Is it noble to kill? Healthy, unpolluted Icelandic rivers have provided years of sport for fishermen here and overseas. It’s been good for the economy, as its created income for the significant percentage of farmers who own rivers and it´s been good…

Further south, around lake Näsijärvi, the Nuotta Seine net fishermen have carried on oral traditions, knowledge and sacred relationship with fish in Finland. Their knowledge of place-names such as the island of Pikku Otava carried information about the spawning times and proper…

The Tourism board pointed out that they have been pleased witht the response to their poster campaigns on the Tube and in the Metro, and that they plan to continue with it for next year. While these advertisements may have had some…

Generally speaking, mountains and city culture tend to be mutually exclusive phenomena. Here nothing could be further from the truth. Standing on Mount Esja – the terrace in Reykjavík’s own back garden – it´s possible to look North and East towards the…

In the middle of the wastelands stands something resembling an airplane crash or modern sculpture, but it´s actually two warped, iron girders from the road that used to run through the sands. They stand in testament to the immense power of the…

From mighty death blow to a slap in the face The landscape between Selfoss and Vík is fairly uniform, verdant farmland with an occasional glimpse of ocean. This is the setting for the majority of Njáls Saga, probably the best known of…

The drugs and drink behind him and an early morning regime of workouts in the boxing gym have produced a man who exudes health and energy; a man in his prime. And, as Bubbi celebrates his 25th anniversary as a professional musician,…

Seeing Höddi’s camera, some stop us to deliver quotes: “I came to enjoy the culture and the game itself” says John Poppy, a Heineken beer distributor from Phoenix. Never mind that all I asked him was where I can find Shannon Elizabeth.…

Camping has become keeping up with the Jónssons Still more daring are those who choose to rough it in the hinterlands of suburban Reykajvík. The camping ground in Laugardalur nestled between Laugardalshöll Arena and the Reykjavík Hostel can be an excellent alternative…

Had I been given a broken saddle? Or worse, had a previous rider torn the horn off while being thrown from the horse? I looked to our Swedish tour guide for comfort and an explanation. “That is for Western riding. This is…

No, not a scene from the latest horror flick, but for me an average day at work last summer. It was only a plastic skeleton, but this shiny, clean heap of bones was destined to end up in the Ghost Museum at…

With a dying fishing industry, rapidly shrinking population, and the locals’ rumored penchant for the occult, characterizations of this place tend to breed a certain air of melancholy and mystery, which is enough to provoke at least a sense of curiosity in…

Hallgrímskirkja The mother of them all. Sort of spaceshippy and/or phallic in appearance. Took a lifetime to complete, as it was originally planned in 1914, construction started in 1945, and it was finally consecrated in 1986. Named after 17th century priest and…