID THEY SINK THOSE SHIPS, 

BY BLOWING THEM UP 

They flooded the ships by opening their seacocks. That is 

a real word, if you are too much of a landlubber to believe 

it, just Google. On second thought, it is probably best not to. 

But yes, the upshot of this act of sabotage was that Icelandic 

public opinion was radicalised in favour of whaling, the high 

watermark being reached five years later when a super-group 

of Icelandic pop musicians released pro-whaling song "Undir 

regnboganum" (translation: “Under the Rainbow”). 

THAT'S KIND OF A BORING TITLE, 

COULDN'T THEY HAVE CALLED IT 

SOMETHING LIKE, "WHALING'S A 

WHALE OF A TIME" 

Easy there, Troll Porter. The song is a pretty good encapsulation 

of Icelandic pro-whaling rhetoric. The song's message is 

Photos: Skari 

that in the North, life is hard and people should be allowed to 

stick to their ancient way of life, which naive, city-dwelling 

environmentalists do not understand. The song also asks God 

for protection against "green peacebreakers," which is just as 

groan-worthy a pun in Icelandic as it is in English. 

COLE PORTER WOULD'VE DONE BETTER. 

When it comes to political doggerel, I suppose anything goes. 

But this particular brand of rhetoric dominated whaling discourse 

in Iceland for the last couple of decades. It has, however, 

been rendered less effective by the new reality of Iceland 

becoming a popular tourist destination. Many of these tourists 

spend their money on whale watching tours. 

AND TOUR COMPANIES DON'T WANT 

TO REFUND BECAUSE OF HARPOON 

SURPRISE 

Pretty much. They worry that continued whaling would make 

fewer tourists want to take their tours. Pro-whalers counter by 

claiming that there is no evidence to suggest that tourists care 

about whaling. Anti-whalers say that a whale is more profitable 

alive than dead. 

I NOTICE A DISTINCT LACK OF CONCERN 

FOR WHAT WHALES WOULD PREFER. 

As a rule, humans prefer not to think about their food as beings 

with agency and feelings. In recent years the argument 

has been between two business associations who both wish 

to make money off of whales. What started as a debate about 

animal rights has become a debate about whose profits are 

more sacred. 

Non-Icelandic residents were also 

an issue of concern for the owners 

of Reykjahlíð in the Mývatnssveit 

area, who are concerned that tourism 

is taking its toll on the region. 

The owners are proposing to 

begin charging fees for tourists to 

visit landmarks 

such as Dettifoss, 

Námafjall 

and Dimmuborgir 

to build infrastructure 

and 

maintain safety. 

Meanwhile, Minister of Foreign 

Affairs Össur Skarphéðinsson 

geared up to defend the threat 

of possible EU sanctions due to 

Iceland’s mackerel fishing. He 

asserted to European fishing lobbyists 

that the EU imposing these 

sanctions would violate the terms 

of the EEA agreement. The sea was 

angry that day, my friends. 

Speaking of rage, 

someone set 

fire to the Mormon 

Church in 

Garðabær. One 

room was badly 

damaged but fire fighters stopped 

it from spreading. The next day, 

police arrested a man who was 

seen on CCTV footage at a nearby 

gas station filling up a gasoline 

canister found at the scene. He 

gave no motive and was reportedly 

unstable. 

A little more stability came to children’s 

dentistry as a new insurance 

agreement went into effect to 

– Continues over – 

ICELANDIC PRODUCE 

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Kolabrautin is on 4th floor Harpa 

Order a table in phone 519 9700 

info@kolabrautin.is 

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GENTLE GIANTS 

WHALE WATCHING 

THIS IS IT 

WELCOME 

2013 

HÚSAVÍK • ICELAND 

Akureyri 

Húsavík 

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GG1 • WHALE WATCHING 

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“Highlight of the summer” “The most remarkable experi ence I have ever had” 

“Everything was perfect during the whole trip!” “Once in a Lifetime Experience!” 

150 YEARS OF FAMILY HISTORY IN THE BAY 

HÚSAVÍK 

*According to TripAdvisor May 21 st 2013


Precession Of Hipsters 

Atli Bollason is a professional bohemian. 

10 

MAY 

NEWS IN BRIEF 

– Continued – 

cover most of the costs of care. The 

agreement is being implemented 

in stages over the course of the 

year, starting with the most atrisk-for-cavities 

age group—15 

to 17—what with all the nammi and 

Coke they consume. 

The ever-growing number 

of tourists has brought 

economic prosperity and a 

whole lot of fun or dullness to 

town, depending on who you 

ask. But what is the new face of 

Reykjavík doing to the hipster in 

the mirror 

The number of tourists 

in Iceland has grown by 

110% since 2003. And the 

summer of 2013 is sure 

to break all records; so 

far, the year has seen a 

45.5% increase compared 

to 2012—if the trend 

continues we’ll break 

the 900,000 tourist-wall 

only seven years after 

we broke the 400,000 one. 

This is apparent to anyone 

who spends time downtown: 

whole families clad in Gore- 

Tex from head to toe, euro-hippie 

couples with backpacks, psychedelic 

head scarves and frowzy 

beards, and packs of young stock brokers 

with thousands of dollars to burn on 

drugs and alcohol grace the streets of 101 

Reykjavík like never before. Moreover, they do 

so all year round, even in November and February. 

Why do these people come here For nature, 

primarily, but secondarily for something 

we could term the Reykjavík hip scene (I’m using 

‘hip’ and ‘hipster’ here in a non-derogatory 

fashion, loosely denoting a young and stylish 

crowd that likes art, loves parties and doesn’t 

seem to worry too much about things like politics 

and money). They have heard about the 

long and rowdy Reykjavík bar-nights, they have 

read something positive about our art and music 

somewhere and now they want to experience 

it first-hand. 

WE ARE SELF- 

CONSCIOUS 

At this point, the hipsters of Reykjavík know 

very well how they have been presented to the 

outside world. Journalists from fancy magazines 

have come here, perceived us as a bit 

wacky, quite uninhibited, extremely creative, 

and waxed poetic about it all to readers across 

the world. There exists, now, a somewhat approved 

image of the Icelandic hipster. The result 

We are self-conscious. 

See, there is some sort of gold rush happening 

in town; new hostels and hotels and 

tour offices and tourist-what-have-yous seem 

to open every week. And perhaps this mentality 

has seeped into our behavioural systems. 

More and more, it seems like we are playing a 

role. We act and dress as if Laugavegur were 

Bedford Avenue. We throw countless afterparties 

for anyone and everyone. We feel obliged 

to show tourists a splendid time in the proper, 

prescribed fashion. In other words, we put on 

a show, the very show that tourists have paid 

good money to come and see. The scene feels 

eerily like a stage these days. 

Illustration: Lóa Hjálmtýsdóttir 

WE ARE THE 

SIMULACRA 

I was going to try not to evoke 

this term, but it seems like ol’ 

Baudrillard pretty much nailed 

what’s going on with his concept 

of the simulacra: We are copies of 

an original that doesn’t exist anymore—it 

probably never existed 

outside the minds of partying media 

representatives high on Sigur 

Rós’ golden whale tears—proliferating 

points on the Borgesian 

map. 

So far, we’re doing a very 

good job and everybody just 

seems to be enjoying themselves. 

The trade-off is fair 

enough: Just play the role and the 

tourists will smile. You don’t really 

make a profit (a beer or two, a joint 

perhaps) but making someone smile 

is always worth it; hell—you might 

make a friend for life. One cannot help but 

wonder though if with time this new identity 

will take on a life of its own, one separate 

from our ‘true selves,’ but still stick—like a mask 

super-glued to your face. 

WE ARE ON 

THE SCENE 

Of course, upon closer inspection you realise 

this is only postmodern business as usual. 

‘Scene’ literally means ‘stage’ goddammit, so 

being ‘on the scene’ means being on stage. So 

maybe what I’m describing is only the stale core 

of the hipster debate itself: Those who ‘play the 

role’ are non-hip ‘hipsters’ and those who don’t 

give a shit and are ‘authentic’ are plain cool. 

But this distinction is false and impossible to 

gauge. Moreover, such a view prioritises the 

‘real,’ the ‘natural,’ the ‘authentic,’ the ‘organic,’ 

the ‘original’—it imposes a hierarchy I’ve never 

understood because fake can be just as good. 

Sometimes it’s better. 

All of which is to say that while this may be 

happening, I’m not afraid. I don’t think playing 

this game is a symptom of us consciously or 

unconsciously heeding the market’s desires. I 

don’t even think it signifies a watering-down of 

the true coolness that gave us our rep to begin 

with. Rather, I think we didn’t quite recognise 

ourselves in the pink gleam of the media-mirror—who 

were all those awesome, crazy, artistic 

and friendly people anyway—and just 

wanted to look a bit more like them. 

Breast health was also a hot topic 

after CEO and co-founder of de- 

CODE genetics Inc. Kári Stefánssson 

announced that his company 

has coded information about 2,400 

Icelanders with the breast cancer 

gene, BRCA2, of which he said 

about half are women with an 80% 

likelihood of developing breast 

cancer. He would like to inform 

carriers in order for them to make 

an informed health decision, while 

public health authorities are resistant 

to allow this due to privacy 

concerns. 

As the world 

celebrated 

May 17 as the 

anniversar y 

of the declassification 

of 

homosexuality as a psychiatric 

disorder, the International Gay 

& Lesbian Association published 

the Rainbow Europe Package 

report which ranked Iceland 

in tenth place for gay and trans 

rights. The scores were marked 

out of 100% of which Iceland received 

56%, prompting the president 

of Samtökin ’78 to state that 

more work is needed here for recognising 

LGBTI issues and rights. 

Sweden scored 66% on the same 

report and proudly displayed and 

supported gay rights at the annual 

Eurovision song contest, with not 

one but two same-sex wedding 

scenarios! Iceland’s contestant 

Eyþór Ingi made it into the finals 

with the mother-language 

power-ballad “Ég 

á líf” but it proved 

not to stand a 

chance next to 

Denmark’s panflute 

infused pop 

tune “Only Teardrops.” 

Finally there were the American 

tourists who felt it would be a wise 

idea to have a picnic on the edge 

of an ice sheet. As luck would 

have it, the chunk of ice they were 

eating on then broke off and floated 

away. A rescue team was deployed 

and found them calmly sitting there 

as the ice floe drifted 10 metres 

from the shore, seemingly oblivious 

to the extreme danger they 

were in. They 

were safely 

rescued, but 

their picnic 

was ruined. 

The National Museum of Iceland 

celebrates its 150th anniversary 2013. 

Along with the permanent exhibition that features 

Iceland’s history from settlement to present day the 

museum will offer a variety of exhibitions during the 

year, e.g. on Icelandic silver and photography. 

THREE Course Menu 

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12 

Iceland | Literature 

Icelandic Literature Goes Global 

by Larissa Kyzer 

The Icelandic parliament passed a law at the end of last year combining two key institutions—The Icelandic Literature Fund and Fabulous Iceland—to make 

the Icelandic Literature Center. Although the new centre’s primary goals, namely, “to support the publication of Icelandic works of literature in other languages,” 

and “raise awareness of Icelandic literature, both within Iceland and abroad,” have not changed, the official merging of these goals reflects a newly 

focused, state-supported effort to bring Icelandic literature forward on the world stage. 

city benches. Mapping out and marking the city’s 

literary history is another initiative. The projects 

undertaken by this office reveal an interest in not 

only making Icelandic literary heritage and culture 

accessible to visitors, but also in contributing to the 

local literary scene for residents as well. 

This balance is also reflected in the focus that 

the City of Literature has placed on Icelandic itself 

as a “literary language.” Translation into English 

and other languages is important for the exposure 

it affords authors and for strengthening literary discourse 

with “feedback from a wider audience,” says 

Kristín Viðarsdóttir, the project manager at the City 

of Literature. All the same, “Icelandic is the Nordic 

language in which the Sagas and the Eddic poetry is 

preserved, still understood by Icelanders today, and 

this was pointed out in the [UNESCO] application, 

as well as the role of literature, both original Icelandic 

and translated literature, in preserving and 

developing this literary language.” 

“ 

Iceland’s reputation as a nation of readers and writers 

has been vaunted for some time, but the purposeful 

promotion of Icelandic literature—both through 

publishing ventures abroad and literary initiatives 

around Reykjavík—has gained momentum over the 

last few years. The year 2011 in particular was a 

high-water mark for significant Icelandic literary 

ventures. That year, Iceland became the first Nordic 

country to be Guest of Honour at the Frankfurt 

Book Fair, boasting the motto: “Fabulous Iceland.” 

At the same time, Reykjavík was designated as a 

UNESCO City of Literature—one of only five cities 

in the world to be so honoured, and the only one in 

which English is not the native tongue. 

PENETRATING GERMANY 

The Frankfurt Book Fair is a huge industry event, 

one that brings together publishers, authors, translators, 

critics, scholars, and agents from all over 

the world. In 2011, the year that Iceland was honoured, 

it was reported that “7,384 exhibitors from 

106 countries were present, and the more than 3,200 

events attracted 280,194 visitors.” Frankfurt presents 

vital opportunities for launching new authors, 

books, and sometimes, even whole countries into 

the global literary market—but first and foremost, 

into Germany. 

A fun fact about the German book market, 

per Rakel Björnsdóttir, the manager of Fabulous 

Iceland: around 40% of all books on the German 

market are translated books from other languages. 

(Compare this to the English-reading market, in 

which translations make up roughly 3% of all publications.) 

Prior to the Frankfurt Book Fair, six to 

eight Icelandic books were translated and published 

each year for the German market, which comprises 

about 100 million readers. But leading up to and following 

Frankfurt, the number spiked: “230 books 

from Iceland or on Iceland were published in the 

German speaking region in relation to the Guest of 

Honour participation,” Rakel says. 

“The German market has been a gateway into 

other markets, for example in Southern Europe 

and the English-speaking world,” she says. This 

fact would seem to be reflected by yet another 

boon for Icelandic literature on the world scene: in 

conjunction with their Guest of Honour status, the 

American retail giant Amazon announced that its 

newly formed literature-in-translation press, AmazonCrossing, 

would be publishing 10 Icelandic titles 

previously unpublished in the English market. 

As of this year, all 10 titles have still not been released, 

but the line-up in Amazon’s “Spotlight on 

Iceland,” which was selected in collaboration with 

various Icelandic publishers, has already included 

some very worthy titles, such as ‘The Greenhouse’ 

Photo: Hörður Sveinsson 

by Ava Auður Ólafsdóttir, ‘The Hitman’s Guide to 

Housecleaning’ by Hallgrímur Helgason, and ‘The 

Flatey Enigma’ by Viktor Arnar Ingólfsson. (It’s 

worth noting that this partnership was beneficial for 

Amazon as well as for Iceland: the press had only 

just formed in 2010 and by partnering with Fabulous 

Iceland to publish these titles, AmazonCrossing 

also got to promote itself at Frankfurt.) 

A BOOST TO TOURISM 

While there has been a flurry of activity promoting 

Icelandic literature abroad, there have also been 

a number of new initiatives taking place within 

Reykjavík, thanks in great part to the efforts of 

Reykjavík’s UNESCO City of Literature office. For 

instance, they hosted the first “Reykjavík Reads” 

festival in October 2012, which focused on one 

work of Icelandic literature: ‘Vögguvísa’ (“Lullaby”) 

by Elías Mar, which was reissued in hard copy 

for the occasion, and also published as an e-book 

and audiobook. This month-long festival is meant 

to become an annual event with a new theme each 

year. The City of Literature has also developed selfguided 

literary walking tours in cooperation with 

Reykjavík City Library, and “literary retreats” (excerpted 

literature readings) which people can listen 

to on their smartphones in Icelandic and English on 

…230 books from Iceland 

or on Iceland were 

published in the German 

speaking region in 

relation to 

„ 

the Guest of 

Honour participation. 

As interesting as these literary endeavours are 

now, these organisations are also working toward 

a wide variety of equally impressive ventures in 

the future. Iceland’s Guest of Honour statement for 

the Frankfurt Book Fair articulates the long-term 

impact that on-going literary promotion could potentially 

have: “the results are both tangible and 

permanent: books which are published, in a range 

of languages...will be read for years to come, and 

this will enhance interest in all things Icelandic, and 

give a boost to tourism.” It is a refreshing response 

to the alarmist assumption that literary culture and 

readership around the world is on the decline: in the 

wake of its continued economic recovery, this country 

is optimistically investing in its literature, recognising 

it not only as a vehicle for its own promotion, 

but also as a means through which the outside 

world will come to know Iceland.

Gamla-Hri 

This old sailors home has surely renewed its lifespan. Still true to its origin the harbour area 

plays an integral part in the service provided in Hafnarbudir. It is now a centre for Icelandic 

design, culinary art and unforgettable adventures at sea. 

GEIRSGATA 9, 101 REYKJAVIK (OLD HARBOUR) HAFNARBUDIR.IS #HAFNARBUDIR 

Grunnslóð 

Fiskislóð 

Grandagarður 

www.elding.is 

+354 519 5000 

#eldingwhale 

Ánanaust 

Framnesvegur 

gata 

Vesturvg. 

Seljavegur 

myrin-kringlunni.is 00354 568 8989 #myrin marrestaurant.is 00354 519 5050 #marrestaurant 

WHALE WATCHING and other adventures at sea 

Elding Whale Watching schedule – all year round 

EL-01 / EL-02 / EL-03 

Jan-Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sept Oct-Dec 

9:00 9:00 9:00 9:00 9:00 9:00 

10:00 10:00 10:00 

13:00 13:00 13:00 13:00 13:00 13:00 13:00 13:00 

14:00 14:00 14:00 

17:00* 17:00 17:00 17:00 17:00* 

20:30** 20:30 

* From 15 May to 15 September 

** From 15 June to 31 July 

Vesturgata 

Bre kku st. 

Bræðraborgarstígur 

ómvallag. 

Túngata 

Hringbraut. Hringbraut. 

Brávallag. 

Mýrargata 

Ránar 

Bergstaða- 

Hávalla- 

Sólvallagata 

Báru- 

Ásvallag- 

Holts- 

Öldu- 

Rastarg. 

Ný - 

Hrann. st 

Garðastræti 

Blis Ægisgata a 

Ljósvallagata 

Stýrim.st. 

Hlésgata 

lendug. 

Hólav. 

Ki.garðsst. 

Suðurgata 

Bjarkarg 

Tjarnargata 

Mjóstr. 

Grjó.g. 

Skothúsvegur 

Ægisgarður 

n 

f n 

Gró i 

Aðalstræti 

Vonarstræti 

Vallars. 

Kirkjust. 

Sóleyjargata 

Geirsgata 

Fríkirkjuvegur 

Fjólugata 

Pósthússtr 

Bókhl. 

stræti 

Miðstr 

Skálholtsst 

vegur 

Hellus 

tm.st. 

Lækjargata 

Njarðagata 

holtsstræti 

Grundarst. 

Hverfisgata 

Bankastræti 

Spítalast. 

Óðins- 

Tryggvagata 

Austur- 

Laufás- 

Urðst. 

Smáragata 

Bjarg.st. 

gata 

stræti 

Hafnarstræti 

Þing- 

Nönng Fjölnisvegur 

Bergstaðastræti 

Laufásvegur 

Kalkofnsvegur 

Ingólfsstræti 

Sölvhólsgata 

Lindargata 

Þórsgata 

Sjafnarg. 

Smiðjust. 

Skólavörðustígur 

Týsg. 

Freyjug. 

Klapparstígur 

Eiríksgata 

Mímisvegur 

Laugavegur 

Bjar n. 

Barónsstí 

Eiríksgata 

Frak 

Grettisgata 

Kárast. 

Vatnsst. 

Leifsg 

Sæ


14 

Iceland | Startup 

Entrepreneurs: Iceland’s New Rock Stars 

Gearing up for the second annual Startup Iceland conference 

by Anna Andersen 

Haukur Guðjónsson has just finished painting his office bright red, the colour of his company logo. That is, he’s painted a single wall in his nook of the shared 

workspace set up by the government-run institute, Innovation Center Iceland. There he works alongside companies like Icelandic Cinema Online, Kúla and, 

Karolina Fund, which rent space by the desk at 12,000 ISK per month. 

Photo: Alisa Kalyanova 

Against his freshly painted wall, Haukur 

has two desks where he and another 

employee have been working full-time 

for the last year. After three years of 

bootstrapping, often working out of 

cafés, Haukur says his summerhouse 

rental service, Búngaló, is finally taking 

off. 

It wasn’t easy, though, with the lack 

of available funding impeding progress 

and grander plans. “I originally wanted 

to expand the service to Scandinavia, 

but my funding options at the time 

were NSA Ventures and Frumtak, and I 

wasn’t really far enough along for that,” 

he says. 

In terms of funding, Haukur explains 

that there are three basic options. First, 

he says, a startup can apply for a government 

grant. This could come from 

the Innovation Center Iceland, which 

offers a few hundred thousand ISK, and 

the Rannís Icelandic Research Fund, 

which awards slightly larger grants of 

five to 30 million ISK. 

Then there are investors like NSA 

Ventures, a government fund founded in 

1998 to invest between 50 and 200 million 

ISK in seed stage startup companies, 

and Frumtak, an investment fund 

founded in May 2008 to invest 50 to 500 

million ISK in larger companies. And 

finally there are some private funds like 

Investa, Thule Investments and Eyrir 

Invest, which Haukur says aren’t very 

active. 

“A lot of investors here in Iceland 

don’t understand the startup community. 

I don’t think anybody in Iceland is 

really investing in early stage startups,” 

Haukur says. “NSA is the first one you 

can look into, but your company has to 

be at least a year or two along at that 

point.” 

ENTER STARTUP 

ICELAND 

Removing this obstacle is one of the 

goals of the upcoming Startup Iceland 

conference set into motion last year by 

Bala Kamallakharan, a former director 

of Glitnir bank in India and an early 

stage investor in Iceland. He envisioned 

the conference as a way to address the 

lack of seed angel funding and mentoring 

available to startups and a way to 

build bridges to a bigger market. 

After securing Brad Burnham—an 

early investor in Tumblr and Indeed, 

which both achieved cash exits north 

of $1 Billion USD in the last seven 

months—as a speaker, he and a trusty 

team of volunteer organisers, including 

Haukur, put the first conference together. 

In true startup fashion, they got 

the Andrews Theater at Ásbrú on the 

former U.S. Naval Air Station in Keflavík 

to let them use their venue free of 

charge. 

“ 

Desperation is a 

fantastic motivator. 

When you get 

really desperate, 

you pull out all 

the stops. I think 

the financial collapse 

brought 

„ 

that 

to Iceland. 

“Desperation is a fantastic motivator,” 

Bala says. “When you get really 

desperate you pull out all the stops. I 

think the financial collapse brought 

that to Iceland and I think that’s a good 

thing. That’s the Icelandic spirit, you 

roll up your sleeves and get shit done. 

And maybe in the boom years a lot of 

that wasn’t obvious, so the collapse 

brought that all back. If we can channel 

that into the entrepreneurial spirit, then 

we’ve got something going.” 

Conference organisers Stefán Örn 

Einarsson and Kristján Már Gunnarsson 

have secured three times as many 

sponsors this year as they managed to 

scramble together the first time around. 

The two of them, who work together at 

a local management-consulting firm, 

see working on this conference as their 

startup project and, like Bala and Haukur, 

want to see the community thrive. 

This year, the conference has secured 

21 keynote speakers from Cindy 

Gallop, a successful entrepreneur who 

aims to transform the porn industry 

Take a 

look around 

Mies van der Rohe 2013 

Harpa is the winner of the 

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O R


16 

with her Makelovenotporn.com project, 

to successful Icelandic entrepreneurs, 

such as Helga Waage of Mobilitus. And 

the conference has moved out of Ásbrú 

and into Harpa with more events 

planned such as a hackathon and an 

“unconference” giving entrepreneurs 

individual networking access to some 

of the most influential members of the 

global startup community. 

FUELLING A 

POST-CRASH BOOM 

Indeed, Iceland’s startup community 

has grown in the post-crash environment. 

“Before the collapse, there wasn’t 

really any kind of startup environment. 

invested in three years ago, which was 

just acquired by Jive Software Inc for 

one billion ISK, marking the fastest Icelandic 

exit and the first one to a Silicon 

Valley company. 

When word got around that Bala 

was investing in startups, he says every 

entrepreneur wanted to meet with him. 

“Talking to them, it seemed like everyone 

felt like they were alone in this 

journey, which I found pretty strange 

because Iceland is a well-connected society,” 

Bala says. 

“So I started thinking about I could 

do, and I thought what if we could get 

a seasoned guy, with ups and downs, to 

share those experiences with these startups, 

to build a community feeling. Then 

I got Brad to come, and that was all I 

all these success stories, the mindset 

is changing. There’s lots more activity 

than there used to be, but I think we 

have a long way to go.” 

CONTENDING WITH 

ICELANDIC REALITIES 

Also a speaker at last year’s conference, 

President Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson put 

Iceland’s burgeoning startup community 

as part of what he called a third wave 

of innovation, the first wave starting in 

Iceland twenty years ago with companies 

like Marel making things primarily 

for the Icelandic market; the second 

wave starting ten years ago, with companies 

like CCP realising that the entire 

neurs being a little bit nuts. You have to 

be a little bit nuts,” Haukur notes. “You 

really have to put all of your energy, 

your money, everything you have, into 

it. It’s very difficult. You have to have 

that to thrive.” 

That’s not to say that the Icelandic 

entrepreneur doesn’t face a unique environment 

given that there are only 

320,000 people in the country. “Usually 

when an Icelander has a great idea, 

like to open up an ice cream store, three 

months later, there will be five or six 

of them, and everybody will go bankrupt,” 

Kristján says, bringing everyone 

to laugh. “It’s because we are a small 

community. If somebody sees that this 

guy seems to be pretty successful, he 

thinks, ‘Why can’t I do it” 

STRIVING FOR 

ROCK STAR STATUS 

matter of fact. “Incremental steps, one 

year at a time, we’ll get there.” 

But ultimately they are trying to 

build a sustainable community. “We 

can’t just have this conference, the business 

accelerator Startup Reykjavík, and 

“ 

I often joke 

about entrepreneurs 

being a 

little bit nuts. 

„ 

You have to be 

a little bit nuts 

“ 

It seemed like everyone felt like they 

were alone in this journey, which I 

„ 

found pretty strange because Iceland 

is a well-connected society 

There was no place for people to get together 

and communicate,” Haukur says. 

“After the crash, a lot of very talented 

people who were laid off from 

the banks started their own businesses. 

They created some great companies like 

Meniga, for example, which is probably 

one of the hottest companies in Iceland 

right now.” 

In addition to Meniga, which provides 

a service similar to Mint.com in 

the United States, Haukur mentions 

CLARA, a software company that Bala 

needed, the spark to get this started.” 

Haukur and the guys are convinced 

that the Startup Iceland conference 

will be helpful to other entrepreneurs 

in terms of making these valuable connections. 

“It’s a fantastic opportunity to 

network with a lot of influential people 

from around the world,” Haukur says. 

“It’s difficult to compete with Silicon 

Valley, but we can create an environment 

where people are motivated to 

do something and feel like they have 

a chance of doing it. I think now with 

world could be their playing field. 

“I’ve come to the conclusion that 

Iceland might serve, and I emphasize 

‘serve’, as a location to help this third 

wave into reality, helping to create an 

atmosphere and location where people 

can freely come together and make sure 

that we can all move forward, irrespective 

to the attempt of others to put up 

hindrances,” the president said. 

“The wildest of the Icelandic nature, 

and to some extent, the unpredictability, 

and sometimes the unruliness of the Icelandic 

people that partly was the reason 

for the Icelandic banking collapse, but 

partly is the reason for the creative, innovative 

sector, helps to create a kind 

of atmosphere which other people who 

come from different parts of the world 

find stimulating.” 

Although Stefán and Kristján believe 

that Iceland could play an important 

role in securing “the freedom to 

innovate,” which Brad Burnham says is 

a core freedom being impinged upon by 

government policy, they don’t buy that 

Icelanders are somehow special or different 

that the rest of the world’s entrepreneurs. 

“I often joke about entrepre- 

Thus they emphasise the importance 

of making connections to the outside 

world. “We live on a small island in the 

North Atlantic Ocean and it’s a big leap 

for us to expand into other countries, 

but I think that is changing, partly due 

to this conference,” Haukur says. “We 

are getting people to realise that they 

can grow, that they can become an international 

company.” 

Eventually, they would like this 

conference to have the same status that 

Airwaves has in the international music 

world. “It took Airwaves how many years 

to become part of the culture” Kristján 

says. “It took a while, but they stuck with 

it and look where they are today. It’s a 

fantastic festival. Bands have become 

successful after playing at Airwaves.” 

“Airwaves is all about bands, promoting 

bands out of Iceland, so why not 

do the same for startups Entrepreneurs 

are the new rock stars,” Stefán says 

What's 

A 

Búngaló 

Haukur gives us his 

elevator pitch 

by Parker Yamasaki 

these two or three other things going 

on,” Kristján says. “We need to have 

these things going on systematically 

over the course of the year. That’s what 

the startup communities are all about. 

We want to do something sustainable. 

Innovation takes time, patience and effort. 

We have to be in it for the long-run, 

to build a community that gives birth to 

more of these events.” 

In the summer of 2009, Haukur 

Guðjónsson wanted to escape to 

the Icelandic countryside. After 

navigating a labyrinth of unhelpful 

internet resources that revealed 

only dead ends, he decided to 

channel their frustration into something 

proactive. Thus, Búngaló was 

born. The company aggregates 

privately owned Icelandic summer 

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Visitors can browse through over 

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seaboard. These perfectly quaint 

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Visit us online at www.grayline.is 

or call us at +354 540 1313


18 

In The Land Of 

The Wild Boys 

By Andri Snær Magnason 

Based on a 2010 article entitled “Í landi hinna klikkuðu karlmanna.” (“In the Land of the Mad Men”). 

Translated in part by Haukur S. Magnússon 

After the election, we see the old parties of economic mass destruction are coming back to power. Giving enormous promises 

of easy money to be wrestled from evil vulture funds, debt relief and tax reduction, The Progressive Party doubled in size after 

a few years of hardship. There is a jolly good feeling between the two young new leaders of a brave new Iceland, and when a 

radio host called them up and offered to play them a request, they asked for Duran Duran’s ‘Wild Boys.’ I Googled the lyrics, 

not quite remembering the lines, and got a nice chill down my back: 

Wild boys fallen far from glory 

Reckless and so hungered 

On the razors edge you trail 

Because there's murder by the roadside 

In a sore afraid new world 

They tried to break us, 

Looks like they'll try again 

Sounds quite grim. This, coupled with the 

new government's announcement that it 

would be effectively dismantling the Ministry 

for the Environment and Natural Resources 

and that there will be no Minister for the 

Environment, gave me a strange flashback 

feeling. I decided to revisit the state of mind 

that we used to call normal in 2006. When the 

economic policy, the energy policy, the expansion 

of our towns, the mortgages on our 

homes—almost all aspects of our daily life 

had become totally mad. This is not my own 

diagnosis; if you search the homepage of the 

IMF for the phrase “Collective Madness,” 

you’ll find this: 

“’Iceland, in the decade and 

a half leading up to the crisis, 

was an example of collective 

madness,’ said Willem Buiter, 

chief economist at Citigroup, 

a remark that elicited spontaneous 

applause from the 

more than 300 participants, 

many of them Icelandic 

policymakers, academics, and 

members of the public.” 

In our daily lives, we usually sense what is 

normal and what is over the top. Sometimes 

the discourse will blind us; PR and propaganda 

can create a kind of newspeak. It can 

be a good exercise to try to talk about things 

in a foreign language, to view them in a new 

light. As an Icelander, you could for instance 

try to tell someone from another country that 

Iceland’s government sold one state bank and 

received payment in the form of a loan from 

another state bank—and vice versa. That the 

state banks were thereby handed to men that 

were closely connected to the then-reigning 

political parties. The manager of one of the 

parties became head of one of the banks’ 

board of directors, while the other party’s former 

Minister of Trade belonged to the group 

that was given the other bank. That man 

had access to every bit of inside information 

about the bank’s standing. 

In the meantime, this former Minister of 

Trade became Central Bank Manager. He 

went to the US and made Alcoa an offer that 

the company could not refuse. He had thus 

set in motion the largest-scale construction 

project in Icelandic history, greatly increasing 

economic activity in Iceland—a grand 

boon for the bank he just finished selling to 

himself. 

If you tell this story in a foreign language, 

people shake their heads. They gape in disbelief. 

They use words like “corruption” and 

“mafia.” They exclaim, full of disbelief and 

even disappointment, “no, not in Scandinavia!” 

THE ACCEPTED INSANITY 

It is insane to expand a banking system by 

tenfold in eight years. We know that now. 

It isn’t technically possible to grow all the 

knowledge and experience needed to build 

up and manage such a contraption in such 

a short time. Not even by shoving an entire 

generation through business school. It is 

impossible. 

But the megalomania was not just confined 

to the banking sector. Energy production 

in Iceland was doubled from 2002–2007, 

when the huge Kárahnjúkar dam was built in 

the eastern part of the highlands—to serve 

one single Alcoa smelting plant. The energy it 

produces, about 650MW annually, is enough 

to power a city of one million people. Doubling 

the energy production in a developed 

country over a five-year period is not only 

unheard of, but it would also be considered 

ridiculous in all of our neighbouring nations. 

Most industrialised states increase their 

energy production by around 2–3% annually. 

Doubling it would be unthinkable. It has been 

proven again and again that gargantuan investments 

generally destroy more than they 

create. 

In Iceland, however, the goal was to 

double the nation’s energy production AGAIN 

by building aluminium smelters in Helguvík, 

Húsavík and enlarging the Straumsvík 

smelter by more than threefold. The period of 

insanity was to be succeeded by a total and 

complete madness. This was to be funded 

by 4–5 billion dollar 100% loans to Icelandic 

energy companies from foreign banks. Nearly 

20,000 dollars for every single Icelander— 

every loan directly connected to aluminium 

prices and secret energy prices. The media 

reported this as your everyday act of government 

job-creation. It was regarded extremist 

to ask critical questions. Many regarded it 

unthinkable for the survival of the nation NOT 

to do this. 

“Nearly 20,000 dollars 

for every single 

Icelander—every 

loan directly connected 

to aluminium 

prices and secret 

energy prices.” 

Now we know that we did not only sacrifice 

our nature for the economy, we sacrificed 

nature and the economy. Again, we do not 

have to seek out the websites of activists or 

environmental groups for this information. 

We just go to the IMF reports: 

"Executive Directors observed that the 

Icelandic economy is at a difficult turning 

point. The long economic expansion, initiated 

by aluminium sector investments, sustained 

by a boom in private consumption, and 

fuelled by ready access to external financing, 

contributed to a build-up of macroeconomic 

imbalances and financial vulnerabilities." 

COCAINE IN THE HOT WATER 

The madness made itself clear in the business 

of geothermal energy, making itself 

known in the form of financial troubles and 

enormous debt of the energy companies. The 

geothermal field had enjoyed an even and 

stable development since it got started in 

the early twentieth century. During the great 

depression, the City of Reykjavík created the 

world’s largest geothermal heating system by 

pumping hot ground water into the homes in 

the city. Later they started producing a small 

amount of electricity by harnessing steam 

through turbines. But one day it seemed as 

if someone drilled into a cocaine vein. Out 

of the twenty high temperature geothermal 

areas in Iceland, plans suddenly emerged 

to harness sixteen right away, all for the 

sake of the aluminium industry. The energy 

companies applied for permits to do research 

drilling in most of the remaining ones. In 

an instant, the field went from a very slow, 

conservative development to becoming a 

geothermal wild west. 

In the south, a major development of all 

the geothermal areas from the Reykjanes 

Peninsula to Þingvellir was planned—a chain 

of power plants in pristine and delicate 

areas—to serve a Century Aluminium smelter 

in Helguvík. But the geothermal plants would 

not have sufficed—the remaining power 

would be squeezed from hydro electricity in 

the Þjórsá river—potentially threatening the 

greatest stock of North Atlantic Salmon in 

Iceland—and up in the highlands—threatening 

the Pink-footed Geese of Þjórsárver. 

So what was referred to as “moderate 

development” when the parties of The Wild


20 

Boys were last in charge of our energy sector 

Their plans went like this: A new Alcoa 

smelter in the east, a new Alcoa smelter 

in Húsavík, a new Rio Tinto Straumsvík 

smelter beside the old one, an expansion 

of the Century smelter in Hvalfjörður and a 

new Century smelter in Helguvík. Amounting 

to a total of 1.4 million tons of aluminium. 

Each one of them needing energy 

that could serve one million people in their 

daily lives. Each one of them demanding 

sacrifice of great natural wonders, wild rivers 

and pristine geothermal areas. 

“We enter a 

boom after boom 

and never learn 

from mistakes.” 

How did they fare The Alcoa Smelter in 

the East has been built, with the destruction 

of two glacial rivers, Lagarfljót and 

50 km2 of highland beauty. The expansion 

of the Rio Tinto smelter was stopped and 

the Húsavík smelter did not go through, 

however, a skeleton of the Helguvík smelter 

is currently rising—with no power in sight. 

The Alcoa smelter in the north would 

have required all the harnessable power in 

the northern part of Iceland, only excluding 

Jökulsá á Fjöllum. Close to Mývatn, 

we have the Krafla geothermal area. After 

a long and often struggling forty-year 

development period, the available power 

from the area reached about 60 MW. Now, 

the goal was suddenly to quadruple the 

area’s energy production—expanding it by 

150 MW in just a few years, and harnessing 

the beautiful Þeistareykir area to its utmost 

capacity—up to 200 MW. They also had 

their eyes set on Bjarnarflag and Gjástykki, 

delicate areas that should be regarded as 

national heritage sites. All this was to serve 

a new Alcoa factory they wanted to build 

close to Húsavík, the famous whale watching 

and fishing village in North Iceland. 

Having done all that, however, the energy 

production would still not reach the 600 

MW that Alcoa really needed—the harnessing 

of two more glacial rivers would have 

been necessary: Skjálfandafljót with the 

waterfall Aldeyjarfoss and the glacial rivers 

running from Hofsjökull. 

The interesting thing is not how crazy 

this seems in hindsight, how extreme, how 

mad this reality was — but that outsiders 

did not see this plan as collective madness. 

The scheme was praised in international 

media as being a progressive plan for 

"clean" energy, and we still have members 

of parliament that regret that this did 

not happen. And the fact that our labour 

unions and politicians have referred to this 

when they say that "nothing is happening" 

in terms of business and job creation in 

Iceland. Or that they refer to this when they 

say “we have still only harnessed X% of our 

energy.” 

They are talking about this as a normal 

feasible future state of Iceland. 

Why are people so crazy Is it or was 

it a good idea to indebt the nation by a 

total of 5 billion dollars to place two Alcoa 

smelting plants in the same constituency 

To surround the Faxaflói bay, where 70% 

of Iceland's population resides, with three 

smelters The answer is simple: The mad 

men still think so. One of the new Independence 

Party MPs, Brynjar Níelsson, has no 

regrets for the death of the river Lagarfljót 

in service of Alcoa. He said it was apparent 

that protectionists loved a few fish more 

than they did people. 

But you can still ask like a fool: Did 

Iceland really have enough accumulated 

knowledge and manpower to multiply 

all our energy companies in the space of 

ten years Was there never a doubt in the 

geologist’s mind when he found himself in 

a magical place such as the Torfajökull area 

above Landmannalaugar, Kerlingarfjöll or 

the steam areas around Reykjavík Did they 

really want to do drill, pipe and harness 

EVERYTHING, right away And do it all for 

the sake of a single industry—the aluminium 

industry. Did it have to be the role of a 

marginalised group of a few activists to use 

their spare time to criticise this 

OF “REYKJAVÍK” 

KNOWLEDGE 

I was once at a meeting in Húsavík, where 

I screened my film, ‘Dreamland.’ At that 

meeting, the local geothermal plant 

manager claimed he could easily harness 

1,000 MW out of geothermal areas north of 

Mývatn. I asked if it wasn’t correct that scientists 

are concerned about overexploitation 

of the country’s geothermal areas. The 

scientists’ criticisms were quickly blown off 

the table as “Reykjavík knowledge,” and in 

that instant every alarm bell went off. 

Now we understand that power is not 

as plenty as the hype promised, and now 

most Icelanders understand that energy 

production on the banks of Lake Mývatn 

in Bjarnarflag might just jeopardise the 

ecosystem in that wonderful lake. But you 

wonder if the people developing our most 

delicate areas possess good enough judgement 

to work close to natural wonders. It 

seems like they are ready to take the risk, to 

see what happens. 

I found an interview with the aforementioned 

plant manager from 2002. At 

that time, he had drilled a big hole for 170 

million ISK because a Russian company 

potentially wanted to build an aluminium 

oxide factory and a giant aluminium plant 

in Húsavík. 

If one sets aside minor ethical facts, 

such as the Russian aluminium industry being 

run by the mafia at that time, one is still 

left to ponder the fact that almost no industry 

in the world produces as much and as 

toxic waste as aluminium oxide production 

(or alumina, as it is called). Those that 

followed the horrible events when a red 

slush toxic lake in Hungary broke should 

know what comes with an alumina refinery. 

But this local hard-working man had spent 

more than one and a half million dollars 

looking into the feasibility of such a plant 

in Húsavík. Things have been so good here 

that people think they are untouchable. 

Even though the companies engage in 

malevolent practices in other countries, 

they would never do that here. Sure. 

THE HOLY LOCAL 

It seems that for some reason the most 

unbelievable hogwash gets promulgated 

without any critical thought. We enter a 

boom after boom and never learn from 

mistakes. We can look further back in history 

to see how madness is mixed up with 

ambition, how extreme and unrealistic 

views of the future are presented and taken

21 Issue 6 — 2013 

The Reykjavík Grapevine 

seriously. 

In an edition of Morgunblaðið from 

March 1987, one can read a prediction of 

the impending evolution of local fur farming 

until 1996. At that time, thirty fur farms 

were operated in Iceland. Morgunblaðið 

cites a report that predicts Iceland will foster 

600 mink farms by 1996. They assume 

a twenty-fold growth in ten years, as if 

nothing were more natural. A month later, 

this optimistic story ran: “The mink stock 

will double this year.” Only three years 

later, in April of 1990, we find this dramatic 

headline in a copy of Morgunblaðið: “Fur 

“In this country 

everything is considered 

normal if 

a “local” wants it” 

farming: The industry is on its last legs. 

Many farmers on the edge of despair.” 

In this country everything is considered 

normal if a “local” wants it. Nothing in 

Iceland is as crazy as the holy local is when 

he wants a smelter or an oil refinery, no 

matter how large or out of proportion. He 

has the sacred right to that, especially if he 

uses “job creation” as an argument. Numbers 

that would be considered sizeable in 

large nation’s economic statistics, energy 

resources and infrastructure that are earmarked 

by the world’s superpowers as being 

“strategically important” are subject to 

“the will of the locals.” The nation’s energy 

resources and nature are in the hands of a 

smattering of district councils that have no 

staff and no expertise while the majority 

of Icelanders that reside in the capital area 

seem by default “local” to nowhere. 

So, the locals of the east destroyed their 

highlands, the locals of the south want to 

dam the wonders of the Skaftá area, the 

lower part of the Þjórsá river and the locals 

of the southwest are ready to harness 

almost every single geothermal area. And 

this seems to be a global problem—rural 

communities losing their youth and talents 

to the cities of the world are willing to sell 

off their forests, their mountains, their rivers 

and valleys for some hope of development 

and a future. 

It is strange to see that one of the major 

driving forces behind this development 

resides within our labour leaders, who have 

been demanding extreme leverage and risk 

on behalf of public energy companies. If 

there should be a hesitation in the risk taking, 

the responsible parties are “dragging 

their feet.” The labour unions’ “stability 

agreement” with the former government 

entails that “every obstacle be removed” 

that somehow hinders the proposed Helguvík 

aluminium plant. It is exactly this kind 

of thinking that lead to almost 200 foreign 

workers being left disabled and unemployable 

as a result of working on building the 

Kárahnjúkar dam. Conditions of workers 

were severely compromised to make the 

dam construction process cheap enough. 

Every obstacle was removed to provide 

Alcoa with energy prices that save them 

200 million USD annually. That amounts to 

the combined yearly wages of more than 

10,000 teachers. 

The noble cause of creating jobs becomes 

quite grim if it involves harming the 

work capacity of so many. The PR people 

talk about a ‘multiplication effect’ of every 

job in a smelter—but wouldn’t it be polite 

to subtract the disabled workers People 

will go so far to satisfy their prince charming 

that they behave like the ugly stepsister 

in the fairy tale, cutting their toes off to fit 

the glass shoe. 

HOUSE OF CARDS 

The Helguvík aluminium smelter close to 

Keflavík Airport is a symbol of how poorly 

run Iceland can be; the Helguvík aluminium 

smelter is already being built, even though 

nobody knows where we can scramble together 

its required 600 MW of energy. The 

Helguvík smelter is a symbol of how weak 

the nation’s administration can be, of how 

shattered professionalism and long-term 

thinking can become, and how the media 

Photo: Ari Magg


22 

all but encourages unlawful activities in their 

headlines, if job creation is at stake. They 

started to build the smelter without access 

to power sources, and without the necessary 

power lines planned or agreed upon by 

landowners. 

Why start building, then Because in 2006, 

the Wild Boys were in power, showing their 

ambition and "competence" by signing long 

term sales agreements for cheap energy 

before the energy sites had been researched, 

planned or developed. Now Reykjavík Energy 

and HS Orka are bound by agreements that 

neither company wants to fulfil due to foreseeable 

losses from selling the energy below 

its production costs. 

The sharks were very aware that they were 

taking advantage of a country with mad politicians 

in a rare period in our history. When 

they were willing to sell almost everything, 

anything, anywhere to anyone. In a remarkable 

investor report called: “Harnessing 

unlimited power and profit from the world’s 

most progressive energy program," an analyst 

made this great comment: 

"It works out great for Iceland, too. It is 

very cheap for Iceland to deliver power to 

Century. The Icelandic power companies will 

make extraordinary profits on that power if 

aluminium prices stay strong. And if aluminium 

prices weaken, Iceland is not biting the 

hand that feeds it." 

This is how politicians build an elaborate 

house of cards that combine risk, debt and 

commitment that collapses if only one of 

the cards falls. Thus, the hands of future city 

governments have been tied and an insane 

construction binge in important areas has 

been commenced, all to benefit one company 

that’s lacking most of the needed permits. 

Could anyone recount the details of the 

Century Aluminium Helguvík Smelter project 

at an international conference without being 

booed off the stage as a fraud At an 

aluminium conference, however, such a man 

would actually bring more lust than an exotic 

dancer. 

Despite being in the hands of extreme 

capitalists, the labour movement has not 

called for professionalism or long-term thinking 

in energy affairs. It simply demands that 

“every obstacle be removed.” Get the trucks 

rolling immediately. 

In 2006 we were in the middle of a 

revolution, but the Wild Boys did not call 

themselves "The Aluminium Revolutionary 

Front"—they defined themselves as the norm, 

even though their scale was insane. If they 

were criticised, they started thinking of themselves 

as persecuted. Warlords are always 

persecuted moderates when they’re merely 

conquering neighbouring nations in the name 

of peace. 

THE CORE OF THE PROBLEM 

Throughout the years, polls have shown that 

a large part of Icelandic males aged 40–70 

have been in favour of the collective insanity 

seen in the energy policy of 2006. The biggest 

problem seems to be with male voters of The 

Independence Party, where a vast majority 

has even considered the most extreme energy 

policy as the sole basis for the continued 

survival of Icelanders. That explains the great 

emotional attachment they have to dams 

and smelters. To secure their survival, the 

majority of them wants to cut back on our 

environmental regulations, and they have no 

standards whatsoever on the ethical background 

of the corporations coming to Iceland. 

Therein lies Iceland’s most serious political 

ill. If everything were normal, our males 

would be conservative, moderate, aversive 

to risk, frugal, orderly and even a bit boring. 

This is an important group of people in every 

society. It contains a lot of average household 

fathers; it contains pillars of society, company 

directors, influentials, MPs and even journalists 

and editors. These are men that have the 

power to define what is normal and what is 

abnormal and/or excessive. 

OF RESPONSIBLE PUNKS 

AND SURREALISTS 

It is harmful for communities when a critical 

mass of their important males starts adhering 

to revolutionary and completely reckless 

ideas, adopting a blind belief in them. 

This group is not fit for governing anything 

while the situation lasts, and it is therefore 

no coincidence that the city of Reykjavík is 

now governed by the punkers and surrealists 

of the Best Party. A moderate mixture of 

surrealism and punk rock is a down to Earth, 

conservative and responsible policy when 

compared to the delusions and anarchy of the 

crazed men. They have proved very moderate 

and responsible, and have now moved 

the policy of Reykjavík Energy, Reykjavík’s 

energy company, into a more sustainable and 

modest direction. And the Left Green Social 

Democrat government did the same with 

Landsvirkjun, the national energy company. 

Those that are worst off in this group of 

mad men share a mutual admiration for Einar 

Benediktsson (1863-1945). The Icelandic 

National Myth is perhaps best embodied in 

the figure Einar Ben, our poet of progress. His 

most recent biography gives a good picture 

of the kind of man he was and the impulses 

that motivated his actions: 

What drives Einar Benediktsson on to 

undertake this long journey [...] is his unshakeable 

belief in his own abilities to be of use 

to his impoverished fatherland in countries 

abroad. His dream is to furnish the money 

that will transform Iceland into a modern 

country, with towns, factories, railways, roads, 

harbours and large-scale farms. He carries 

nothing with him except his belief in himself... 

Einar Benediktsson had great dreams for 

the future of Iceland, replete with hydroelectric 

dams, factories and railways. While his 

generation on both sides of the Atlantic saw 

their dreams become a reality, and sometimes 

a nightmare, Einar was to be disappointed 

in all his great hopes and ambitions. 

Henry Ford was born a year before Einar 

Benediktsson, and Sam Eyde, the founder of 

Norway’s Norsk Hydro was born three years 

after him. But Iceland failed to industrialize 

in the way Einar envisaged. Whether Iceland 

was fortunate or unfortunate to have missed 

out on the Industrial Revolution is something 

we can argue over. But the failure of Einar’s 

dreams left an unfilled space in the Icelandic 

soul. Iceland’s wealth came from fishing, but 

Einar’s ideas still hovered in the air, leaving a 

sense of a task left unfulfilled—the unfinished 

Icelandic dream. The Americans could move 

on from Ford to Gates. The Icelanders were 

still lacking a Ford. 

One of the first bubbles in Iceland happened 

when businesspeople travelled the 

country buying rights to harness waterfalls in 

the beginning of the 20th century. Einar Ben 

had the Norwegian engineer Sætersemoen 

draw up a row of power plants spanning the 

entirety of Þjórsá. The drawings of the proposed 

power plants look magnificent and enticing 

and would without doubt be considered 

among Iceland’s most beautiful buildings had 

they been constructed. But how realistic were 

the plans They had planned for harnessing 

Þjórsá to produce 600–800 MW—in 1918, 

nota bene. This does not include the rest of 

the water rights these men had secured for 

themselves, including Dettifoss and Gullfoss. 

In comparison one could note that today, one 

hundred years later, the City of Reykjavík 

uses 200 MW—on Christmas Eve, with every 

electric appliance running at full steam. 

What did Einar plan on doing with all this 

energy in 1918 Aluminium production was 

barely on the horizon as a feasible industry, 

and televisions and freezers were but distant 

dreams. What were they planning to do with 

all the power Produce fertiliser The Gufunes 

fertiliser plant used around 20 MW when it 

was running at its peak. Who was to use all 

the energy and pay for the series of power 

plants The answer is likely simple: No one. 

No one in the world could have found use for 

this energy. 

“The answer is 

likely simple: No 

one. No one in the 

world could have 

found use for this 

energy.” 

Of course Einar could easily have harnessed 

a small stream to light up a small village, 

maybe even a cowshed or two. But there 

is no glory in that. The act would not appease 

the deranged men’s need for conquest and 

magnitude. There’s much more spunk, gusto 

and vigour in lining all of Þjórsá with power 

plants, even if the energy produced is way 

beyond what the nation can use one hundred 

years later. To this day, a lot of people think 

that Iceland’s government at that time was 

backwards, afraid of foreigners and somehow 

prevented the founding of a great and profitable 

company and “foreign investment.” But 

it’s enough to look at the numbers to see that 

the whole thing was a sham. 

It’s so weird to think that, ever since, a certain 

group of Icelandic males have harboured 

a strange sort of national grief. It’s as if Einar’s 

unrealistic ideas have been haunting later 

generations of Icelanders. Not as fantasy, but 

as real, attainable goals or lost opportunities: 

“The dreams of our turn of the century poets 

have finally come true.” Remarked former PM 

Geir Haarde as he signed a deal with Alcoa in 

2002. Yes, finally, the nation was dragged into 

a century old illusion. 

THE MAD MEN VS. 

THE WISE GIRLS 

The mob seems tolerate nothing worse than 

young, educated women who that use words 

like “professional” or “process.” Even if 

aluminium production in Iceland has been 

tripled over the last ten years, a lot of the 

crazy guys think that Iceland’s economic 

problems stem first and foremost from a lack 

of aluminium smelters. 

Supporters of a new Century Aluminium 

smelter in Helguvík spent millions in advertisements 

campaigning against departing 

Minister for the Environment Svandís Svavarsdóttir, 

who delayed the building process 

with demands of a sober overview of the 

energy demand and environmental impact. 

The blogosphere went wild when Left-Green 

MP Kolbrún Halldórsdóttir spoke up against 

deep-sea oil drilling in Icelandic waters. 

One sensed a lynch mob in the making as 

former-Minister for the Environment Þórunn 

Sveinbjarnardóttir met with locals in Húsavík 

advocating for a full environmental impact 

assessment for a new Alcoa smelter—the 

audience was only lacking the pitchforks. The 

decline of The Independence Party is very 

evident in the fact that Katrín Fjeldsted lost 

her seat in parliament. She is a well-educated, 

intelligent and logical doctor and the only 

party MP who questioned the insanity. Every 

obstacle shall be pushed out of the way. 

Icelanders harvest 1% of the world’s fish. 

We receive more tourists per capita than 

most nations. Iceland has harnessed five 

times the amount of energy that the nation 

needs to function, and we currently operate 

three aluminium smelters. But we have 

ALREADY harnessed five times more energy 

than our neighbouring countries. We are 

already an energy superpower—if everything 

were normal, such an investment should yield 

a fair bit of profit to the nation, if we don’t 

blow the proceeds and resources in another 

round of debt. But the discourse is so crazy. 

People act as if “NOTHING IS PERMITTED” 

when the energy production is already five 

times more than the nation can consume. Of 

the energy we produce, 90% already goes to 

smelters. 

We already have everything a modern society 

needs. We just need to tend to what we 

have already built, to reap some profit from 

the power plants we have already constructed 

and take better care of what we’re currently 

fishing. People get insecure when interest 

groups moan: “Who will support us in the 

future!” as if Iceland is a country without 

foundations. The fear that is purposely 

spread is resulting in Iceland acting like a 

man that demands radiotherapy, chemotherapy 

and surgery to fix his headache. The truth 

is that the treatment will never cure him—but 

it might kill him. He will in the best-case scenario 

grow addicted to the drugs. 

THEY TRIED TO BREAK US... 

We are a small community and we need 

peace and room to work. That Björk should 

need to take time off work to fight the insanity 

is just a small example of the disturbance 

that thousands of Icelanders suffer every day 

because of this crazy nonsense. Living here 

will become unbearable if something like the 

reckless policy from 2006 goes full speed 

again. It is maddening that we cannot seem to 

leave our most beautiful areas alone. We are 

a small community where co-dependency is 

the norm and people are polite. 

The new leaders are young and nice guys; 

Sigmundur Davíð loves old buildings and has 

good ideas for city planning. But behind them 

is a crowd of mad men, "fallen far from glory, 

reckless and so hungered." Were four years 

from power enough to sober up the mentality 

in terms of the energy policy What will come 

out of the "rethinking" of the Energy Master 

Plan Will we be strapped up into another 

rollercoaster, just to take another ride of 

boom and bust "They tried to break us. 

Will they try again" 

Step into 

the Viking Age 

Experience Viking-Age Reykjavík at the 

new Settlement Exhibition. The focus of the 

exhibition is an excavated longhouse site which 

dates from the 10th century ad. It includes 

relics of human habitation from about 871, the 

oldest such site found in Iceland. 

Multimedia techniques bring Reykjavík’s 

past to life, providing visitors with insights 

into how people lived in the Viking Age, and 

what the Reykjavík environment looked like 

to the first settlers. 

The exhibition and 

museum shop are open 

daily 10–17 

Aðalstræti 16 

101 Reykjavík / Iceland 

Phone +(354) 411 6370 

www.reykjavikmuseum.is

23 

How Do You Respond When 

The Norm Has Become 

A State Of Madness 

Andri Snær Magnason discusses 

‘Wild Boys’ and ‘Mad Men’ 

INTER 

VIEW 

THE FRESHEST FISH ....AND IDEAS! 

After years of study, 

strings of awards and 

having led kitchens of 

some of Reykjavík’s most 

esteemed restaurants, 

Gústav still sees him 

self as just a kid from 

up north, with a lifetime 

passion for fish. 


Hi Andri! Your stunning 'Wild 

Boys' article on the previous 

spread is an update of a piece 

called 'In the land of the Mad 

Men,' originally published in 

Fréttablaðið on September 11, 

2010. What initially spurred you 

to write that article and what 

kind of response did you get at 

the time 

The article was written when I was 

discovering that I was acting rationally 

against mad development—the totalitarian 

revolutionary plans that had 

been presented as "normal." I wanted 

to dismiss them in whole as unrealistic 

madness, and try to move the idea of 

"normal" into another direction. A few 

psychologists said I should not use 

the word madness in this manner. But 

what words do you use, then 

What has changed in the almost 

three years that have passed 

Did you find elements of the 

original article out of date And 

what did you feel was most important 

to add to the new piece 

It is not out of date in terms of being 

part of our history. It is important to remember 

how things were—to prevent 

these plans from emerging again and 

becoming normalised. Many people 

still believe we should develop Iceland 

in this way. 

How do you rate Iceland's departing 

government with regard 

to environmental concerns and 

economic 'sanity' What do 

you expect from the now-ruling 

coalition of the Independence 

Party and the Progressives 

It is very hard to say. They had no 

opportunities for destruction; we did 

not have credit for Megaprojects for 

some time. But inside they had people 

that really care for the environment 

and the Left Greens were not keen 

on more aluminium projects. The 

national Energy Company got a new 

and more moderate management and 

policy, but still areas like Mývatn and 

Þjórsá are being discussed—and the 

whole Reykjanes Peninsula is now 

at stake. Because of the madness, a 

moderate approach to such developments 

is quite extreme. But now we 

know more, people are more aware; 

the environmental movement is much 

stronger now. The new government 

has some nice people—but also very 

extreme characters who do not regard 

our nature or environment as anything 

worth protecting. 

Was there, in your opinion, 

enough of a discussion on environmental 

matters in the last 

elections Why/why not 

The elections were hijacked by 

extreme promises of tax reduction 

and debt relief. The environment was 

hardly discussed. The Progressive 

party and the Independence party 

have said they think protection in the 

Masterplan is “too extreme." 

Two of your most popular 

novels--'LoveStar' and 'Story 

of the Blue Planet'--have just 

been published internationally, 

in English. How did this come 

about and what has the reception 

been thus far Where can 

people buy them 

They area available in English in most 

bookshops here in Iceland. The publisher 

asked for ‘Dreamland,’ but I sent 

them translations of ‘LoveStar’ and the 

Blue Planet—so they published both. 

Seven Stories Press in New York and 

then Pushkin Press for the UK version 

of ‘The Story of The Blue Planet.’ 

Lovestar was recently awarded 

a Philip K. Dick award. Explain 

the significance of this, for you 

personally and in terms of exposure 

and distribution of your 

works. Is Dick someone you've 

admired 

I have admired him yes. It helps to be 

admitted by the geeks of all geeks in 

the sci-fi community. But very good 

response, I worried actually about 

that, not being accepted as a real nerd. 

My other influences include Vonnegut, 

Borges, Orwell and Bulgakov. 

What have you got in the works 

these days Is another ‘Dreamland’ 

imminent, in light of the 

current situation 

Another ‘Dreamland’ might be possible, 

even a film. However, I just sent 

my latest book to the publisher—he 

is reading it now—it is closer to 

‘LoveStar’ and ‘The Story of the Blue 

Planet.’ - Haukur S. Magnússon 

SKÓLAVÖRÐUSTÍGUR 14 - 101 REYKJAVÍK - 571 1100


Some say in the final years of his life, Bobby Fischer grew increasingly paranoid, eventually completely 

refusing to have mail delivered to his house. Instead, he would have it delivered to Bókin where he would 

Literature 

collect it during his regular visits. 

24 

Welcome To The Book Cave 

Go in search of your own personal holy grail 

of books at Reykjavík’s Bókin 

A door slams shut with a finality that could only mean closing time. Seconds later 

the opening guitar tones to Roxy Music’s ‘Avalon’ and hushed, heavily accented, 

out-of-time humming fill the space. 

Bókin 

I get the feeling he doesn’t know I’m 

here. When I finally present myself, 

I discover the humming is accompanied 

by some equally out-of-time 

shimmying. He gets a fright, but 

relaxes when I complement him on 

his taste in music. “This is a live recording 

from a show they did in Paris 

in 1984,” he says. “It’s my favourite.” 

Meet Ari Gísli Bragason, owner 

and sole full-time employee of Bókin 

(also known as Bókabúð Braga), an 

independent bookshop on the corner 

of Hverfisgata and Klapparstígur — 

one of Reykjavík’s last—which he has 

occupied since 1997. 

Unless you’re looking for it, it’s 

not the kind of store you’d notice, 

perhaps not even one you’d identify 

as a store from the outside. The view 

through the windows is completely 

obscured by ceiling-high stacks of 

books, a network of cobwebs bridging 

the gap between their spines and 

the glass. Inside, the store has the 

feeling of a long-forgotten storage 

space, the smell of dust and ancient 

scripture hanging in the air. 

WHAT DEWEY 

DECIMAL SYSTEM 

Ari offers to give me a tour of the 

store. He is a short man with puggish 

features and dense curly hair 

branching out over his unshaven 

face and his aged polo shirt, which is 

dotted with decade old ink smudges. 

He closely considers every one of 

his responses before sharing them. 

Whenever I grasp the point he was 

trying to make, he confirms his approval 

with a villainous smile and 

three or four quick, nervous ‘yahs.’ 

“We have 20 sections,” he announces. 

“It starts with dictionaries 

and foreign books over here.” 

I tail him from aisle to aisle as he 

translates the name of each section, 

the organisation of which proudly 

eschews any formal system. At times 


Klappastígur 32 www.bokin.is 10:00-18:00 weekdays, closed weekends 

I wonder whether he’s just making 

the sections up on the spot. 

We pass ‘poetry,’ ‘Icelandic 

authors,’ ‘novels,’ and ‘mixed books.’ 

“‘Mixed books,’ that’s quite a category,” 

he tells me and I believe him. 

“Bobby 

Fischer came 

here all the 

time. He fell 

asleep in this 

chair.” 

We proceed to the end of the aisle 

to the chess section. Above a wooden 

chair hangs a framed poster of Bobby 

Fischer. “He came here all the time,” 

Ari says. “He fell asleep in this chair.” 

What was he like I ask. “He was 

quite nice,” Ari says diplomatically, 

“but a little bit difficult when he talked 

about politics.” 

At this point a woman calls Ari’s 

name from a nearby aisle and he 

yells something in response before 

a short softly spoken lady appears 

from a nearby aisle carrying a stack 

of books. 

“Ah, this is Sirrý, one of my assistants. 

She’s a student of mine,” 

Ari tells me before breaking into 

hysterics. 

Sirrý, Ari’s wife, rolls her eyes 

and extends a hand to me. “I am the 

real brains here,” she says under her 

breath. 

WE’RE GOING ON 

A BOOK HUNT! 

Whilst none of the books on the 

shelves are catalogued, Bókin boasts 

a comprehensive website with 7,500 

titles. Ari fishes around in his pocket 

and retrieves his business card with 

the store’s website. His card reads 

‘Ari Gísli - Bookhunter’. 

“A bookhunter” I enquire, impressed. 

“Well, I had trouble finding a suitable 

title for my work,” he explains. 

Ari worked as a freelance journalist 

for Morgunblaðið for many years 

as well as on several television 

programmes before retiring and 

taking up the bookhunting trade. 

Since the career change, Ari says he 

has accumulated over 120,000 titles, 

some of which have been purchased 

as collections, but most of which he 

says have “come in with the wind.” 

As he spins around, Ari nudges a 

small tower of sci-fi novels, triggering 

a minor avalanche of books to 

flood a nearby row and sending a 

small cloud of dust skyward, in turn 

triggering my dust allergies and 

sending me spiralling into a sneezing 

fit. He assures me not to panic, this 

kind of thing happens all the time 

around here. 

A lady in a beret whose name I 

learn is Unnur comes in and steals 

Ari’s attention. She is an old friend 

he met through a poetry group many 

years ago. They speak excitedly for 

a moment before Ari turns back to 

me. “We are looking for a birthday 

present for her husband,” he says. 

“Would you like to come with us” 

I say yes, flattered to be invited 

along on a bookhunting mission and 

suddenly realise I’ve misunderstood 

Ari’s title. The ‘hunting of books’ 

in question happens internally, not 

externally. 

We’re hunting for a book by Halldór 

Laxness. “He collects different 

editions, even different types of the 

same edition,” Unnur says of her 

husband with disbelief. 

The three of us ascend three 

floors and enter a small low room 

which I don’t immediately identify 

as Ari’s office as his desk is buried 

under yet more piles of books. A 

narrow trail has been paved through 

the foliage of books to access all 

points of the room. Perched sagely 

on the far wall is a taxidermy owl Ari 

mentions he received as a gift from 

a group of old ladies at the Roman 

Catholic Church in Hafnarfjordur 10 

years ago. 

Ari tells me he doesn’t read many 

of the books that come through 

the door. “I mostly read Tintin and 

poetry,” he says. He scans a shelf for 

a while before pulling ‘Tinni í Kongó’ 

from the shelf, holding it up admiringly. 

“This is the racist one. Well, it’s 

supposed to be racist,” he tells me in 

a hushed voice. 

Midway through the book hunt, 

Unnur walks over to me looking 

conflicted. “I only found a book for 

myself,” she says, shaking her head. 

“The same thing happened yesterday. 

I was looking for a present for 

my husband and found two books for 

myself.” 

A GAME OF CHANCE 

Unnur and Ari talk about how fifteen 

years ago at least ten antiquarian 

bookshops existed in Reykjavík, but 

one by one they disappeared. Now 

it’s just Bókin and a mysterious little 

underground store on Hverfisgata, 

which Ari tells me opens for just half 

an hour each day. 

“It’s like the bookshops that have 

tried to come on the market have 

been taken out by hit men,” he jokes. 

Ari believes a large factor in 

Bókin’s on-going survival comes 

down to chance. Unlike at the chain 

bookstores around the corner, you 

don’t know what you’re going to find 

at Bókin and the appeal lies in the 

practice of bookhunting itself: the 

pleasure of trawling through a room 

of old books in search of one, and the 

excitement that comes with stumbling 

upon it. 

“I 

mostly 

read Tintin 

and 

poetry” 

“There are always people coming 

and going, hunting for books—Icelanders 

and people from the family of 

the world,” he says. 

I decide to buy a book, and solicit 

Ari’s services in recommending 

something for me. After about three 

minutes of serious consideration he 

returns. “I found one I think you’ll 

like.” I stare down at the title, ‘The 

Book Of Murder,’ and wonder what 

kind of impression I’ve given Ari. 

I leave ‘The Book Of Murder’ for 

someone else to hunt down and instead 

choose a couple of classics. At 

the counter, before I can haggle down 

the 800 ISK price tags Ari does it for 

me, giving me both titles for 500 ISK. 

Bókin’s pricing system is predominantly 

based on condition and 

market value. “It depends on how rare 

and popular books are,” he explains. 

“Many of the books we have on the 

website are not necessarily valuable, 

but to us they are. Then we have 

some books from several hundred 

years ago for just one hundred 

krónur.” 

Are there any books you refuse to 

sell 

He gestures to a shelf of books 

high up on the wall behind the front 

counter. “They’re mostly old bibles 

and some other personal books we 

don’t sell.” 

And suppose someone made you 

an offer, I ask with a wink 

Ari assures me they still won’t be 

sold. “They are so difficult to get. But 

they’re also so difficult to physically 

get to, that they just won’t go anywhere,” 

he laughs. 

- Thomas L. Moir

The festival is an annual event featuring lots of fun for the 

whole family, and serves as a reminder of how important the 

sea and its sailors are to Iceland‘s history, economy and 

people. A diverse programme of events takes place from 11 am 

on Saturday morning until Sunday afternoon, at Reykjavík´s 

West Harbour; Grandagarður. 

Harbour festival area 

Here are some of the festival highlights: 

• Funny Fish on display 

• Arts and crafts 

• The Maritime Museum 

• Ferry trips to Videy Island 

• Delicious Herring 

• Special discounts on puffin watching and sea 

angling tours, and fun family sailing trips 

• Speed rowing, race rowing and sailing competitions 

• Fun activities for the kids 

• Aerobatic airplane stunts 

• Ocean Rescue demonstration 

• Music, entertainment and much more…

Film 

26 

Preserving 

The Laxá Explosion 

Blowing up dams and restrictions on democracy 

Stills 

It's dark and silent—nothing unusual around midnight by the river Laxá and lake Mývatn in the 

north of Iceland. But somewhere behind the darkness, beneath the silence, something extraordinary 

is about to happen. Suddenly, a dynamite explosion disturbs the silence—in what has gone 

down in history as a single, but highly important step in a much greater movement of resistance. 

More than a hundred farmers officially claimed responsibility 

for the explosion, which annihilated a small 

dam in the river on August 25, 1970. The area's inhabitants 

were determined to prevent the construction of a 

much bigger dam, which would have destroyed vast 

quantities of this natural area, as well as most of the 

surrounding farmlands. 

Just as determined to keep the saboteurs away from 

legal troubles, those who claimed responsibility kept a 

strict policy of silence, making it hard for the authorities 

to single out alleged leaders or protagonists. Now, 

almost half a century and a saved river later, another 

bang has broken that silence. 

A WATERSHED ACT IN 

ICELANDIC HISTORY 

Namely, that is Grímur Hákonarson's documentary 

‘Hvellur’ (“Bang”), which premièred at Bíó Paradís earlier 

this year. Through dialogues with some of the participants, 

many of whom still reside by the river, the 

film tells the story of the Laxá conflict. “We kept all 

commentators and university professors out,” Grímur 

told me a few days before the première, “focusing instead 

entirely on those who took part in it.” 

The case is often considered the beginning of environmentalism 

in Iceland. Shortly thereafter, Nobel 

Prize-winning author Halldór Laxness wrote his famous, 

hard-headed call-out for nature conservation— 

titled ‘The Warfare Against the Land’—and the Laxá 

conflict also brought about the Environmental Impact 

Assessment, which up until then had been completely 

absent in Iceland's energy production. 

“What makes the Laxá conflict peculiar is that those 

who resisted also succeeded,” Grímur says. “The 

planned dam was never built and the area was saved.” 

Four years later, parliament passed a law securing the 

protection of Laxá and Mývatn, contributing to the explosion's 

status as “the most remarkable and powerful 

event in the history of environmentalism in Iceland,” as 

Sigurður Gizurarson, the bomber’s defence lawyer, put it. 

Celebrating the forty-year anniversary of the act in 

August 2010, one of Iceland's most remarkable environmentalists, 

Guðmundur Páll Ólafsson, remarked 

that the act “literally saved the ecosystem of Mývatn 

and Laxá.” He also maintained that the dynamite “blew 

up a democracy-restriction imposed on the district's 

inhabitants and all those who loved the land, by the authorities 

and the board of Laxárvirkjun,” the company 

that owned the dam. “The arrogance of the authorities 

hovered over the land until the bomb exploded, but 

then we became free—for a while.” 

Sixty-five people were charged for sabotage, but no 

one spoke out about any details and the Supreme Court 

ended up handing out mild suspended sentences. The 

film now reveals that there were three men responsible 

for igniting the dynamite. Only one of them is still alive. 

STILL THE BONE OF CONTENTION 

In any case, exposing secrets is much less the film's 

aim than documenting and preserving this extraordinary 

story. And for a good reason—it could easily fall 

into oblivion. “People over fifty remember this event 

very well, but those who are younger don't really 

know the story,” Grímur says, adding that during the 

film's making, they were told numerous times that they 

should have started filming much earlier, as many involved 

have since passed away. 

But how do those still alive recall these events today 

“No one looks back regretfully, and most of them 

are still politically radical, opposed to large-scale destruction 

of natural areas for energy production. They 

“What makes the Laxá conflict peculiar is 

that those who resisted also succeeded.” 

Laugavegur 54 

are proud of the results of their act,” Grímur says. 

But as Guðmundur Páll's words, “then we became 

free—for a while,” imply, the plans had not been cancelled 

for good. During the construction of the huge 

Kárahnjúkar dams in Iceland's eastern highlands, a 

new construction plan for Laxá was put on the drawing 

table. However, as words of warning came from 

Mývatn—including that the locals surely hadn't forgotten 

how to use dynamite—the plans were later drawn 

back. Siv Friðleifsdóttir, then Minister of the Environment, 

stated that never before had she been so pleased 

to cancel a project. 

Many of Iceland's most remarkable natural areas 

are still the bone of contention between environmentalists 

and industrialists, including geothermal areas 

close to Mývatn. Grímur doesn’t consider the film to 

be part of the current conflict, but it doesn’t mean that 

people won't feel some connection with today's most 

pressing environmental issues. “One only needs to listen 

to the debates in parliament,” Grímur concludes, 

“to notice that the same old discussion is still going on 

today.” - Snorri Páll Jónsson Úlfhildarson

Reykjavík Walk 

Meet the Natives 

Before 

Lækjargata around 1900 

After 

Lækjargata 2013 

Daily from Harpa, the Concert Hall, at 1 PM. 

An entertaining, educating and easy walking tour in downtown 

Reykjavík through its past and present. 

Experience the past and enjoy today’s history with a native. 

Our Icelandic historian and professional guide, brings old stories to 

life and shares the present with you, while strolling the Reykjavík 

streets. To show how the city has changed, the guide brings along 

old photos of Reykjavík. 

Afterwards, our guests enjoy the history of bread and cakes in 

Iceland by having a typical Icelandic afternoon coffee at 3 at 

the Tin Can Factory, Borgartún 1. 

We offer you our Daily Special 

at 1 in the afternoon 7 days a week 

BOOK NOW 

TEL. 551 7700 

Daily from Borgartún 1 at 1 PM. 

Short courses, with proficient language teacher, 3 hours at the 

most, on how to meet the nat ives in cafes, restaurants, swimming 

pools etc. 

Informal conversations, full of fun, photos and phrases. 

What is ð and þ Just Icelandic How come the Icelanders don’t 

use the word TV for TV 

Have fun and literally taste the language. Taste the words and 

enjoy making your own typical Icelandic afternoon coffee. 

Vowels & conson ants, coffee & cakes. 

LANGUAGE • HISTORY • CULTURE • FOOD AND FUN 

Borgartún 1 • 105 Reykjavík • Tel. 551 7700 • 821 7163 

info@thetincanfactory.eu • www.thetincanfactory.eu 

Taste the best 

of Iceland ... 

... with a spanish undertone 

Icelandic Gourmet Fiest 

Starts with a shot of the infamous 

Icelandic spirit Brennívín 

Icelandic Cuisine 

Than 6 delicious Icelandic tapas: 

Smoked puffin with blueberry 

“brennivín” sauce 

Icelandic sea-trout with peppers-salsa 

Lobster tails baked in garlic 

Pan-fried line caught blue ling 

with lobster-sauce 

Grilled Icelandic lamb Samfaina 

Minke Whale with cranberry & malt-sauce 

To finish our famous Desert: 

White chocolate "Skyr" mousse 

with passion fruit coulis 

5.990 ikr. 

Lækjarbrekka is a classic Icelandic Restaurant situated 

in heart of old Reykjavík, Lækjarbrekka specialises in 

Icelandic cuisine with a la carte menu and first 

rate service. 

The only kitchen 

in Reykjavík open 

Scan QR Code for 

more information. 

Bankastræti 2 - 101 Reykjavík - Tel. (+354) 551 4430 

info@laekjarbrekka.is - www.laekjarbrekka.is 

to 23:30 on weekdays 

and 01:00 on weekends 

RESTAURANT- BAR 

Vesturgata 3B | 101 Reykjavík | Tel: 551 2344 | www.tapas.is


Music 28 

The Mess Is Back! 

by John Rogers 

Reykjavík Music Mess is a DIY music festival held annually in a couple of the city's downtown venues. The festival started in 2011 and has consistently brought together 

the finest acts on the Reykjavík scene for a series of almighty parties, topped off with sets by overseas visitors like Deerhunter (USA), Jarse (FI), Fossils (DK) and Laura J 

Martin (UK). This weekend (May 24–26), Reykjavík Music Mess takes over Volta and KEX with a choice menu of live music including sets by DZ Deathrays, Bloodgroup, 

Oyama, Mammút and Muck, as well as an exhibition of adapted band portraits and a daytime off-venue programme. With the third festival bearing down fast, we caught 

up with two of the acts playing—homegrown electro stars Sykur and Anglo-Australian experimenters PVT—to find out what they have in store for us. 

24 26 

MAY 

MAY 

Volta 

Tryggvagata 22 

KEX Hostel 

Skúlagata 28 

www.reykjavikmusicmess.com 4.990 

Sykur by Guðný Hrönn Antonsdóttir 

PVT by Julia Mai Linnéa Maria 

Guðný Hrönn graduated from the Iceland Academy of the Arts in 2011 and went on to study photography 

and fashion, which are her main areas of interest. Fashion photography is usually the biggest 

influence in her artwork, but not so with her illustration of electro-pop group Sykur. “When I saw the 

picture of them I wanted to do something different,” she says. “Recently I have been finding myself 

drawing weird, defaced Mickey Mouse characters, so I decided to use that as inspiration. The background 

had to be colourful, of course, because they are a colourful band.” 

Julia Mai is a freelance illustrator from Sweden who has lived in Iceland for the past seven years 

and has no intentions of leaving. This autodidact skipped art school altogether, opting instead to 

hone her craft independently. Her illustration of Australian band PVT came from free-flow simplicity. 

“I can't really put my finger on what I was thinking,” she says. “The drawing just appeared on the 

paper while I was listening to their music. They’re really interesting and dreamy so I guess I wanted 

to connect their music to something visual.” 

Hello Sykur. Could you introduce yourselves 

and tell us how you met 

Hi Grapevine! We are Sykur! We are (in alphabetical 

order) Agnes, Halldór, Kristján and Stefán. 

Halldór and Stefán started making electro while 

playing together in a marching band and somehow 

Agnes and Kristján got entangled along the 

way. We all live on the same street and we have 

pancakes together on Sunday mornings. 

Tell us about your sound and setup. What are 

the sounds you're attracted to, and what's the 

aesthetic 

Our music is mostly synth-driven and we have a 

geeky fascination for all things analogue. That 

being said, we have been incorporating more 

and more other instruments as well, guitar and 

vibes, for example. When we play live, you can 

expect to see three smartly clad lads stroking 

their music-making machines (does that sound 

dirty) and a girl with copious amounts of stage 

presence making up for the geekiness of the former. 

Do you see yourselves as a pop band, or a 

dance music act, or is it something you never 

think of 

This is not something that we think about a lot. 

We just make the music that we want to make 

and leave it up to others to interpret the results. 

When we're working in the studio we think of 

ourselves as producers, but when we play live 

we want people to forget about these labels and 

just have fun, regardless of musical taste. 

Do you see yourselves as part of an Icelandic 

scene, or an international electro scene, or 

both 

The Icelandic scene is fundamentally different 

from the international scene. Here, all the 

bands are good friends and help each other out; 

there's very little competition. This is something 

we feel is largely missing from the international 

scene. When we're playing abroad we see 

ourselves as a part of the international scene, 

but we still try to bring with us some of the good 

nature of the Icelandic scene. 

Are you aware of the visiting bands, PVT, 

DZ Deathrays and Withered Hand What 

do you think 

We listened, we like. 

Any Icelandic acts playing at Reykjavík Music 

Mess that you're looking forward to, or anything 

brand new that you'd recommend 

Oyama are an amazing new act; their EP is fantastic. 

We're looking forward to hearing Mammút's 

new stuff; it's going to be great if their 

new single is any indication. Bloodgroup just 

released a great new record and their stage performance 

is fantastic. 

Hey PVT, nice to virtually meet you. Could 

you introduce yrselves please and tell us how 

your AUS/UK long-distance-relationship came 

about 

Three Australians, one of which currently lives 

in London, two of which have British passports, 

one of which used to live in London, two of 

which are brothers. 

Tell us about ‘Homosapien’—was it a long time 

in the making How did the writing, recording, 

release go 

We made it over the course of about nine 

months, with most of the recording being done 

over a month in an old haunted mansion in the 

Australian countryside. It was mixed by Ben 

Hillier in London and was released on a few different 

labels across the world, but mainly a new 

one from Brooklyn called Felte. 

Are you excited to take it on the road Have 

you any European gigs lined up that you're are 

especially excited about 

We've been playing it for a while now, but it's 

good to play it to people who have finally heard 

it. We've done an Australian tour and are in the 

middle of a European one now. 

You're playing the Reykjavík Music Mess. Have 

you been to Iceland before, and if not, what's 

your impression of the place 

I've only stopped by in the airport, but it's always 

been on my to-do list, so I'm glad we're 

getting the opportunity to do so. I'm expecting 

to see a country like no other. 

Iceland has a famously prolific music scene. Is 

there a buzz about Icelandic music in Australia 

do you think 

If a new group from Iceland puts a record out, 

they generally get a bit more attention than if 

they'd come from other countries, yeah. Iceland 

is a long, long way away from Australia in many 

ways. 

Have you any Icelandic favourites 

Björk of course. We also played some shows 

with Sigur Rós a few years ago too. 

You're playing with some of the best new 

bands on the scene, have you had a chance to 

check out the RMM line-up 

I know our buds DZ Deathrays are playing, which 

is always fun. 

Are you planning on any trips out into the 

countryside while you're here, or is there anything 

you'd like to check out 

Yes! But need to do more research.... 

What should people expect from your set 

Energy. Emotion. Electronics. 

Licensing and 

registration of travelrelated 

services 

The Icelandic Tourist Board issues licences to tour operators and travel agents, 

as well as issuing registration to booking services and information centres. 

Tour operators and travel agents are required to use a special logo approved 

by the Icelandic Tourist Board on all their advertisements and on their Internet 

website. 

Booking services and information centres are entitled to use a Tourist 

Board logo on all their material. The logos below are recognised by the 

Icelandic Tourist Board. 

List of licenced Tour 

Operators and Travel 

Agencies on: 

visiticeland.com

29 Music 

Is Back Mess The! 

To celebrate the artistic nature of the festival, they've decided 

to re-mix or re-imagine all the band pictures by local artists. 

You can see it all at KEX hostel during the festival. 

Works by: 

Dóra Hrund Gísladóttir 

Helga Páley Friðþjófsdóttir 

Dagur Sævarsson 

Loji Höskuldsson 

Jóhann Leó Birgison 

Þorvaldur Jónsson 

Guðný Hrönn Antonsdóttir 

Helga Páley Friðþjófsdóttir 

Julia Mai Linnéa Maria 

Martin Lord and Axelle Remeaud 

A Gourmet Experience 

- Steaks and Style at Argentina Steakhouse 

Barónsstíg 11 - 101 Reykjavík 

Tel: 551 9555 

argentina.is 

Heavenly pizzas! 

Home delivery 

See our menu at www.gamlasmidjan.is 


mon-thu 11:30-23 

fri 11:30-06 

sat 12-06 

& sun 12-23 

k100 

k60 

www.gamlasmidjan.is tel. 578 8555 Lækjargata 8 

“Out of this world!!!” 

CBondGirl - Calgary, Canada. Trip Advisor 

“It certainly was the best of the many places we dined in Reykjavik!” 

FrequentFlyer513 - New York City, New York - Trip Advisor 

BORG RESTAURANT - PÓSHÚSSTRÆTI 9-11 - 101 REYKJAVÍK 

TEL: +354-578-2020 - INFO@BORGRESTAURANT.IS - WWW.BORGRESTAURANT.IS

The official screening of Whale Valley will take place May 25th at Cannes Film Festival. If you're 

eager for more information, check out the film's Facebook page: facebook.com/whalevalley. 

Film 

30 

Rough Love And Reykjavík 

An Icelandic film's international debut 

at Cannes Film Festival 

INTER 

VIEW 

Forty-five minutes north of Reykjavík is the quiet town of Hvalfjörður (“Whale Valley”). It is here that 

Icelandic filmmaker Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson went to create what he describes as "a moment" 

of rough, brotherly love. When they finished shooting the scene, Guðmundur realised that 

they had something special, and what began as a small experiment spiralled into a fifteen-minute 

short fiction. On May 25, the resulting film titled "Whale Valley" makes its debut as one of nine short 

films, selected from a batch of over 3,500 entries, to compete at Cannes Film Festival in France. It’s 

the third time an Icelandic short film has been chosen to compete in the festival's sixty-six year 

history. 

So you've made a couple of experimental films, some 

animations, but this is your first short fiction. Tell me, 

what led to its creation 

It started with a moment that I wanted to create. It’s 

a moment in the beginning of the film where an older 

brother is holding down his younger brother and trying 

to calm him down. I was trying to capture some kind 

of 'rough love' in that scene. And then we went out to 

shoot it. It was supposed to be a practice shoot, but it 

worked really well, so I sat down and decided 'okay I’m 

going to make a whole story based on these brothers.' 

QUALITY CONTROL 

So this whole endeavour spiralled out of the creation 

of one moment. And now you have a professional, 

high quality film competing at Cannes. Did you have 

professional aspirations when you shot that first 

scene 

I think before, because of my fine arts background, I was 

just keen on experimenting. We did this film called “Jeffery 

and Beth” and it was all done in improvisation, in 

one room, and it was for us to just kind of practice, to try 

working with actors. But this time it was more serious. 

This was like, ‘okay, now we have to see how good we 

are, how well we can control the medium.’ 

fit the medium. And I think the nature and the small boy 

really helped too. 

SHOW ME THE MONEY 

Of the nine films in competition, yours is the only 

Nordic one. Does Iceland have a particularly strong 

film community 

I think it’s growing, a lot. Now we’ve gotten this new 

support from the doubling of the Icelandic Film Fund [a 

government fund set aside to support Icelandic films]. 

I mean, it is a small milieu, but that’s a nice thing, because 

it’s easy to get into. 

For film, Iceland is a springboard. Iceland is too small 

a market for feature films. So you have to think outside 

of Iceland. You’re aware that you want to make films 

that Icelanders enjoy because that’s the ground that you 

stand on, but it’s also really important to get your films 

out. And I think that’s for all artists because it’s hard to 

make a living on just the Icelandic market. 

I’ve heard actually that after the crash that a lot of 

money was directed toward arts, which is something 

you never hear about in other countries. Arts are 

typically the first to be cut and the last to be picked 

back up. 

"I think that if you are true to your vision, and 

do what you want to do, something nice is 

going to come out of it." 

How did making Whale Valley compare 

to making your other films 

I spent three months intensively writing a seven-page 

script and that was driving me crazy. But it actually 

turned out like we planned. The most surprising thing, 

maybe, was that it just all seemed to kind of fit. 

With the other films we were always collaborating 

and compromising, and seeing how that always fails, or 

at least I think it always fails. So this time it was more 

‘I’m going to do it exactly like I want to no matter what, 

and if people don’t like it, so be it.’ I think that if you are 

true to your vision, and do what you want to do, something 

nice is going to come out of it. Maybe not everybody 

is going to like it, but it is more important that you 

like it yourself. That was the way we approached this. 

We wanted to like it. 

What stands out to you in Whale Valley Why do you 

think the judges saw this film as the one that should 

be put in the competition 

I think it has a lot of strong elements that we were aware 

of. You know, it’s a simple film, and it fits really well in the 

'short film' medium. Something I really don’t like when I 

see short films is when there is just one final ‘dot’ in the 

end. We wanted to make a big story, but still a story that 

Yeah, I hope that our new government isn’t going to cut 

back on that. I don’t think they will though, because I 

think that there is an awareness of how big art has 

grown in outside of the country and how tourism has 

grown because of the art scene. 

BON VOYAGE! 

Well, congratulations on making it to Cannes. 

Any expectations once you get overseas 

I think it's really about making contacts for our next 

project. Something that’s more fun than just going to 

a friend and saying 'hey help me out.' Otherwise, I was 

hoping this would be time to relax. I was really looking 

forward to just sitting on the beach, but now there are 

all these meetings being scheduled—I’m going to try 

and skip some of these meetings. It's like ten days. Ten 

days of meetings and parties. 

You could become the first Icelandic short film 

to win, so best of luck to you! 

Yeah, thanks. I think the doors have now opened for us, 

but if we win, they are just wider open. 

- Parker Yamasaki

31 

Music 

Straum.is has been active since last 

summer, with writers Óli Dóri and Davið 

Roach documenting the local music scene 

and helping people discover the best 

new music. It is associated with the radio 

show Straumur on X977, which airs every 

Monday evening at 23:00. 

Do it! 

Bloodgroup 

Tracing Echoes 

2013 

www.bloodgroup.is 

Downbeat but not half-hearted. 

Hot on the heels of Legend and 

Hjaltalín’s dark musical displays, 

Bloodgroup’s third album ‘Tracing 

Echoes’ shows the group in a more 

sombre, solemn mood. The posters 

for their album release gig had 

them looking like they’d just come 

from a funeral and the album’s cover 

design, with a mix of soft focus 

greys and blacks, is so murky that 

you can hardly read any of the lyrics. 

This could easily emit a lingering 

stench of pretentiousness, but they 

have taken their music to the next 

Ólafur Arnalds 

For Now I Am Winter 

2013 

www.olafurarnalds.com 

You’re leaving me kinda cold. 

Following Ólafur’s fantastic performance 

at Sónar Reykjavík, I was 

almost certain that I would give ‘For 

Now I Am Winter’ a glowing review. 

I expected (wanted, even) to enjoy 

this album immensely. 

Nadia Sirota 

Baroque 

2013 

www.nadiasirota.com 

A precious gem from Bedroom 

Community. 

If the notion of sitting through an 

hour of Baroque music makes you 

shuffle backwards toward the nearest 

exit, fear not: Nadia Sirota’s 

‘Baroque’ is a rich, contemporary 

album more reminiscent of the 

grand scale of Baroque architecture 

than the scales and chord progressions 

of Baroque music. Made of 

adventurous new compositions 

largely from other members of 

Reykjavík’s Bedroom Community 

collective, Sirota entices a staggering 

timbral variety from the humble 

viola on her sophomore solo 

Album Reviews 

level with ‘Tracing Echoes.’ Gone 

is the brash and bolshy style of 

their debut ‘Sticky Situation’ which 

they followed with a more poised 

and thoughtful second album, 

‘Dry Land.’ In its place is a noirish, 

submerged Euro-dystopia of sleek 

lines, lingering neon and fractured 

urban spaces. 

Musically, you pick up several 

different strands woven into 

body music—from the quasi-tribal 

rhythms of opening track “Threat” 

and the doomy soul of “Nothing 

Is Written In The Stars” to hints of 

John Carpenter in the intro of “Fall” 

and M83-style overloading climaxes 

in the closing piece “Mysteries 

Undone.” 

But the main driver of the album 

is the bass synth sounds that heave 

around the lower ends of the songs 

like a pregnant mothership (I know 

several witch house aficionados 

who’d definitely appreciate the drag 

you experience in “The Water”). “A 

King’s Woe,” their best track, bleeds 

despondency all over the shop with 

Janus’s fragile vocals sitting atop 

heart breaking synth melodies. 

I don’t know if I could dance 

to ‘Tracing Echoes,’ but it’s definitely 

an album whose smothering 

soundwash happily embraces you 

in a womb-like shroud of bass and 

gloom. - Bob Cluness 

So why do I find it so average 

It’s not that it would have functioned 

better as an EP that featured only the 

strongest songs. And it’s not that 

some tracks seem to have been composed 

for film or TV (perhaps I am 

being too cynical there). No, I think 

the main problem is, with the exception 

of “Old Skin,” that it leaves me 

more or less utterly cold. The album 

is not badly performed (far from it), 

but it seems to be lacking passion. 

The strongest songs are those 

featuring Árnor Dan Arnarson (of 

Agent Fresco) and I don’t think 

that is too much of a coincidence. 

His evocative vocals help provide 

a much needed emotional gravity 

to the songs. There is a difference 

between using emotive chords, harmonies 

and melodies and actually 

playing with emotion. ‘For Now I Am 

Winter’ feels like it is lacking in the 

latter and it suffers for it. 

I just cannot get into it as much as 

I hoped I would. - Clyde Bradford 

release, overdubbing her parts into 

a rich string orchestra augmented 

with synths and occasional percussion. 

This is one of those rare albums 

that can serve as both a “gateway 

album” into contemporary classical 

and a deep listening experience for 

those already into the music. Some 

passages, such as the main melodic 

idea in Nico Muhly’s “Étude 3,” 

could almost become verses in a 

singer/songwriter tune if they were 

transcribed for voice and guitar. 

Other pieces evoke the undulating 

arpeggios of Philip Glass (“From 

The Invisible To The Visible”) or the 

pensive shifts between pointillism 

and lyricism found in Gorecki’s writing 

for strings (“Tooth and Nail”). 

But my favourite compositions on 

this album are its last two: “Tristan 

da Cunha” is an electroacoustic 

piece that employs a harmonically 

complex drone in constant evolution 

against melodies rising and 

falling from its surface. And Daníel 

Bjarnason’s “Sleep Variations” 

merits a review all its own—this 

longest and most exceptional piece 

on the album explores almost every 

extended technique possible on the 

viola, overdubbed into a dense horizontal 

vista with equal parts virtuosity 

and tenderness—a beautiful 

end to a great album. 

- Scott Scholz 

A 

Boomtastic 

Concert 

Year 

by 

Davíð Roach & Óli Dóri 

The Boom Years are finally 

back… when it comes to the 

import of popular foreign music! 

Local music lovers still reminisce 

over the 2003-2008 era, when 

musicians such as Eric Clapton, 

Snoop Dogg and The Rapture 

graced our humble soil on a 

monthly, or even weekly basis. All 

that changed when the economy 

crashed and the currency with 

it, making booking foreign artists 

way more expensive. But this 

year seems to be very 2007-ish, in 

a good way. 

At the beginning of May it was 

announced that disco-hitmaker, 

guitarist and funk machine Nile 

Rodgers would be bringing his 

Chic outfit to the country and 

play in Laugardalshöll on July 17. 

Nile has penned and produced 

many of the best disco songs 

from the late 70’s, for his band 

Chic as well as Sisters Sledge 

and Diana Ross. Recently he 

has gathered notoriety for his 

funkafying work on Daft Punk’s 

new mega hit “Get Lucky.” 

News broke during the same 

week that R&B superstar Frank 

Ocean will play a show at the 

same stadium on July 16, the 

night before Chic. 

And that’s not all! Famed 

music festival All Tomorrow’s 

Parties will be held in Keflavík this 

June with Nick Cave & The Bad 

Seeds headlining, and singing 

legend Dionne Warwick will belt 

tunes from her 70-year old pipes 

at Harpa that same month. 

More good things ahead, as 

Talking Heads virtuoso David 

Byrne will perform at Harpa with 

St. Vincent in August, and electronic 

music pioneers Kraftwerk 

will close the Iceland Airwaves 

festival in October. 

Whether this sudden increase 

in concerts by international artists 

is an economically sustainable 

development or if a lot of 

people will go bankrupt remains 

to be seen, but we at Straumur 

applaud this evolution wholeheartedly. 

We are also really excited 

about new Icelandic albums 

coming out. Singer-songwriter 

Jóhann Kristinsson just released 

his third album ‘Headphones,’ 

from which the single “No Need 

to Hesitate” landed on our list 

of best Icelandic songs from last 

year. The album is dramatic and 

beautiful, and Kristinsson has 

matured a lot as a songwriter 

since his last album, ‘Tropical 

Sunday’ released three years ago. 

The band Grísalappalísa 

recently stormed the scene with 

their song “Lóan er komin.” It 

includes members from the late 

Jakobínarína, Oyama and The 

Heavy Experience, and their 

debut album ‘Ali’ comes out this 

spring. Based on the first single, 

they sound like a good mixture of 

Purrkur Pillnikk and Megas, the 

latter of who provided the inspiration 

for the band’s name. We look 

forward to more! 

Finally, after hearing FM Belfast’s 

new single “We Are Faster 

Than You”, we can’t wait for a 

new album from the band. There 

is something about that song that 

reminds us of a futuristic band 

from a great 70s cartoon. Summer 

anthem, anyone 

Sími/Tel. 861 3840 

No photographing allowed 

1½ hour 

Whale 

Watching 

& Puffin Tours 

from Reykjavík 

We are located in the whale watching 

area at Reykjavík Old Harbour. 

Departure times in: June - July - August 

06.00 - 08.00 - 10.00 - 14.00 

Always cheeses and red wine 

offer on Wednesday evenings 

www.facebook.com/kaffibarinn


Date 

32 

On A Date With: 

Ophidian I 

Murder Most 

Waterfowl! 

Feeding fat Icelandic birds at Reykjavik's 

Tjörnin with up-and-coming Ophidian I 

Photos: Alisa Kalyanova 

On the Lord's day of rest (known to most of us as 

Sunday), some like to unwind after a couple nights 

of hard binging and dodgy hedonistic practices. 

Some like to go hiking or cycling in the hills and 

pathways around the city. Others like to spend the 

afternoon nursing coffee and cake in one of the 

many trendy cafés dotted around the city. But for 

real relaxation and Zen peace of mind, true believers 

head to Tjörnin (“The Pond”). Located next to 

Reykjavík City Hall, this small body of water is a 

mecca for feeding the local birdlife and creating 

some much-needed sun-assisted vitamin D. 

So it’s on a chilled, sunny Sunday afternoon 

that I’m at the pond, waiting for a band that has 

experienced an upward surge in fortune in the last 

couple of months. Death metallers Ophidian I may 

not be a household name to the average Icelander, 

but they have marked themselves as a band to 

watch in Iceland’s burgeoning metal scene. 

Last year saw the release of their debut album, 

‘Solvet Sæclum,’ a furious blend of technical 

death metal, chock full of mental riffs and blasting 

breakdowns. Their profile rose further when they 

blew everyone away by winning the 2013 Wacken 

Metal Battle at Harpa, ensuring that they will be 

representing Iceland at this year’s Wacken Open 

Air festival in Germany. 

BREAD IS NOT FOR DUCKS 

Eventually singer Ingó, bassist Þórður, and guitarist 

Símon shuffle up to the shoreline. I ask them 

what they normally do for relaxation, assuming 

that that it doesn't involve birdlife. “I’ve got dogs 

at home so I like to take them for a walk,” Ingó 

says. “I live in the west part of the city, near the KR 

sports club and the university campus, so I take 

them down to Ægisíða along the coast.” 

The other two are far more straightforward 

when it comes to relaxation. “I just play a lot of 

video games I guess, as well as a LOT of guitar, at 

least a couple of hours a day,” Þórður says. “I´m 

pretty much like Þórður actually,” Símon adds. “I 

just play lots of video games.” 

As we approach the water, the band asks if I 

have any bread to feed the ducks. “Bread” I say. 

“BREAD Are you trying to kill these birds” According 

to the (two) websites I checked before 

heading out, bread is unhealthy for birds and can 

actually cause malnutrition and other health problems, 

I tell them. 

“OK, so what ARE you supposed to feed them 

then” Ingó asks. “Well,” I say, “fruits, frozen 

peas, vegetable peelings, and assorted grains, 

including cooked or uncooked rice,” pulling out a 

large bag of the latter. The band looks at the bag. 

They don’t seem convinced. 

CONCEIVED AT EISTNAFLUG 

Before we start our feeding session, we sit on 

a bench and talk about the origins of Ophidian 

I. “We started the band when Símon and I got 

to know each other during Eistnaflug in 2010,” 

Þórður says. “We were both in other bands at the 

time, which were both short-lived, but we ended 

up becoming the best of friends through our similar 

tastes in music.” 

“So we decided to start the band,” Símon 

explains. “When we got back from Eistnaflug, 

Þórður quickly wrote a song and sent it to me. I 

fucking loved that song, and that was the spur for 

us to start the band properly.” 

From there they recruited Dischord band member 

Tumi Snær Gíslason on drums, but it took a 

while before they managed to settle on Ingó as a 

singer. “Ophidian I started out with a guy called 

Magnús, the singer from Gruesome Glory, on vocals,” 

Ingó explains. “But he was never really in 

the band. He just recorded some of the vocals in 

the demo and he only played one gig. Eventually 

Ophidian I were playing as support for the Heaven 

Shall Burn in 2011, and Magnús couldn’t make it, 

so they asked me if I wanted to fill in. And that’s 

how I got involved.” 

Within a year of getting together, Ophidian 

I were in the studio, laying down the tracks for 

their debut album ‘Solvet Sæclum,’ which was released 

in 2012, through the Russian Label SFC Records. 

Unlike many local metal bands, the whole 

process in making the album was a rather speedy 

affair. “Well it only took two or three weeks to record 

the album in Studio Sýrland from scratch, 

because we didn’t have any pauses or breaks,” 

Þórður says. “We just kept at it for hours until 

everything was recorded the way we wanted it. 

Then the rest of the year was taken up with mixing 

and post-production stuff.” 

RICE DOES NOT FLOAT 

We now decide to get some feeding action started. 

Everyone takes handfuls of rice and we throw 

some at the nearest flock of birds. It quickly becomes 

apparent that things aren’t going to plan 

as rice just sinks to the bottom of the pond. While 

bread may be bad for the birds, it actually floats 

on water. This is not good, I say. “This is fucking 

embarrassing,” says Ingó, a bit more succinctly. 

Thankfully a young mother and her child turn 

up next to us brandishing an entire loaf of Bónus 

bread and after some gentle persuasion, she gives 

us several slices and finally we get some bird 

feeding action. While we start a mini riot amongst 

some seagulls, I ask Ophidian I about their performance 

at the Wacken Metal Battle contest. 

“We actually didn't really have any time at all 

to prepare,” Ingó explains, aiming a piece of bread 

at a duck's head. “Tumi, our drummer, actually 

quit a few months ago, although he was still committed 

to this gig as we had signed up for it beforehand. 

So we only started practicing a week before 

the competition. On top of that, I was in Canada at 

the time and I came back a day and a half before 

the concert.” 

“Thankfully a 

young mother and 

her child turn up 

next to us brandishing 

an entire loaf of 

Bónus bread.” 

THE WACKEN VICTORY 

Despite the less than perfect preparation, when it 

came to their performance on the day, it was an 

exhilarating moment for all concerned. “Apart 

from the great sound system and the lighting, 

the stage was probably the biggest obstacle to 

be honest. That stage is actually the same size 

of some of the venues we’ve played!” Ingó says. 

“But we all discussed and agreed beforehand that 

we would go into this with the mindset that we 

had already won and just enjoy playing a venue 

such as Eldborg.” 

“But it was definitely a buzz playing, even with 

my eyes closed most of the time!” Símon muses. 

“When we finished playing, I immediately realised 

from the crowd's reaction that we had a 

big chance.” 

Right now, Ophidian I are preparing hard for 

Wacken with a new drummer and a couple of 

warm up gigs in July. As for their chances, they 

seem rather bullish. “They haven't confirmed too 

many winners from other countries yet, but we’ve 

checked out a few bands and I have to say that 

competition doesn't look too tough,” Þórður says, 

“at least, for now.” 

Eventually all the bread and rice are used up 

and we are left only with fat, angry seagulls. Was 

it a calming experience Judging by the look on 

the faces of the band, they seemed to have some 

fun with it, but a few more beers would have 

made it even better. - Bob Cluness 

Unique, unfiltered 

brewery from the North 

Happy Hour every day from 16–19 

Laugavegur 20B, 101 Reykjavík

33 Music 

Can We Fit More 

Metalheads In Here 

Skálmöld takes centre stage in 

a night of metal debauchery 

With his legendary concentration and 45 years of experience our Master 

Watchmaker ensures that we take our waterproofing rather seriously. 

Gilbert O. Gudjonsson, our Master Watchmaker and renowned craftsman, 

inspects every single timepiece before it leaves our workshop. 

MADE IN ICELAND www.jswatch.com 

11 

MAY 

Gamli Gaukurinn 


gaukurinn 

Photo: Halldór Ingi 

CONCERT 

REVIEW 

Skálmöld has been one of my favourite bands since they released ‘Baldur’ 

in the deep and dark winter of 2010. I saw them shortly thereafter in Gamli 

Gaukurinn and was absolutely blown away. A couple of years later it is 

May 11 and I find myself again, in Gaukurinn, and tonight’s line-up has me 

very excited. 

Kontinuum have been active since 2010 with a solid following although 

they haven’t had the overnight success of Skálmöld. Right from the get go, 

their machine gun drums get the sober crowd riled up—nodding giving 

way to head banging as more tattooed long haired enthusiasts gather 

close to the stage. After a melodic and energetic set, they’ve set the bar 

high for the next band. 

When The Vintage Caravan step up, Gaukurinn is packed. The trio 

unleash on the crowd ‘70s hard rock that is reminiscent of Deep Purple and 

Led Zeppelin, both of whom had disbanded and reunited before The Vintage 

Caravan members were out of their diapers. Most people seem to be 

enjoying themselves, except for a small group of grumpy metalheads who 

twiddle their thumbs in the corner. Luckily for them Skálmöld, is up next. 

Visit Iceland´s largest network of art 

museums in three unique buildings 

www.artmuseum.is 

Tel: (354) 590 1200 

Open Daily 

One Ticket - Three Museums 

Hafnarhús 

Tryggvagata 17, 

101 Rvk. 

Open 10-17 

Thursdays 10-20 

Kjarvalsstaðir 

Flókagata, 105 Rvk. 

Open 10-17 

Ásmundarsafn 

Sigtún, 105 Rvk. 

May-Sept.: 

Open 10-17 

Okt.-Apr.: 

Open 13-17 

Guided tour in English available every Friday at 

11am. in June, July and August at Kjarvalsstaðir 

SONGS OF HEROES, BATTLES, 

BLOOD AND BETRAYAL 

Skálmöld channels the warm up bands’ buzz into a more aggressive 

direction, as befits a headlining act. Even the unfortunate few who don’t 

know or understand the lyrics are pulled in as the rest of the fans passionately 

recite the songs word for word. 

This is the band that everyone came to see. The fans are like a stack of 

gasoline-soaked bales, igniting each time the band members pump their 

fist or clap their hands in the tightly packed venue. Skálmöld switches 

“The fans are like a stack of 

gasoline-soaked bales.” 

mid-way through the concert from their new album, to ‘Baldur.’ Three 

years after release, the songs are still executed with great finesse. 

The rest of the night is a blur of wonderful guitar solos, hard-oninducing 

Viking lyrics, and guttural screams from hell’s frozen depths. 

More mosh pits, more collisions of meaty flesh, and more laughs ensue. 

The floor is sticky with spilled beer, but absent blood or broken teeth. 

As the night comes to a close, I hug fellow fans and walk out with 

them as if they were dear friends. Covered in sweat, with torn up vocal 

cords, I couldn’t be happier with the night. - Tómas Gabríel Benjamin 

Check out these 2 albums by Skálmöld: 

This is Solla Eiriksdottir, the winner 

of Best Gourmet Raw Chef and Best 

Simple Raw Chef in the 2011 and 

2012 “Best of Raw” Awards. Come and try out one 

of her great dishes at her restaurant Gló. 

Baldur (2010) Börn Loka (2012) 

Answer to trivia question on page 2: 

A - Sank two whaling vessels in Reykjavík harbour to protest Icelandic whaling. 

Reykjavík · Engjateigur 19 and Laugavegur 20b · Hafnarfjörður · Strandgata 34 · www.glo.is


Travel 

34 

417 

Leiðarendi 

Distance from Reykjavík: 50km 

Visit Arcticadventures.is for information about booking this trip. 

Down The Rabbit Hole 

by John Wilkins 

Stuck in a crawl space less 

than a metre high while on 

the verge of a claustrophobiainduced 

anxiety attack is perhaps 

not the most ideal situation 

to find yourself in while 

vacationing. That is, unless 

this space happens to be in a 

mind-blowing lava cave just 

outside of Reykjavík, Iceland. 

Photos: Natsha Nandabhiwat 

our very best price is always onl 

highly seductive offers to all our destinations 

iceland, greenland or the faroe islands

35 

Travel 

On the short 25-minute drive to Leiðarendi 

cave, our guide Mike told me about all the 

unusual and striking formations that appear 

in the caves here, and speculated about the 

hundreds of miles of underground caves that 

remain undiscovered in Iceland. However, I 

didn’t entirely grasp what he was describing 

until I witnessed it firsthand. 

We pulled up to our destination and proceeded 

to listen to safety instructions. From 

there, the cave was just a short walk through 

a field of lava rocks overgrown with moss 

and surrounded by snow-covered mountains, 

the quintessential Icelandic landscape. When 

we arrived at the cave, I saw that the mouth 

of it was largely frozen over with snow and 

ice. As we stood around the entrance, I was 

reminded of the classic literary theme in 

which characters like Don Quixote descend 

into caves, inevitably undergoing some sort 

of transformation before they come out. 

Upon entering the cave, we were greeted 

by tubular lava stalactites that spanned the 

ceiling for as far as my headlamp illuminated, 

and a series of magnificent oversized and 

menacing icicles. These icicles, coupled with 

a beautiful, bizarre, glowing fungus on parts 

of the cave roof made for quite a dramatic and 

picturesque display. 

Chains and boundaries marked off parts 

of the cave to prevent visitors from damaging 

some of the brilliant and dazzling underground 

phenomena including miniature towers 

called stalagmites rising from the floor of 

the cave. These boundaries, however, didn’t 

stop someone from taking the cave’s largest 

stalagmite. “I guess somebody thought it 

would look better in their living room than 

here in the cave,” Mike said. What a shame. 

“I 

waved my 

hand in front 

of my face and 

then held it there. 

Nothing. Absolutely 

pitch 

black.” 

THE WORLD’S DARKEST SPACE 

Deep into the cave, we came to something 

of a resting place and everyone took a seat. 

Mike claimed we were going to attempt to 

make “the world’s darkest space,” and instructed 

us to power off our headlamps and 

cameras. I waited for my eyes to adjust to 

the darkness, and then I waited some more. 

I opened my eyes as wide as I could to try to 

see a shred of anything. I waved my hand in 

front of my face and then held it there. Nothing. 

Absolutely pitch black. 

If you managed not to panic or lose your 

mind, you might consider this the best part 

of the tour. I lay all the way down on the 

cave floor, trying to decide whether or not to 

have my eyes open or closed, but of course 

it didn’t matter. I felt my sunglasses in my 

pocket and laughed to myself. And then I 

stopped. Nobody was talking, but it wasn’t 

silent. The water dripping monotonously 

from the roof of the cave was getting louder 

and louder, almost beginning to hurt my 

ears. The previously unnoticed, dank smell 

of volcanic rock also quickly became apparent, 

and the 1˚C temperature of the cave’s 

interior forced me to zip up my jacket. 

When light stops sending information to 

your brain, it’s remarkable how quickly the 

strength of your other senses kicks in. It’s 

also amazing and somewhat strange to think 

that these geological processes and stunning 

formations in the cave are created and 

exist in absolute darkness. This part of the 

tour was indeed my favourite, truly calming 

and ironically “eye-opening.” 

Five minutes of this was all it took to 

completely relax me, and then we continued 

on with exploring as our headlamps flooded 

the cave with light again. We arrived at a fork 

in the cave tube, which Mike explained was 

an alternate way to reach the exit. Although 

in parts of this alternate route there were 

some tight squeezes and some rough terrain, 

Mike assured us that the structures 

we’d see would certainly be worth it. Having 

had some claustrophobia issues in the past, 

I was hesitant to go ducking and crawling 

through ten meters of tight, enclosed 

spaces, but for the most part, I was able to 

remain calm. 

I climbed out of the cave, slipping a few 

times on the thick layer of ice coating the 

rocks. Now there was rain, bright light, and 

huge mountains surrounding me – a completely 

different world from the one I had 

just explored. Although I don’t feel like I underwent 

any kind of transformation underground 

like Don Quixote did in the Cave of 

Montesinos, I did feel a little more observant 

and my mind was at peace. After leaving the 

bizarre, spectacular cave formations behind 

in the dark, I was grateful to have experienced 

a part of Iceland hidden from those 

who aren’t looking for it. 

Know your stalagmites from 

your stalactites 

In limestone caves, stalagmites rise from 

the floor as a result of dripping mineralised 

solutions and calcium carbonate 

falling from the ceiling. The corresponding 

formation hanging from the cave roof 

is known as a stalactite. 

In lava caves, stalagmites are formed 

as a result of the lava’s heat melting the 

ceiling of the tube. When the molten rock 

drips down, the piles of it form these 

miniature towers that are seen today. 

This same process is what creates tubular 

lava stalactites that hang from the 

ceiling. The difference, however, is that 

the molten rock doesn’t separate from 

the cave roof. 

airiceland.is 

GRÍMSEY 

ÍSAFJÖRÐUR 

ÞÓRSHÖFN 

VOPNAFJÖRÐUR 

AKUREYRI 

ine. 

ILULISSAT 

ITTOQQORTOORMIIT 

NUUK 

EGILSSTAÐIR 

KULUSUK 

NARSARSUAQ 

REYKJAVÍK 

THORSHOFN


36 

Exploring The Reykjanes Peninsula 

Ari Trausti Guðmundsson is a trained geophysicist and mountaineer who has written a number of books from short stories and poetry to 

fiction. His most recent English language books are ‘Focus on Iceland,’ a road guide for tourists, ‘Magma,’ a book documenting Icelandic 

volcanoes from the Katla eruption in 1918 to Vatnajökull in 2011, and ‘Eyjafjallajökull on Fire’ about the 2010 eruption. 

this sort. Post yourself on one of the beach rocky 

outcrops and follow the waves rushing ashore, 

before heading back to the parking lot. There, 

you are in for a different treat. 

CAVES AND STACKS 

In TheMaking 

You may have noticed while looking at a map 

of Iceland that the Reykjanes Peninsula, where 

the Keflavik International Airport is situated, has 

a familiar shape. It looks like a boot, like a miniature 

version of good old Italy. You might find 

some similarities, like mountains, seaports and 

volcanic activity but the likeness mostly ends 

there. 

The Reykjanes Peninsula is rugged and even 

desert-like in some areas with most of the vegetation 

consisting of sturdy, low profile grass, 

heather, moss and lichen. Birds are abundant in 

the summer, especially around the spectacular 

marine cliffs like Hafnarberg and Krýsuvíkurbjarg 

in the south, both easily accessible via hiking 

trails. 

Despite a somewhat sombre look, the peninsula 

is, counting Reykjavík, by far the most 

densely populated area in Iceland. It is home 

to five communities west of Hafnarfjörður— 

Vogar, Garður, Sandgerði, Reykjanesbær and 

Grindavík, the latter partly centred around fishing 

and fish processing—and as far east of Grindavík 

to Þorlákshöfn, a thriving town at the centre 

of the municipality Ölfus. 

HARD WORK 

From early on, Icelandic society relied on agriculture, 

fishing and commerce. Fishing was 

done on open rowboats, some of which had a 

low mast and two sails, three to four seasons 

each year. A typical boat had eight or ten sailors 

rowing and a captain ('formaður' in Icelandic) at 

the helm. They used a line and a hook or nets for 

fishing and the catch was divided between the 

crew, many of whom were employees of farmers 

or family members. 

As there were no proper harbours in Iceland 

until late early 20th century, the fishing was carried 

out from makeshift beach landings where 

it was possible to drag the boats inland, away 

from the surf. These places were called ‘verstöð’ 

in Icelandic and there were 100–200 of them at 

different locations at a given time. A large fishing 

verstöð, or station, had room for 10–20 boats 

and close to 200 fishermen. 

Photo: Stuart Richardson 

The fishermen lived in small huts made of 

turf, stones and driftwood until around 1900 

when wooden shacks became more common. 

Life was hard. Small stoves, simple food, wet 

and cold sea conditions and long working hours 

demanded fit and stoic men. The notoriously 

fickle and often bad weather took a heavy toll on 

the crews. Icelandic fishermen perished by the 

thousands in the last few centuries of this type 

of fishing, before the arrival of bigger boats with 

proper rigs (cutters) and motors, and proper 

ports in the 1920's. 

SELATANGAR RUINS 

One of the many fishing stations on the Reykjanes 

Peninsula is called Selatangar. It is situated 

at a somewhat sheltered inlet between 

low cliffs, made by two rugged lava flows that 

entered the sea. It was in use until the late 19th 

Century. 

To get there, take the paved Suðurstrandarvegur 

road, east of Grindavík and Ísólfsskáli, 

which cuts through quarried scoria craters 

(Moshólar) of the older, 2,000-year-old western 

lava flow. If you want to study the interior of a 

scoria crater, examine the craters. The eastern 

flow is from an eruption in 1151 and contains 

Húshólmi, but the craters are farther inland than 

Moshólar. Look for a road sign Selatangar, on 

the seaward roadside. Turn and head for the 

coast (1.5 km) along a bumpy dirt road until you 

reach a small parking lot. An information board 

explains the fishing stations and pictures a fishermen’s 

hut, somewhat too large and elaborate 

in my opinion. 

Leave the car (or bike) and head along a 

somewhat obscure trail across sand and lava 

to the small, black hills in front, slightly to your 

left, for about 10 minutes. You will soon notice 

various ruins with walls made of stacked lava 

stones. Some are remains of the huts; some 

were used for stocking dried fish. While wandering 

between them, you will have to let your 

mind wander to the olden times and realise how 

difficult the fishing must have been and how 

lucky you are not having to endure anything of 

Immediately west of Selatangar, the Moshólar 

lava flow met a barrier, which slowed it down 

or stopped part of the flow. As a result, a lake 

of rather fluid lava accumulated behind the barrier. 

When the barrier broke, the lava pool was 

drained into the sea and the solidified crust subsided 

accordingly. 

From the parking lot, turn west and you will 

see what looks like a lava wall. Walk 50 metres or 

so along the road towards the ocean, turn right 

and head to the most obvious breach in the wall. 

Follow an indistinct trail across smooth lava, 

which crosses a deep and narrow earthquake 

fissure. As soon as you reach the breach, the 

vista across the sunken lava lake reveals Katlar 

in the Katlahraun lava flow. 

The irregularly shaped area is about six to 

nine hundred metres across and is surrounded 

by a 10–20 metre-high wall. Vertical rock pillars 

and former gas chimneys dot the area and 

at the opposite end, small caves meet the eye. 

The structure as a whole resembles the famous 

Dimmuborgir lava labyrinth at Lake Mývatn in 

NE-Iceland. Walk some of the obscure paths and 

marvel at the sights. 

“Post yourself on 

one of the beach 

rocky outcrops and 

follow the waves 

rushing ashore, before 

heading back 

to the parking lot.” 

THE BIRD SANCTUARY 

Before heading to the town of Grindavík or Lake 

Kleifarvatn (and onwards), drive for some 10–12 

minutes farther east until you reach a signpost 

that reads ‘Krýsuvíkurbjarg.’ If it has been removed 

or damaged (yes, that sometimes happens!), 

confer with a road map. A dirt road allows 

you to drive 1–2 km towards the coastline, 

where you can get out and walk along some imposing 

bird cliffs, as far as you wish. 

The cliffs, made of lava layers alternating 

with red or dark scoria layers, are teeming with 

birds from about early May until late July. You 

could be able to spot at least eight different 

species and their flocks may number 50,000– 

60,000. Finally, consider hiking to the lighthouse 

to enjoy the squeaking, whistling and purring 

sounds of the bird traffic. Late in the summer, 

the cliff is almost devoid of birds, but the red, 

brown and black rocks facing the sea are still a 

truly rewarding sight. 

The Reykjanes Peninsula is a young section 

of Iceland. It is a land-born, highly volcanic 

counterpart of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge 

where two tectonic plates diverge at an average 

rate of 2.5 centimetres per year, witnessed 

by the footbridge across an open 

bedrock fissure, about five kilometres distance 

from the Reykjanes lighthouse. 

An area of about 2,000 square kilometres, 

the area contains Ice Age volcanic tuff and 

pillow lava formations as fells and serrated 

mountains from the last glacial periods. 

There are also widespread basaltic lava 

flows and volcanic structures from ice-free 

periods, especially from the last 11,500 

years. 

Four elongated volcanic systems and fissure 

swarms line the peninsula from SW 

to NE. They contain open fissures, normal 

faults, high-temperature geothermal fields 

and numerous volcanic fissures. These 

are lined with various, monogenetic craters. 

Many small and large lava shields are 

found in the area. Eruptions have occurred 

in the three westernmost systems during 

the past millennium, forming a series of 

eruptions in the tenth and eleventh centuries, 

in 1151–1180 and 1210–1240. 

All four volcanic systems have been active 

for thousands of years and are closely 

monitored, including the one closest to the 

Keflavik International Airport, called the 

Reykjanes Volcanic System. The last series 

of eruptions started as an eruption out at 

sea close to the Reykjanes lighthouse and 

then appeared inland as two sets of fissures 

with craters spouting lava and a rather 

small amount of ash and scoria. 

On/off eruptions lasted for about three decades. 

The lava flows are measured in a 

few dozens of square kilometres and can 

be studied around the Blue lagoon and the 

Reykjanes Geothermal Power Plant. The 

second to last series occurred in the nest 

system to the east, called the Trölladyngja 

Volcanic System. During the initial lava 

eruption in 1151, a lava flow surrounded a 

medieval farm. (The ruins of which can be 

found at the end of a hiking trail. Look for 

Húshólmi close to the Suðurstrandarvegur 

road east of Grindavík). 

One day, a new series of volcanic eruptions 

will commence in one of the four volcanic 

systems with an unforeseen impact on the 

communities in SW-Iceland. 

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37 

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Tel 568 6600 • sushisamba.is


Vera is one of the editors of an Icelandic web magazine called Lemúrinn (Icelandic for the native primate of 

Madagascar). A winner of the 2012 Icelandic Web Awards, Lemurinn.is covers all things strange and interesting! 

Go check it out at www.lemurinn.is. 

38 

The Icelandic Tourist Experience In 1925 

Words by Vera Illugadóttir 

In July 1925, a German cruise ship called the SS München stopped 

in Reykjavík, its first stop on a month-long trip to the wild north, 

including subsequent stops in Jan Mayen, Svalbard and the north 

of Norway before returning to Germany in August. 

Iceland’s tourism industry had not really taken off in 1925. A 

cruise ship landing in Reykjavík was rare enough that newspapers 

reported detailed information about the ship, its passengers— 

about 400 people—and their itinerary during their stay in Iceland. 

They stayed in Iceland for two days, spending their first day 

at Þingvellir, where they listened to a lecture about the ancient 

Alþingi, and their second day in Reykjavík, where they enjoyed the 

capital’s rich cultural life including a wrestling match and a performance 

by a female choir wearing national costumes. 

According to an article in the newspaper Vísir, the passengers 

included “members of the German Friends of Iceland society, including 

the director of the society’s new Berlin division, the merchant 

herr Emil Deckert.” Also on board was the photographer 

Richard Fleischhut, who took the photos that appear here. 

The newspaper urged its readers to treat the foreigners with 

“the utmost kindness and friendliness.” 

The Germans coming ashore at the Reykjavík harbour. 

This almost post-apocalyptic scene is actually our 

German tourists exiting the museum of sculptor Einar 

Jónsson on Skólavörðuholt, the hill in the city centre 

where Hallgrímskirkja now stands. The museum, which 

opened in 1923, is the first art museum in Iceland. 

A female choir dressed in Iceland’s national costume 

performing onboard the SS München. 

It is a sad modern development that exhibition matches 

in Icelandic glíma wrestling are no longer held, especially 

for tourists. The German tourists sat in the front 

row for this match staged at Reykjavík’s central square 

Austurvöllur. 

The Germans in Þingvellir, a must-see site for tourists 

in 1925 as in 2013. 

Traditional Icelandic turf dwellings slowly disappeared 

during the first half of the twentieth century, but here 

we see an example from Reykjavík, still inhabited. 

Preparing one of Iceland’s main exports, dried salted cod. 

The hot spring in Laugardalur, where generations of 

Reykjavík’s citizens did their laundry until the 1930s when 

the city got its first hot-water supply. Laugardalur is now 

better known for its swimming pool and sports arena. 

The Green Choice 

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Grænn Kostur | Skólavördustíg 8b 

101 Reykjavík | Sími: 552 2028 

www.graennkostur.is 


Mon - Sat. 11:30 - 21:00 

Sun. 13:00 - 21:00 

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6/11/12 4:50 PM

www.cheapjeep.is 

YOUR ESSENTIAL GUIDE 

TO LIFE, TRAVEL AND 

ENTERTAINMENT IN ICELAND 

STUFFED WITH STUFF Issue 6 YOUR FREE COPY 

info@cheapjeep.is 

+354 562 6555 

Hverfisgata 89 


Every Day 

Summer 

08:00 - 22:00 

Winter 

09:00 - 18:00 

Page 8 

“Icelanders have been arguing about 

whales since retired Vikings settled the island 

in the 9th Century. Lately, whalers on 

the one hand, and whale-watching guides 

on the other, have been arguing whether 

whaling is a danger to the livelihood of 

whale-watching guides.” 

Whale hunting has resumed this year and 

the debate about it rages on 

Page 10 

Glacier Walking 

& Ice Climbing 

Day Tour from 

Reykjavík! 

Arctic Adventures offers the Blue Ice combo trip from Reykjavík City 

for only 21.990 ISK. It is a day tour Glacier walking and Ice Climbing 

on the Sólheimajökull glacier. A packed lunch and a visit to the famous 

Skógafoss waterfall is also included. We can pick you up from your 

hotel or hostel in Reykjavík. 

Come and visit us at Laugavegur 11 next to the Fjallakofinn outdoor 

shop. We are open everyday between 8am and 10pm. You can also 

call us +354-562 7000, e-mail us info@adventures.is, book online 

www.adventures.is, or ask for us at your hotel or nearest tourist 

information center. 

We Proudly Wear 

“That year, Iceland became the first of 

the Nordic countries to be Guest of Honour 

at the Frankfurt Book Fair, boasting 

the motto: “Fabulous Iceland.” At the 

same time, Reykjavík was designated as 

a UNESCO City of Literature.” 

Iceland’s literary achievements are 

getting worldwide recognition 

Page 14 

“At this point, the hipsters of Reykjavík 

know very well how they have been presented 

to the outside world. Journalists 

from fancy magazines have come here, perceived 

us as a bit wacky, quite uninhibited, 

extremely creative, and waxed poetic about 

it all to readers across the world.” 

Is hipster place-marketing really accurate, 

or are we just playing the part 

Page 32 

“As we approach the water, the band 

asks if I have any bread to feed the ducks. 

“Bread” I say. “BREAD Are you trying to 

kill these birds”” 

We took death metal band Ophidian I 

on a duck-feeding date on the pond 

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Music, Art, Films and Events Listings 

+ Eating, Drinking and Shopping + Map 

Issue 6 - 2013 

ADVERTISING 

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YOUR ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO LIFE, TRAVEL AND ENTERTAINMENT IN ICELAND 

Hey, Good Lookin’ 

Face To Face – Portrait Exhibition | ASÍ Art Museum | May 25 – June 23 

Paintings, drawings, sculptures, videos, and audio art comprise the various types of media used to create the portraits 

in this exhibit. Made by both famous and unknown artists, this exhibit features traditional faces in addition to contemporary 

digressions. What this exhibit really explores, though, are the psychological undertones contained in this ancient 

art form. By confronting the different works with each other and presenting the portraits in an atypical way, the 

person behind the official portrait comes through. JW

MUSIC 

CONCERTS & NIGHTLIFE 

The FinesT sandwiches 

in downTown 

oF Reykjavík 

sandholT BakeRy · laugavegi 36 - 101 Reykjavík 

Monday - FRiday 7.30 - 18.15. saTuRday 7.30 -17.30. sunday 8.30-17.00 

May 24 - June 6 

How to use the listings: Venues 

are listed alphabetically by day. 

For complete listings and detailed 

information on venues visit www. 

grapevine.is Send us your listings: 


Friday May 24 

Café Rosenberg 

22:00 Lost Dog (Hundur Í Óskilum) 

Dillon 

20:00 The Wicked Strangers 


21:00 Meik 

Harlem 

22:00 Jordan & Pippen 

Harpa 

15:30 Stravinsky’s 100th Anniversary 

in Dance 

18:30 Queer Choir 

Hressó 

22:00 Rokktríó Jóns Ólafss 

Kaffibarinn 

22:00 Már & Níelsen 

KEX Hostel 

21:00 Reykjavík Music Mess 

Lebowski Bar 

21:00 Jesús 

Prikið 

20:00 Thizone/Egill & Bjössi 

Volta 

21:00 Reykjavík Music Mess 

Saturday May 25 

Bar 11 

21:00 Valdimar Live Radio Show 


22:00 KK & Maggi 

Dillon 

22:00 Ofvitarnir, Saytan and 

Skerðing 


21:00 90s Party! 

Glaumbar 

22:00 Basic House Effect 

Harlem 

22:00 FM Belfast DJs 

Hressó 

22:00 Hunang/DJ Fúzi 

Kaffibarinn 

22:00 FKNHNDSM 

Lebowski Bar 

21:30 Biggie 

Prikið 

23:59 Árni Kocoon 

Sunday May 26 

The Culture House 

17:00 ‘Beauty Promised’ Guitar Trio 

Harlem 

20:30 NBA Night 

Harpa 

20:00 Routeopia Piano Bus 

20:00 Witold Lutoslawski Centennary 

Celebration 

Kaffibarinn 

20:00 Hryndjandi & Kristinn Pálsson 

Lebowski Bar 

21:30 Haraldur Einarsson 

Prikið 

20:00 DJ Gangreen and Dungeon 

Massive 

Monday May 27 

Harlem 

20:00 New Wave Night 

Harpa 

20:00 Sonor Ensemble & Guðrún 

Jóhanna Ólafsdóttir 

Kaffibarinn 

20:00 DJ Pilsner a.k.a. DJ 2.25 

Lebowski Bar 

21:30 Anna Brá 

Tuesday May 28 


22:00 Edgar Smári and Band 

Harlem 

22:00 Wonderism 

Harpa 

20:00 Pearls of Icelandic Song 

Kaffibarinn 

20:00 DJ Katla 

Lebowski Bar 

21:30 Biggie 

Prikið 

20:00 Súr Berndsen 

Wednesday May 29 


21:00 Earthlings & Best Buddys 

Harpa 


21:00 Jussanam Band-Brazilian Jazz 

Kaffibarinn 

22:00 Atli Katnill 

Lebowski Bar 

21:30 Haraldur Einarss 

Volta 

20:00 Elliot Rayman 

Thursday May 30 


22:00 Fleetwood Mac Tribute 

Concert 

Dillon 

22:00 Desibel Night 

Dolly 

22:00 RVK Soundsystem’s Reggae 

Night 

19 

Apr 

The Killer Quartet 

Bömmer 2013 

Kaffistofan | June 7 | 20:00 

7 

June 

Bömmer 2013 proudly features some of Iceland’s most promising 

up-and-coming bands and rappers for a total downer of a party. 

Coming together to perform in one epic show, Pink Street Boys, 

Knife Fights, Lord Pussywhip, and $h∆man $h∆warma guarantee 

angst and bad vibes all the way. The best part about this indie 

rock sausage fest Free admittance. That means more money in 

your wallets and more beer in your stomach. Enjoy! JW 

29 

May 

Rio to Reykjavík 

Jussanam Band 

Harpa | May 29 | 21:00 

Brazilian jazz singer Jussanam has an uncanny ability to induce 

transnational collaboration. Hailing from Rio de Janeiro, she 

moved to Reykjavík in 2008 and in 2011 became an Icelandic 

citizen. Since bringing her Brazilian sound to the far North, she 

has worked with musicians and composers from Iceland, Sweden, 

and the USA. Her second album, ‘Rio/Reykjavík’, was released to 

high acclaim. Jussanam’s band features Icelandic musicians and 

welcomes the summer with warm, sexy beats from Rio. SS 

Glaumbar 

21:00 Reggae Night with DJ Cyppie 

Harpa 

20:00 Iceland Symphony Orchestra 

Hressó 

22:00 Live Hip-Hop Night 

Kaffibarinn 

22:00 DJ Hendrik 

Lebowski Bar 

21:00 House Band 

Loft Hostel 

20:30 Ylja 

Prikið 

20:00 Houskell 

Reykjavik Museum 

of Photography 

Exhibitions all year round 

ADMISSION FREE 

GRÓFARHÚS 6th Floor 

Tryggvagata 15, 101 Reykjavik 

Opening Hours: Mon–Thu 12–19 

Fridays 12–18, Weekends 13–17 

www.photomuseum.is

Friday May 31 


22:00 Fleetwood Mac Tribute Band 

Dillon 

22:00 Champions Of Death and 

Moldun 


23:00 Dimma/Dead Sea Apple 

Glaumbar 

22:00 DJ Seth Sharp 

Harlem 

22:00 Ívar Pétur 

Harpa 

20:00 Routeopia Piano Bus 

Hressó 

22:00 A+/DJ Fúzi 

Lebowski Bar 

22:00 Anna Rakel & Ýr 

Prikið 

22:00 Moonshine & Houseband 

Volta 

23:59 TriAngular feat. BenSol, CasaNova 

& Rix 

Saturday June 1 


22:00 Janis Carol Nielsen Jazz 

Dillon 

22:00 Why Not Jack 


21:00 Rage Against The Machine 

Tribute Band 

Glaumbar 

22:00 Basic House Effect 

Hallgrímskirkja 

12:00 International Organ Summer 

– Hörður Áskelsson 

Lebowski Bar 

22:00 Hallifax the Dude 

Sunday June 2 



– Hörður Áskelsson 

Harpa 

10:00 Atrium String Quartet: The 

Shostakovich Challenge 

20:00 Diana Damrau & Xarvier de 

Maistre 

22:30 Cat 192 

Lebowski Bar 

21:30 Haraldur Einarss 

Monday June 3 

Lebowski Bar 

21:30 Aníta 

Tuesday June 4 

Harpa 


Lebowski Bar 

21:30 Halli Einarss 

Wednesday June 5 



– Schola Cantorum 

Harpa 


Lebowski Bar 

21:30 The Dude 

Thursday June 6 



– Örn Magnússon & Marta 

Halldórsdóttir 

Dillon 

20:00 Þórir Georg/Axel Flovent 

Harpa 

19:30 Wagner Favourites 

20:00 Mezzoforte 30-Year Anniversary 

Concert 

Loft Hostel 

20:30 Ólöf Arnalds 

Boston 

21:00 Funk Night! 

Lebowski Bar 

21:30 House Band 

24 

May 

A Spring Sing 

Queer Choir Spring Concert 

Harpa | May 24 | 18:30 | 2,900 ISK 

Spring has sprung! It's time to retire that favourite winter 

ensemble, black corduroys and a matching black hoodie, and 

add some color to your life. You can start by checking out the 

Reykjavík Queer Choir Spring Concert at Harpa. The group 

will perform everything from traditional Icelandic songs to 

popular English chart-toppers. Proceeds from the ticket sales 

will fund the choir's Summer 2014 trip to Dublin's Various 

Voices, an LGBTI choral competition held every four years. 

So don't be a Debbie Downer, be a Springtime Sue and catch 

these vivid tunes! PY 

1-6 

June 

Organs and Chamber Choirs 

International Organ Summer 

Hallgrímskirkja | June 1-6 

Enjoy sitting on church pews but don’t like all the preaching 

Then oh boy, do we have the perfect event for you! The International 

Organ Summer 2013 kicks off in Hallgrímskirkja in 

the beginning of June, and it looks like a blast! Artists include 

Jörður Áskelsson, the musical director of Hallgrímskirkja, 

Örn Magnússon, the organist of Breiðholtskirkja, and Schola 

cantorum, a renowned chamber choir. Admission fees vary 

by the event, but show up early if you want to get that perfect 

bench. TGB 

Laugavegi 20a, 101 RVK, 552 2300, lebowskibar.is

i8 Gallery 



www.i8.is 

ART 

OPENINGS AND ONGOING 

6 June - 17 August 2013 

ÓLAFUR 

ELÍASSON 

May 24 - June 6 

How to use the listings: Venues 

are listed alphabetically by day. 

For complete listings and detailed 

information on venues visit www. 

grapevine.is Send us your listings: 


Opening 

ASÍ Art Museum 

May 25 

Face To Face-Portraits 

An examination of the varying 

approaches to portraiture. 

Runs until June 23 


June 1 

Lightplay 

Derek Mundell displays 26 paintings, 

large and small, that portray 

Iceland’s particularly ethereal light. 

Runs until August 30 

Mokka Kaffi 

May 24 

Mokka Fólk - Mokka People 

Established in 1958 this café is 

celebrating its 55th birthday with 

an exhibition of black and white 

portraits of its favourite patrons. 


Reykjavík Art Museum - 

Kjavalsstaðir 

June 1 

Icelandic Art 1900-1950 

A collection of over 200 Icelandic 

works from the period of 1900-1950. 

Runs until September 22 


Hafnarhús 

May 25 

All State 

Theresa Himmer’s sound installation 

takes an existing elevator space and 

uses its mechanical and rhythmic 

sounds. 


Reykjavík’s Old Harbour 

June 1-2 

The Festival of the Sea 

An annual event featuring lots of 

fun for the whole family, serving as 

a reminder of how important the sea 

and its sailors are to Iceland. 

Ongoing 


Photography Exhibition 

Two new photography graduates 

display their work on the current 

exhibition in the art exhibition series 

in the Culture House shop and café. 

Runs until May 30 

Medieval Manuscripts, Eddas, 

and Sagas 

It includes principal medieval 

manuscripts, such as Codices Regii 

of the Poetic Edda, Prose Edda, law 

codices and Christian works, not 

forgetting the Icelandic Sagas. 

On permanent view 

Child of Hope - Youth and Jón 

Sigurðsson 

Exploring the life of Icelandic 

national hero Jón Sigurðsson, made 

especially accessible to children, 

families and school groups. 


3 

June 

Better Off TED 

TEDx Reykjavík 

13:00 | Arion Bank Headquarters, Borgartún 19 | 5,000 ISK 

An actor, a musician, a prosthetics engineer, a video game creator 

and product designer walk into a bank. Two of them distract the 

manager while the other three set up a microphone, projector and 

seating, sneak in a bunch of eager-to-listen people and throw 

a flashmob conference! That’s not really how TEDx Reykjavík 

happens, but this spin-off series from the highly acclaimed TED 

program is completely local and independently organised. With 

lectures in both English and Icelandic the day will delight, educate 

and invigorate the mind. Tickets are available at midi.is. RL 

Millennium - Phase One 

A selection of pieces from the 

collection of the National Gallery 

displaying a variety of works by 

Icelandic artists in the last two 

centuries. 


The Library Room 

The old reading room of the 

National Library displays books of 

Icelandic cultural history dating from 

the 16th century to the present day. 


The Einar Jónsson Museum 

The museum contains close to 300 

art works including a beautiful treeclad 

garden adorned with 26 bronze 

casts of the artist's works is located 

behind the museum. 


Hafnarborg 

Art=Text=Art 

An exhibition of more than 80 

drawings, prints, and artist’s books 

by close to 50 artists. The exhibition 

provides broad insight into the many 

ways artists incorporate text into 

their work. 


Hellisgerði, Flower and 

Recreation Park 

The exhibition looks at the public's 

use of the park, vegetation and 

overall mood of the park in different 

time periods. 


Hverfisgallerí 

Magnús Kjartansson 

Works from 1978-1983. 


i8 

Hamish Fulton 

For almost four decades, Hamish 

Fulton has covered 50-80 kilometers 

per day on foot in complete solitude 

with the goal of uniting walking and 

art. 


Knitting Iceland 

Come and knit at Laugavegur 25, 

3rd floor, every Thursday, 14:00 - 

18:00. 


Kling and Bang 

Clive Murphy Exhibit 

Kling & Bang Gallery hosts Clive 

Murphey, a New-York based artist 

who upcycles materials to produce 

works that examine societal 

ideologies and cultural systems. 


Kunstschlager 

Gulldrengurinn 

Works of Elín Anna Þorisdóttir 

and Páll Ivan dedicated to 

“Gulldrengurinn” or “The Golden 

Boy.” 


Latin Dance Studio, Faxafen 12 

Guided Practica 

Argentine tango, Sundays from 

17:30-19:30. Register by phone 821 

6929 or email tangoadventure@ 

gmail.com, 500 ISK for students, 800 

ISK for others. Six-week courses are 

also available. 


Living Art Museum 

The 6th Volume 

The 6th Volume presents works 

and writings chosen by Katrín in an 

attempt to define contemporary art 

via the Icelandic practices that have 

influenced her. 

Hverf isgata 4 


Iceland 

+354 537 4007 

f +354 537 4008 

info@hverf isgalleri.is 

www.hverf isgalleri.is 

MAGNÚS KJARTANSSON 

18 May - 22 June 2013 

The original 

Segway 

tours 

in Reykjavik 

+354 7778808 

www.sway.is 

SCan me

IN YOUR 

POCKET 

WHATS 

INSIDE 

Reykjavík Map Happy Hour Guide Places we like Best of Reykjavík Practical Info 

Reykjavík Area May 24-June 6 Keep it in your pocket 

Two Weeks 

The Grapevine picks the events, places and what to experience the next two weeks 

1-2 

JUNE 

Harbour Party 

Salt-Water Happy 

24 May HOLY BOWLING Since you can't roll on 

shomer Shabbos, head to Lebowski Bar on 

Friday for a burger and live music by Jesús. 

No violent bowling threats involved. 

27 May MANIC MONDAY Dance away your case 

of the Mondays at Harlem's New Wave 

Night, pretending you're Molly, Judd, Ally or 

Emilio. Don't you forget about them! 

30-31 May STEVIE & LINDSAY FOREVER If you're 

not into Fleetwood Mac yet, then 

something is going wrong in your life! 

Since seeing the real deal is like finding 

a unicorn, let this excellent tribute band 

sprinkle a little gold dust on you. Two 

nights in a row, so no excuses! 

The Festival Of The Sea 

Free 

Reykjavík's Old Harbour 

6 June UNDERRATED! Þórir Georg is the best 

local singer-songwriter you've never heard 

of. Do yourself a favour, go to Dillon and 

discover his post-punk lo-fi folk-pop. 

On our little island, the salty ocean air blows 

fiercely into our lungs all year round as we 

shove our faces full of tasty fish, so quite 

naturally we need to celebrate the folks who 

get our food from the watery deep. Formerly 

known as Sjómannadagurinn (Seaman’s Day, 

changed for obvious reasons), this aquatic 

event was first celebrated in Reykjavík and 

Ísafjörður in 1938 and is now a nationwide 

party of all things ocean! It’s family fun for all 

with ferry trips, boat tours, folk music, tasty 

food, rowing contests and dozens of activities 

all weekend long. Come on down to the 

harbour in your Sailor’s Best and honour the 

source of Iceland’s livelihood! RL 

25 - 26 

MAY 

Middle Of Nowhere 

Full Moon Show 

• 456 5552 

18 - 9 

MAY-JUNE 

Conceptual Art 

The Hand That Points 

info@theviking.is 

www.theviking.is 

TAX FREE 

Gyða & Shahzad 

Library of Water (Stykkishólmur) 10:00 - 17:00 

Seize - Darri Lorenzen 

Laugavegur 25 

Darri Lorenzen is obsessed with space and 

perception. In the past he’s worked with giant 

warped mirrors, light, and a stand that once 

held a bust of Karl Marx. In his newest exhibit, 

“Seize”, he turns to gloves. Yes, gloves. Lorenzen 

keeps on his space / perception kick by 

using gloves and hand gestures to express and 

question power. With the addition of words 

from John Holton, “Seize” might make you think 

twice about you react to a hand signal. SS 

Gyða Valtýsdóttir and Shahzad Ismaily play 

a cool full moon show in Stykkishólmur in 

the west of Iceland. Gyða, a classical celloist, 

is best known as one of the pioneers 

behind múm. Shahzad is a renowned and 

versatile musician who has performed with 

the likes of Will Oldham, Sam Amidon and 

Yoko Ono. Whilst in Stykkishólmur, guests 

can enjoy the town’s one road, and its 

Bónus supermarket. Their swimming pool’s 

water has also been accredited by the German 

‘Institut Fresenius,’ which should tell 

you all you need to know. TGB 

find us 

on facebook 

Laugavegur 4 • 101 Reykjavík • Iceland • 555 4477

The Official Tourist 

Information Center 

Aðalstræti 2 101 Reykjavík 

Tel. 590 1500 www.visitreykjavik.is 

A 

The best selection of 

Icelandic design in the 

oldest house in Reykjavík, 

Aðalstræti 10. 

B 

We are open every day. 

www.kraum.is 

EIÐSGRANDI 

MAP 

Places We Like 

Food 

1 Argentína 

Barónsstígur 11a 

Argentína is the best place in the world for a 

red meat-loving person to have a special 

celebration. One of the oldest steak houses 

in town, it has worked hard to earn its name 

and has never wavered from its red meat 

loving stature. 

2 Café Loki 

Lokastígur 28 

ÁLAGRANDI 

KAPLASKJÓLSVEGUR 

ÆGISÍÐA 

KVISTHAGI 

GRANDAVEGUR 

MEISTARAVELLIR 

NESHAGI 

MELHAGI 

HJARÐARHAGI 

HRINGBRAUT 

HAGAMELUR 

FORNHAGI 

HOFSVALLAGATA 

GRENIMELUR 

West 

Side 

HOLTSGATA 

Café Loki is not only a place where one can 

try all of Iceland’s weird and wacky foodstuffs, 

as well as some decidedly delicious, 

unweird dishes. It’s also a great little café that 

locals love to frequent as well as a welcoming 

place for tourists. 

3 Café Babalú 

Skólavörðustígur 22a 

It’s tough to miss the brightly colored Café 

Babalú walking up Skólavörðustígur. A cosy 

place for coffee and cake, the well-worn, 

homey ambience makes it difficult to leave. 

Check out their rooftop patio on sunny days 

as well. 

Vesturbæjar 

4 Munnharpan 

Swimming 

Austurbakki 2 

Pool 

Danish cuisine with the inherent French 

influence and a little more French sprinkled 

on top. Munnharpan is owned by the same 

people that run Jómfrúin, a long-standing 

favourite in the local scene. The meals are 

mostly suitable with plenty of light courses 

offering a selection of smørrebrød (Danish 

open faced sandwiches) mixed with classic 

French courses. 

5 

Krua Thai 


DUNHAGI 

VÍÐIMELUR 

For quick, tasty and well-priced Thai food, 

stop by this family run restaurant for reliably 

good and invigorating meals. Their cute 

harbour-adjacent location is both intimate 

and communal at once. Stay and enjoy 

the vibe or take your food to go, it will be 

delicious either way. 

A 

B 

ÁNANAUST 

C 

ÁSVALLAGATA 

FRAMNESVEGUR 

SÓLVALLAGATA 

D 

E 

REYNIMELUR 

ESPIMELUR 

F 

G 

1 2 3 4 5 

HÁVALLAGATA 

HRINGBRAUT 

FURUMELUR 

BRÆÐRABORGARSTÍGUR 

BIRKIMELUR 

Maritime 

Museum 

MÝRARGATA 

NÝLENDUGATA 

RÁNARGATA 

BÁRUGATA 

ÖLDUGATA 

SÓLVALLAGATA 

National 

library 

FISKISLÓÐ 

TÚNGATA 

University 

of Iceland 

GRANDAGARÐUR 

VESTURGATA 

ÆGISGATA 

National 

museum 

Old 

Harbour 

Area 

SÆMUNDARGATA 

SUÐURGATA 

GARÐASTRÆTI 

TJARNARGATA 

5 

GEIRSGATA 

AÐALSTRÆTI 

SKOTHÚSVEGUR 

HRINGBRAUT 

Main 

Tourist 

Info 

A 

B 

TRYGGVAGATA 

E 7 

Austurvöllur 

D 

KIRKJUSTRÆTI 

Icelandic 

Parliament 

City 

Hall 

Tjörnin 

VONARSTRÆTI 

Hljómskáli 

Park 

Reykjavík 

Art 

Museum 

H 

HAFNARSTRÆTI 

AUSTURSTRÆTI 

FRÍKIRKJUVEGURPÓSTHÚSST. 

SÓLEYJARGATA 

The Old 

Harbour 

12 

VEGUR 

LAUFÁS - 

F 

Taxi 

LÆKJARGATA 

BÓKHL.ST. 

National 

Gallery 

of Iceland 

4 

Down 

Town 

AMTMANNSST. 

BANKASTRÆTI 

10 

6 

ÞINGHOLTSSTRÆTI 

GRUNDARSTÍGUR 

INGÓLFSSTRÆTI 

Harpa 

Concert 

Hall 

9 

BERGSTAÐARSTRÆTI 

ÓÐINSGATA 

BALDURSGATA 

BRAGAGATA 


LAUFÁSVEGUR 

Central 

Bank 

Culture 

House 

HVERFISGATA 

H 

FJÖLNISVEGUR 

8 

SÖLVHÓLSGATA 

National 

Theatre 

SKÓLAVÖRÐUSTÍGUR 

ÞÓRSGATA 

3 

NJARÐARGATA 

LOKASTÍGUR 

FREYJUGATA 

KLAPPARSTÍGUR 

2 

C 

11 

LIN 

LAUGA 

The Eina 

Jónsson 

Museum 

Drinking 

H 

6 Þingholt Bar 

7 ÁTVR (Liquor store) 

TÓMASARHAGI 

LYNGHAGI 

STARHAGI 

FÁLKAGATA 

Þingholtstræti 5 

Located in Center Hotel Þingholt, this bar is 

tucked away just outside of the mayhem 

that is Laugavegur on a weekend night. 

For a quieter evening, check out their daily 

happy hour between 17–19, lounge in their 

chic and modern environment with one of 

the many beers and cocktails on offer. 

Austurstræti 10a 

EGGERTSGATA 

ARAGATA 

STURLUAGATA 

In Iceland, alcohol isn’t sold in the grocery 

shops (that stuff in the shops that looks like 

beer—it isn’t beer. Trust us). You can only 

buy alcohol in the state-owned liquor stores 

named ÁTVR, usually referred to as Ríkið 

(“The State”). Twelve stores are operated 

in the capital area and one is located in 

the city centre. Opening hours for the 

downtown one are: Mon.–Thu. 11:00–18:00, 

Fri. 11:00–19:00, Sat. 11:00–18:00. 

ODDAGATA 

Nordic House 

Culture Center 

8 Kaffibarinn 

Bergstaðastræti 1 

A popular café on weekdays, on weekends 

Kaffibarinn turns into a ticket for a wild night 

out, as the space fills up with the late-night 

souls oozing energy in every corner. With 

DJs playing and the occasional rock band, 

the party usually lasts until early morning, yet 

often manages to leave you begging for more. 

NJARÐARGATA 

VATNSMÝRARVEGUR 

9 Prikið 

Bankastræti 12 

Taxi 

“Serving old men BSÍtheir morning coffee since 

way back, and Coach somehow combining that with 

serving beer and 

Terminal 

hip hop to young folks since 

the late ‘90s. And burgers. And milkshakes. A 

one of a kind place with spirit and soul.” 

GAMLA HRINGBRA 

HRINGBR 

C 

Useful numbers 

Emergency number: 112 

Medical help: 1770 

Dental emergency: 575 0505 

Information: 118 

Taxi: Hreyfill-Bæjarleiðir: 588 5522 

BSR: 561 0000 

Tax Free Refund 

Iceland Refund, Aðalstræti 2, tel: 564 6400 

Tourist information 

Arctic Adventures, Laugavegur 11, 

tel: 562 7000 

City Centre, Aðalstræti 2, tel: 590 1550 

Iceland Excursions – Grayline Iceland, 

Hafnarstræti 20, tel: 540 1313 

The Icelandic Travel Market, Bankastræti 

2, tel: 522 4979 

Trip, Laugavegur 54, tel: 433 8747 

Pharmacies 

Lyf og heilsa, Egilsgata 3, tel: 563 1020 

Lyfja, Laugavegur 16, tel: 552 4045 and 

Lágmúla 5, tel: 533-2300 

Coach terminal 

BSÍ, Vatnsmýrarvegur 10, 

tel: 562 1011, www.bsi.is 

Domestic airlines 

Air Iceland, Reykjavíkurflugvöllur, 

tel: 570 3030, www.flugfelag.is 

Eagle Air, Hótel Loftleiðir, tel: 562-4200 

ÞORRAGATA 

Public transport 

The only public transport available in Reykjavík 

is the bus. Most buses run every 20–30 

minutes (the wait may be longer on weekends) 

and the price per fare is 350 ISK for adults and 

children. Multiple day passes are available for 

purchase at select locations. Complete route 

map available at: www.bus.is. Tel: 540 2700. 

Buses run from 07:00–24:00 on weekdays and 

Taxi 

Reykjavík 

Domestic 

Airport 

10:00–24:00 on weekends. Main terminals are: 

Hlemmur and Lækjartorg 

Opening Hours 

Bars and clubs: According to regulations, 

bars can stay open until 01:00 on weekdays 

and 04:30 on weekends. 

Shops: Mon.–Fri. 10:00–18:00, Sat. 

10:00–16:00, Sun. closed. The shopping centres 

Kringlan and Smáralind as well as most 

supermarkets and tourist shops have longer 

opening hours. 

Swimming pools: Weekdays 06:30–22:00 

and weekends 09:00–17:00, although each 

pool varies plus or minus a few hours. 

Banks in the centre are open Mon.-Fri. 

09:00-16:00. 

Post Offices 

Post offices are located around the city. The 

downtown post office is at Pósthússtræti 3–5, 

open Mon.–Fri. 09:00–18:00. Stamps are also 

sold at bookstores, gas stations, tourist shops 

and some grocery stores. 

NAUTHÓLSVEGUR 

EINARSNES 

BAUGANES 

Hótel Loftleiðir 

SKILDINGANES 

D 

ME

6 7 8 9 

SKÚLAGATA 

SÆBRAUT 

New In Town 

13 Santa Karamba 

Laugevegur 55b 

Blow your nose and toss your cap out the 

window, Santa Karamba has brought the 

fire from south-of-the-border down Mexico 

way! They're willing to share it with you at 

Lauguvegur 55. This fine new establishment 

features classic Mexican dishes, domestic 

beers, and a colourful candy skull mural. 

Viva comida! Viva Islandia! Viva México!! 

Venue Finder 

Music & Entertainment 

Amsterdam 

Hafnarstræti 5 | D3 

Austur 

Austurstræti 7 | E3 

B5 

Bankastræti 5 | E4 

Babalú 

Skólavörðustígur 22 | F5 

Bar 11 

Hverfisgötu 18 | E5 

Bjarni Fel 


Boston 

Laugavegur 28b | F6 

Café Paris 


Celtic Cross 

Hverfisgata 26 | E5 

Den Danske Kro 

Ingólfsstræti 3 | E4 

Dillon 

Laugavegur 30 | F6 

Dolly 


Dubliner 

Hafnarstræti 1-3 | D3 

Esja 


English Pub 


Faktorý 

Smiðjustígur 6 | E5 


Tryggvagata 22 | D3 

Gay 46 

Hverfisgata 46| E5 

Hressó 


Mánabar 


Kaffi Zimsen 


Kaffibarinn 

Bergstraðastræti 1 | E5 

Mánabar 


Nýlenduvöruverzlun 

Hemma & Valda 

Laugavegur 21 | E5 

Næsti Bar 

Ingólfstræti 1A | E5 

Ölsmiðjan 

Lækjargata 10 | E4 

Ölstofan 

Vegamótastígur | E5 

Prikið 

Bankastræti | E4 

Rósenberg 

Klapparstígur 25 | E5 

Sólon 

Bankastræti 7A | E4 

Thorvaldsen 

Austurstræti 8 | D3 

Vegamót 

Vegamótastígur 4 | E6 

H 

KIRKJUSANDUR 

Sigurjón 

Art 

Museum 

HAFNARSTRÆTI 5 & 

SKÓLAVÖRÐUSTÍGUR 10 

LAUGALÆKUR 

S 

KL 

DARGATA 

VEGUR 

r 

UT 

AUT 

VATNSSTÍGUR 

EIRÍKSGATA 

FRAKKASTÍGUR 

Hallgríms 

kirkja 

Church 

GRETTISGATA 

BARÓNSSTÍGUR 

Shopping 

10 Aurum 

Bankastræti 4 

FLUGVALLARVEGUR 

Uptown 

13 

VITASTÍGUR 

NJÁLSGATA 

BERGÞÓRUGATA 

EGILSGATA 

BÚSTAÐAVEGUR 

Sundhöllin 

Swimming 

Pool 

SNORRABRAUT 


SKÓGARHLÍÐ 

GUNNARSBRAUT 

Guðbjörg Kristín Ingvarsdóttir’s natureinspired 

designs are a breath of fresh air 

and a celebrated entity of Icelandic design. 

Her jewellery-cum-concept store offers 

stunning 

accessories for both us and our homes. 

Public phones 

There aren’t many public payphones in the 

city centre. The tourist information centre 

at Aðalstræti 2, City Hall, Kolaportið, 

entrance at Landsbankinn and in Lækjargata. 

Prepaid international phone cards 

are recommended for int’l callers. 

Internet Access 

Most cafés offer free wireless internet 

access. Computers with internet connections 

are available to use at: 

Ráðhúskaffi City Hall, Tjarnargata 11 

Ground Zero, Frakkastígur 8, near 

Laugavegur 45 

The Reykjavík City Library, Tryggvagata 15 

1 

ESKIHLÍÐ 

SNORRABRAUT 

Brynja 

RAUÐARÁRSTÍGURRAUÐARÁRSTÍGUR 

FLÓKAGATA 

SÆTÚN 

SKÚLAGATA 

HÁTEIGSVEGUR 

BORGARTÚN 

12 Kolaportið 


LAUGAVEGUR 

Reykjavík’s massive indoor flea market is a 

wonderful place to get lost for a few hours, 

rummaging through stall upon stall of 

potential treasures. There are heaps of used 

clothing, knitwear and other yard-sale type 

goods from decades of yore, and a large 

food section with fish, meats and baked 

goods. Check out the vintage post cards and 

prints at the table near the army surplus. 

ÚTHLÍÐ 

BÓLSTAÐARHLÍÐ 

Museums & Galleries 

MIKLABRAUT MIKLABRAUT MIKLABRAUT 

REYKJAHLÍÐ 

Hlemmur 

Bus Terminal 

Taxi 

BARMAHLÍÐ 

SKAFTAHLÍÐ 

MÁVAHLÍÐ GRÆNAHLÍÐ 

DRÁPUHLÍÐ 

BLÖNDUHLÍÐ 

SKIPHOLT 

11 

Laugavegur 29 


In business for more than National 90 years now 

(and with good reason), Museum this Laugavegur 

hardware store offers everything you need 

to fix up your house, and compliments it 

with some helpful Klambratún and knowledgeable clerks 

that can even guide Park you through simple 

repairs. So good, you’ll forget Bauhaus even 

exists! 

LANGAHLÍÐ 

The National and University Library, 

Arngrímsgata 3 

Tourist Information Centre, Aðalstræti 2 

Icelandic Travel Market, Bankastræti 2 

Reykjavík Backpackers, Laugavegur 28 

Swimming Pools 

There are several swimming pools in 

Reykjavík. The one in 101 Reykjavík, 

Sundhöll Reykjavíkur, is an indoor one, 

located at Barónsstígur. That pool features 

a nice sunbathing area and some outdoor 

hot tubs. Opening hours: Monday to 

Thursday from 06:30–22:00, Friday from 

06:30–20:00, Saturday from 08:00–16:00, 

and Sunday from 10:00–18:00. 

HÖRGSHLÍÐ 

The 

Tower 

BRAUTARHOLT 

HÁAHLÍÐ 

HÖFÐATÚN 

STAKKAHLÍÐ 

NÓATÚN 

STAKKAHLÍÐ 

STIGAHLÍÐ 

HAMRAHLÍÐ 

NÓATÚN 

HÁTÚN 

MIÐTÚN 

Public Toilets 

Public toilets in the centre can be found 

inside the green poster covered towers 

located, for example, at Hlemmur, 

Ingólfstortorg, by Hallgrímskirkja, by 

Reykjavík Art Museum, Lækjargata and by 

Eymundsson on Skólavörðustígur. Toilets 

can also be found inside the Reykjavík 

City Hall and the Reykjavík Library. 

SKIPHOLT 

ART67 

Laugavegur 67 | F7 

Mon - Fri 12 - 18 / Sat 

12 - 16 

ASÍ Art Museum 

Freyugata 41 | H6 

Tue–Sun 13–17 

www.listasafnasi.is 

Árbæjarsafn 

Kistuhylur 4 



Open daily 11–17 

www.thjodmenning.is 

The Einar Jónsson 

Museum 

Eiriksgata | G6 


www.skulptur.is 

Gallerí Ágúst 

Baldursgata 12 | G5 

Wed–Sat 12–17 

www.galleriagust.is 

Gallerí Fold 

Rauðarástígur 14-16 

| G8 

Mon–Fri 10–18 / Sat 

11–16 / Sun 14–16 

www.myndlist.is 

Kaolin 

Skólavörðustígur 22 | E5 

www.kaolingallery.com 

Gallerí Kling & Bang 


Thurs–Sun from 14–18 

this.is/klingogbang/ 

Ásgrimur Jónsson 

Museum 

Bergstaðastræti 74 

Mon-Fri through Sept. 1 

Gerðuberg Cultural 

Centre 

Gerðuberg 3-5 

Mon–Thu 11–17 / Wed 

11–21 / Thu–Fri 11–17 / 

Sat–Sun 13–16 

www.gerduberg.is 

Hitt Húsið 

Gallery Tukt 

Pósthússtræti 3-5 | E4 

www.hitthusid.is 

i8 Gallery 


Tue–Fri 11–17 / Sat 

13–17 and by appointment. 

www.i8.is 

Living Art Museum 

Skúlagata 28 | E7 

Wed, Fri–Sun 13–17 / 

Thu 13–22. www.nylo.is 

Hafnarborg 

Strandgata 34, Hafnarfjörður 

www.hafnarborg.is 

SÓLTÚN 

HÁTÚN 

Mokka Kaffi 

Skólavörðustígur 3A 

| E5 

www.mokka.is 

KRINGLUMÝRARBRAUT 

The National Gallery 

of Iceland 

Fríkirkjuvegur 7 | F4 


www.listasafn.is 

The National Museum 

Suðurgata 41 | G2 


natmus.is 

The Nordic House 

Sturlugata 5 


www.nordice.is 

Restaurant Reykjavík 

Vesturgata 2 | D3 

www.restaurantreykjavik.is 

Reykjavík 871+/-2 

Aðalstræti 17 | E3 


Reykjavík Art Gallery 

Skúlagata 30 | E7 

Tuesday through Sunday 

14–18 

Reykjavík Art Museum 

composed of 

Hafnarhús 


Open 10-17 

Thursday 10 - 20 


Flókagata 24 

Open 10 - 17 

Ásmundarsafn 

Sigtún 

Open 10 - 17 

More info on 

www.listasafnreykjavikur.is 

Reykjavík City Library 


Mon 10–21, Tue–Thu 

10–19, Fri 11–19, Sat and 

Sun 13–17 

www.sim.is/Index/Islenska/Artotek 

Reykjavík Maritime 

Museum 

Grandagarður 8 | B2 

www.maritimemuseum. 

is 

Reykjavík Museum of 

Photography 


Weekdays 12–19 / 

Sat–Sun 13–17 - www. 

ljosmyndasafnreykjavikur.is 

Sigurjón Ólafsson 

Museum 

Laugarnestangi 70 

www.lso.is 

SÍM 


Mon-Fri 10-16 

Skörin 

Aðalstræti 10 

ÁLFTAMÝRI 


Kringlan 

Shopping 

com 

Mall 

LÁGMÚLI 

Spark Design Space 

Klapparstígur 33 | E5 

www.sparkdesignspace. 

LAUGARNESVEGUR 

HRÍSATEIGUR 

SAFAMÝRI 

LAUGATEIGUR 

SIGTÚN 

HRAUNTEIGUR 

HOFTEIGUR 

ENGJATEIGUR 

F 

HALLARMÚLI 

KIRKJUTEIGUR 

ÁRMÚLI 

HÁALEITISBRAUT 

REYKJAVEGUR 

SÍÐUMÚLI 

FELLSMÚLI 

SUNDLA 

La 

Sw 

Po 

Lau 

ENGJAV 

Lau 

Spo 

ÁRMÚL 

BÚSTAÐAVEGUR 

STIGAHLÍÐ 

Perlan 

LISTABRAUT 

E 

Öskjuhlíð 

OFANLEITI 


LÍÐ

Best Of 

Reykjavík 

Every year around the beginning of July, we make a BEST OF REYKJAVÍK ISSUE celebrating some 

of what makes Reykjavík-life worthwhile, posting some good entries into a hopefully neverending 

discussion. The primary purpose of BEST OF REYKJAVÍK is celebration! It’s about big-upping stuff, 

giving mad props to it and patting it on the shoulder. The following are some nice tips we pulled 

from BEST OF REYKJAVÍK 2012, which you can find in full at www.grapevine.is 

BEST SLICE: 

DEVITO'S 

BEST PLACE TO SHOP 

ORGANIC: 

FRÚ LAUGA 

BEST PLACE TO 

SPEND A SUNNY DAY: 

HJARTAGARÐURINN 

Deli’s sporadic opening hours seem to 

be working against them in the ‘best 

slice’ category this year (along with 

our eradication of the category ‘best 

drunken slice’), keeping them from 

winning for the fourth consecutive 

year. After much debate, our panel 

of experts declared Devito's Pizza by 

Hlemmur as the king of the Reykjavík 

slice, noting that “their slices are 

always consistent in quality,” and “they 

were the pioneers of pizza by the slice 

in this country, and they are still the 

best at it.” As always, Devito's get 

bonus points for the delicious oils and 

spices on offer. 

The couple that runs Frú Lauga shop 

from farmers from all over the country 

and everything in the store is labelled 

so customers knows exactly what they 

are eating and where it comes from. 

Their new downtown location makes it 

easier than ever to shop and eat local. 

Need we say more 

Icelanders like to soak up the sun as 

much as possible. Coffeehouses spill 

out onto the streets where people 

hang out drinking coffee or beer. 

One such place is Austurvöllur. You’ll 

see a lot of people hanging out on 

the grass, but perhaps it’s become 

overrun “There are too many people 

at Austurvöllur, too many people playing 

guitar and singing Bubbi songs,” 

someone noted. “Hjartagarðurinn with 

its shabby, Christiania-like vibe is nice. 

They also have DJs there and you can 

bring beer from a nearby establishment.” 

Located near Hlemmur Located at Óðinsgata 1 Located behind Laugevegur 21 

A GUIDE 

THAT FUCKS 

YOU UP 

A list of every 

Happy Hour in 


101 Hótel 

Every day from 17:00 to 19:00. Beer for 450 

ISK, wine for 645 ISK. 

Austur 


ISK and wine 550 ISK. 

B5 

Every day from 16:00 to 22:00. Beer 

550 ISK, cider 750 ISK, wine 550 ISK. 

Bjarni Fel 

Every day from 17:00 to 19:00. 2 for 1 beer for 

890 ISK. 

Boston 

Every day from 16:00 to 22:00. Beer 500 ISK. 

Wine glass 500 ISK, wine carafe 1000 ISK. 

Celtic Cross 

Every day from 17:00 to 20:00. Gull and Tuborg 

for 500 ISK. 

Den Danske Kro 

Every day from 16:00 to 19:00. 2 for 1 beer 900 

ISK and wine for 900 ISK. 

Dillon 


850 ISK. 

Dolly 

Every day from 16:00 to 20:00. Beer 500 ISK 

and wine 500 ISK. 

Dubliner 

Every day from 16:00 to 20:00. 2 for 1 beer 

(Pilsner Urquell) for 1000 ISK. 

Faktorý 

Every day from 17:00 to 20:00. Gull beer for 

500 ISK. 

Fálkinn bistro 

Every day except Sundays from 17:00 to 22:00. 

Beer for 500 ISK and wine for 500 ISK. 

Harlem 

Every day from 17:00 to 22:00. Beer 550 ISK, 

wine 700 ISK. 

Hemmi og Valdi 

Every day from 12:00 to 20:00 (to 22:00 for 

Viking Lager). Draft beer for 550 ISK, Viking 

Classic and Viking lager. Wine for 700 ISK. 

Download the FREE 

Grapevine Appy 

Hour app! 

Every happy hour in 

town in your pocket. 

Available in the App 

store and on the 

Android Market. 

Hilton Hotel Bar 


ISK and wine for 650 ISK. 

Hótel 1919 

Every day from 16:00 to 19:00. 2 for 1 beer 

for 1000 ISK, white wine for 1190 ISK, Red 

wine for 1290 ISK, Cocktail of the Day for 

1919 ISK. 

Hótel Holt Gallery Bar 

Every day from 16:00 to 19:00. Stella for 475 

ISK, Kaldi for 550 ISK, Wine for 695 ISK, 

sparkling wine for 750 ISK, Cocktail of the 

Week for 950 ISK. 

Hótel Plaza Bar 


ISK. 

Iða Zimsen 

Coffee happy hour every morning from 9:00- 

11:00. Every night from 19:00 to 22:00. 2 for 1 

on Gull and 445 ISK for a 330cl can of beer. 

Kaffi Zimsen 

Sunday - Thurs from 17:00 to 22:00. 2 for 1 

beer for 800 ISK. 

Kaldibar 

Every day from 17:00 to 20:00. 2 beers or 2 

glasses of wine for 900 ISK, 2 for 1 on all 

drinks. 

Kolabrautin 


ISK. Wine for 700 ISK. All cocktails 1000 

ISK. Champagne glass 1500 ISK. 

Lebowski Bar 


900 ISK and wine for 1000 ISK. 

Loft Hostel 

Every day from 16:00 to 19:00. Can of Gull beer 

for 500 ISK. Wine for 700 ISK. 

Micro Bar 

Every day except Saturday from 16:00 to 19:00. 

Selected draft microbrew for 500 ISK, 2 for 1 

on beer on Saturdays. 

Miðgarður Bistro bar 

Every day from 17:00 to 19:00. 50 % off all 

drinks. Beer for 500 ISK, wine for 600 ISK. 

Obladi Oblada 

Every day from 12:00 to 

20:00. Beer for 600 ISK. 

Prikið 

Weekdays from 16:00 to 20:00. 2 for 1 beer for 

690 ISK. 

Roadhouse 

Friday and Saturday 22:00 - 23:00. 2 for 1 Beer 

for 790 ISK, wine for 790 ISK. 

Slippbarinn 

Every day from 17:00 to 19:00. 50% off beer 

475 ISK and wine 500 ISK. 

Stofan 

Every day from 17:00 to 20:00. Beer 

for 500 ISK and wine for 600 ISK. 

Tapashúsið 


950 ISK and wine 1150 ISK. 

Uno 

Every day from 17:00 - 19:00. 50% off all 

drinks. Beer for 450 ISK, wine 575 ISK. 

Uppsalir - Bar & Café 

Every day from 17:00 to 19:00. 2 for 1 Beers for 

900 ISK, except Tuborg Classic for 950 ISK, 

wine for 1100 ISK. 

Þingholtsbar 

Every day from 17:00 to 19:00. 

Viking beer for 500 ISK.

ART 

ONGOING 

– continued – 


Museum of Design 

A Glimpse of Glit 

An exhibtion on chosen items from 

the Glit Pottery from between the 

years 1958 and 1973. 


Nordic Design Today 

Six designers in pursuit of the new 

identity and direction of Nordic 

design, particularly with the 

introduction of digital technology. 


The National Gallery 

Subjective Maps- 

Disappearances 

“Subjective Maps-Disappearances” 

exhibits the work of over 40 artists 

from 15 small European countries. 


Treasures 

Three separate exhibitions showing 

different periods from The National 

Gallery’s personal collection. 


The National Museum 

Across Greenland, 1912 - 1913 

This exhibit features photos taken by 

four explorers who traversed across 

Greenland for a year. 


The Making of a Nation - 

Heritage and History in Iceland 

This exhibition is intended to provide 

insight into the history of the 

Icelandic nation from the Settlement 

to the present day. 


The People Þórsgata 

Alda Lóa Leifsdóttir documents 

the residents of Þórsgata through 

photographs over an eight year 

span. 


Photography in Iceland 1970 - 

1990 


Icelandic silverwork 

A collection of the Icelandic silver 

work is displayed, through pieces 

from different time periods. 


Nordic House 

Drawn 

Twelve Swedish artists show 

drawings that generate a creative 

dialogue about the act and art of 

drawing. 


The Long Moment 

Sarah Cooper and Nina Gorfer fiddle 

with the Icelandic folktale, blurring 

the line between photography 

and painting to create “dreamlike 

realities.” 


Ófeigur Arthouse 

‘Mountain and Shore’ by Samuel 

L. Paden 

This exhibition features encaustic 

paintings (hot pigmented beeswax 

painted and fused on wood panels) 

capturing the artist’s explorations in 

Iceland. 


The Icelandic Phallological 

Museum 

The museum contains a collection 

of more than two hundred and 

fifteen penises and penile parts 

Waiting For The Drop 

'All State' by Theresa Himmer 

1,200 ISK for adults, 600 ISK 

May 25 – September 1 | Hafnarhús | for students, free for children 

You know you are getting into an elevator when you step into the 

elevator, but didn't really know that you are about to go for a ride 

in an elevator Well, if there is any uncertainty, Theresa Himmer’s 

sound installation assures museum guests that they are in fact, in 

an elevator. Theresa uses the mechanical bells and clicks of old 

elevators to create an intensified journey from floor to floor. Playfully 

looping, conjoining, and overlapping, it nears an experimental 

electronic music show, but lasts only as long as you ascend or 

descend the height of Hafnarhús. PY 

belonging to almost all the land and 

sea mammals that can be found in 

Iceland. 

On permanent view. 


Ásmundarsafn 

Tales From the Vault 

A collection of Ásmundur 

Sveinsson’s sculptures tied together 

by a common literary thread. 

Runs until December 30 


Hafnarhús 

Erró - Graphic Art, 1949-2009 

For the first time the general public 

are able to view Erró´s graphic art 

spanning half a century. 


The Reykjavík City Library 

The collection centers around new 

Nordic literature, both fiction and 

nonfiction. The library lends out 

novels, academic publications, audio 

books and more. 


Reykjavík City Museum 

Reykjavík 871 +/- 2: The 

Settlement Exhibition 

Archaeological findings from ruins 

of one of the first houses in Iceland 

and other excavations in the city 

centre. 


Reykjavík Maritime Museum 

From Poverty to Abundance 

Photos documenting Icelandic 

fishermen at the turn of the 20th 

century. 


The History of Sailing 

Iceland's maritime history and the 

Find all art listings 

online 

listings.grapevine.is 

growth of the Reykjavík Harbour. 


The Coast Guard Vessel Óðinn 

This vessel sailed through all three 

Cod Wars and also served as a 

rescue ship to over 200 ships. 


The Reykjavík Museum of Photography 

Horse With No Name - Spessi 

Spessi took portrait photographs of 

numerous bikers during his travels 

and exploration of the biker culture 

in the United States from 2011 to 

2012. 


Sigurjón Ólafsson Museum 

De Profundis 

A collection of sculptures by 

Sigurjón Ólafsson and the paintings 

of his contemporaries. 


SÍM 

‘Andlit Esjunar’ – Rósa Sigrún 

Jónsdóttir 

This exhibit focuses on Rósa’s 

inspiration from years of hiking. It 

includes paintings, drawings, textile 

and sculpture pieces. 


Spark Design Space 

Somethig Fishy 

‘Something Fishy’ is a model making 

kit containing cleaned fish bones 

and paint. The kit was made by 

Róshildur and five designers used it 

to create the exhibition. 


Kópavogur 

Art Museum- 

Gerðarsafn 

Hamraborg 4, Kópavogur 

Tel. +354 570 0440 

Open 11–17 

Closed on Mondays 

www.gerdarsafn.is 

25 Year Birthday Exhibition 

of The Art School of Kópavogur 

Hafnarborg 

The Hafnarfjordur 

Centre of Culture 

and Fine Art 

Strandgata 34, Hafnarfjörður 

Tel. +354 585 5790 

Open 12–17 

Thursdays 12–21 

Closed on Tuesdays 

www.hafnarborg.is 

Hellisgerði 

Pleasure Garden 

Art=Text=Art 

Works by Contemporary Artists 

Travel the 

world of 

music 

Hönnunarsafn Íslands 

Museum of Design 

and Applied Art 

Garðatorg 1, Garðabær 

Tel. +354 512 1525 

Open 12–17 

Closed on Mondays 

www.honnunarsafn.is 

A Glimps of Glit 

– Icelandic Ceramics 

Nordic Design Today 

To the Blue Lagoon 

Box office » 528 5050 » www.sinfonia.is » www.harpa.is

Voted best pizza in Reykjavík! 

F D 

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Mention this ad 

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Seems Like Old Times 

Rauðarárstíg 39 


tel. 577 3838 

www.laluna.is 

We also deliver to 

hotels in Reykjavík 

Check us on tripadvisor.com 

Við Tjörnina 

Templarasund 3, 


Mon-Fri 18.00–00.30 

Sat-Sun 18.00–00.30 

What we think 

Simple food made from local 

ingredients where seafood is the 

star of the show 

Flavour: 

Icelandic cuisine, local ingredients, 

French influence 

Ambience: 

Casual, fine dining 

Service: 

Professional, friendly 

Price for 2 (with drinks): 

17–22.000 ISK 

It was with great pride and excitement 

when I set out to review what was once 

one of my favourite restaurants: Við 

Tjörnina. That being said, I hadn’t actually 

been there for almost five years. Although 

I anticipated some changes to have 

been made since then, my expectations 

were still high given that The Grapevine 

awarded Við Tjörnina 'Best Seafood 

Establishment' in Reykjavík in 2011. The 

sea products of Iceland are, indeed, their 

specialty. The cooking style is predominantly 

French, although with an Icelandic 

twist—using local herbs and vegetables 

unique to the island whenever possible. 

The name, which translates to “By the 

Pond,” is, as the name suggests, located 

by the pond in downtown Reykjavík, 

overlooking both Alþingi and City Hall. 

Entering the restaurant past a narrow 

stairway in the elaborate early 19th 

Century wooden structure feels like time 

travel. Við Tjörnina has been going strong 

for almost 30 years, but the decorations 

and ambiance could well be something 

from a 1950s, upper-class living room. 

After being seated in one of the three 

dining rooms, it became obvious that the 

place could do with a bit of maintenance. 

That is not to say that it looked too old— 

it’s supposed to look old—but one of our 

chairs was just barely hanging together. 

Despite the aesthetics of the place, the 

menu looked promising, consisting of 

four starters, four main courses and four 

desserts. A small menu is a good sign, 

especially if a restaurant prides itself on 

fresh sea products. It should be noted 

that the menu here is regularly changed. 

The wine list, however, could do with a 

bit more variety, while still offering solid 

choices of French and New World reds 

and whites which are all moderately priced 

by Icelandic restaurant standards. 

For my starter I chose the smoked 

salmon (1,950 ISK), served with bits of 

rolled omelette on a bed of rocket and 

slices of radish. The salmon was very tasty, 

the smokiness not overwhelming. My 

companion had the beef carpaccio (2,150 

ISK)—one of two courses that include 

meat from mammals. The carpaccio was 

served with leaves of watercress, pickled 

red onions and a slice of deep-fried camembert. 

The dish was nicely presented on 

a triangular plate, perfectly seasoned and 

very pleasing. 

For the main course I chose the 

redfish with a saffron cream-sauce (3,780 

ISK) while my companion chose blue ling 

with a Dijon and cognac-sauce (3,880). 

Both dishes were served with fresh potatoes 

that had been introduced to some 

Icelandic butter and dill, and julienned 

root vegetables. Very excellent and fitting. 

The redfish itself was a touch overcooked, 

sadly, and therefore a bit dry. The blue 

ling was closer to what it could have been, 

but was also a bit dry. Both courses were 

perfectly seasoned and the sauces were 

excellent, especially the Dijon and cognac 

sauce. It was a shame that the execution 

of the star ingredient, however, was not 

spot on. 

There was not very much room for 

dessert, but I felt obliged and chose a skyrmousse, 

the dessert that had the “lightest” 

sounding name. It was served with a 

nice, tangy emulsion of blueberries and 

crowberries, with whipped cream and a 

Meringue-crumble. The crumble provided 

a nice, sweet crunch that offered a nice 

balance against the tanginess of the berries. 

The mousse itself was light and airy, 

as it should be, with a lovely hint of fresh 

vanilla. 

The service at Við tjörnina is very 

professional, accommodating and friendly. 

Our waiter explained everything very well, 

bread and butter arrived at the right time 

and our glasses were never empty. 

Although it could have been better, my 

visit was overall satisfying, and just like 

five years ago, it offered a genuine, Icelandic, 

post-war experience. And the mere 

fact that it counts nearly three decades 

of continuous service in a city with as 

changeable a culinary climate as Reykjavík 

is testament enough to its quality. 

BJÖRN TEITSSON 

ALÍSA KALYANOVA 

Ban Thai 

the finest Thai restaurant in Iceland 

1 of 10 the best restaurant in Iceland 

best goddamn restaurant 2011 

the best thai food 

year 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and... 

w w w . b a n t h a i . i s 

w w w . y u m m y . i s 

Tel: 692-0564 

Laugavegur 130, ofan við Hlemm 

this two-story house provides magnificent three private rooms on the 2nd floor. 

BanThai is one of the most popular restaurants in the Reykjavik 

authentic Thai cuisine served in a elegant surroundings 

enjoy the best Thai Beer (Singha beer) and Thai wine 

Thai wine has been the winner Award from Austria, 

Germany, Singapore and Thailand 

A l s o R e c o m m e n d . . . . . y u m m i y u m m i Tel: 588-2121 H v e r f i s g a t a 123, 105 Rvk.

Smooth And Sofishticated 

Sjávargrillið (Seafood Grill) 

Skólavörðustíg 14, 101 Reykjavík 

Mon-Thurs 11–22, Fri-Sat 11–23, 

Sun 12–22 (Closed every day 16–17) 

What we think 

An underrated gem in Reykjavík’s 

hoard of restaurants 

Flavour: 

Savoury, French/Icelandic fish-fare 

Ambiance: 

A candlelit driftwood forest 

Service: 

Pleasant and accommodating 

Price for 2 (no drinks): 

7000–12,000 ISK 

I’ve had lunch here once before and 

was pleasantly surprised by the stunning 

quality of the food. Perhaps it’s 

the inconspicuous location or the 

unimpressive façade, but this place 

hardly seems to get any mention— 

I’ve certainly never heard anyone 

rave about it the way I have raved 

about it. But now that the standard 

had been set, could the Seafood Grill 

live up to my expectations 

This was a question best left to 

the shrewd attention of my mother, 

who had agreed to assist me. She 

arrived a little earlier than I did and 

was therefore obliged to wait a little. 

However, she asked me to pass on 

to my readers that the maître d’ 

was most cordial to her, and kindly 

offered her a seat by the reception 

as well as a look at the drink menu. 

Upon my arrival, we were seated 

immediately, water poured into our 

glasses by seemingly invisible hands 

and the menu promptly presented. 

So far, our evening was off to a 

promising start. 

Since my mother and I don’t go 

out often, we decided to start off 

with a celebratory cocktail. I chose 

the house cocktail, which turned out 

to be a fun passion fruit concoction 

with an exotic sprinkle of vanilla. My 

mother’s mango spritzer was less 

exciting, but at least refreshing. 

Choosing our meal took a little 

more time, as there were several 

tempting options: not only various 

starters and grand entrées, but also 

lighter mains such as sushi and 

seafood pasta. Most helpfully, there’s 

a selection of set menus such as the 

Fish Feast and Lobster Feast, which 

range from 5,600–8,700 ISK and 

include at least three courses. Our 

waiter provided a few recommendations 

that helped us finally piece 

together our meal. 

My mother opted for the Fish 

Feast, as it included the famed 

shellfish soup, and I decided to start 

with the perch and grilled langoustine. 

The soup was light and frothy in 

texture, like sea foam, but incredibly 

rich in flavour. My perch and langoustine 

starter came with Jerusalem 

artichokes, pearl onions and celery 

salad, all perfectly cooked to preserve 

their juicy sweetness. It was such a 

succulent and well-balanced dish it 

could easily have sufficed as main 

course. We also ordered two glasses 

of the house wine, an aromatic Spanish 

viura. For 1,300 ISK, I’ve seldom 

found such a nicely balanced white 

wine. 

Our main courses left little to 

be desired: the grilled fish combo 

of perch and cusk was deliciously 

savoury and the same could be said 

of my salt cod and grilled pork belly. 

The vegetables were highlights in 

their own right and not merely 

supplementary colorations (the 

creamed barley and carrot mousse 

were particularly exciting). If I had 

one quip about food, it would have 

to be that my salt cod was, ironically, 

just a teensy bit too salty. I might 

have been overly sensitive to this, 

however, as the starter had left me 

subtly but surely satiated. 

We finished off our meal by sharing 

dessert (a relief since we were 

so full). The creamy white chocolate 

mousse with raspberry meringue 

would have been perfectly pleasing 

on its own, but it came with a 

dill sorbet that could only be safely 

described as interesting. My mother 

didn’t enjoy it, but I found it innovative 

and refreshing. 

On the whole, the evening was 

everything I had hoped for with only 

a few minor flaws. I’ve seldom experienced 

such smooth service in an 

Icelandic restaurant, which is often 

sadly lacking in standards compared 

the quality of the food. If you’re looking 

to share a romantic meal (or treat 

someone special—like your mother) 

then the Seafood Grill is, in the unforgettable 

words of Mary Poppins, 

“practically perfect in every way.” 

PATRICIA ÞORMAR 

ALÍSA KALYANOVA 

#109 Dill is a Nordic restaurant with its 

focus on Iceland, the pure nature and 

all the good things coming from it. 

It does not matter if it’s the 

ingredients or the old traditions, we 

try to hold firmly on to both. 

There are not many things that make 

us happier than giving life to old 

traditions and forgotten ingredients 

with modern technique and our creative 

mind as a weapon. 

Lífið er saltfiskur 

Sturlugata 5 · 101 Reykjavík 

Tel. +354 552 15 22 · www.dillrestaurant.is 

Ó ÐINSTORG 101 REYKJAVÍK ÍSLAND SNAPSBISTRO.IS 

Snapsbistro@snapsbistro.is +354 5116677

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