Words by

Hassan Harazi

Reykjavík’s Carrie Bradshaw with Birkenstocks

Unlike other well-known photographers who prefer their work to be silver gelatine prints, mounted on fibreboard, Nína Björk opted for the finest expanded polystyrene. All five prints are available to buy for the very reasonable sum of 100.000kr each. Nína Björk will soon go to Denmark for five months to study her art further, so her work is sure to increase in value when she’s learnt how to do it properly. Nína Björk certainly shows that she’s just as talented behind the lens as in front and is not, as some critics say, just a pretty face. Unfortunately, this exhibition closed on the 5th August. Let’s hope that all five prints were sold as this will go some way to keeping Nína Björk supplied in sunglasses and lip-gloss during her stay in Denmark.

Þingvellir National Park

On a recent camping trip to Þingvellir National Park, I happened upon the most delightfully named Café Þing. It’s reassuring to know that in one of the most important places in the country the Icelandic language is held in such high regard and is in safe hands. If anyone would like to visit this historic area, which is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and you don’t have your own car or want to pay the extortionate price for a Golden Circle bus tour, well, hard luck – you can’t. The bus service of the past 60 years has been scrapped. You could buy the Þingvellir CD-ROM and watch it at home though. Incidentally, the Þingvellir Visitor Centre has some very nice wide screen televisions with lots of nice moving pictures. For anyone that doesn’t require their experience to come from a cathode ray tube, simply read your guidebook and then step outside.

Greenpeace and the Whales

So Halldóra Jónsdóttir wasn’t happy to get a letter from Greenpeace about whaling. Had she bothered to read it, she would know that her name and address had been taken out of the national register. This is just a guess, but I suspect that Greenpeace probably paid for the mailing list. I say this as my girlfriend receives copies of the magazine, Orðlaus, and I believe that this is only sent to women between certain ages, with the information coming from the National Register. She’s never asked for this magazine, but then it does come in handy for lining the cat litter tray. Speaking of cats, I’ve been watching the news lately about the abandoned tiny little fluffy-wuffy kittens with their cute little noses and funny little paws. I bet there are a few minke whales out there that wish they were furry and cute.

AND FINALLY…

What do you say to a woman with two black eyes? Nothing, you’ve told her twice already. It’s V Dagur time again. The time of year we say, “No to violence”. The time of year we can all wear the t-shirts and talk the talk. Coincidently, a new sex shop with Reykjavík’s first peep show is now open. Also newly launched is Iceland’s new magazine for men, B og B, featuring the best in cars, electronic goods, music, motorbikes and, of course, naked women. This is also the time of the festivals and as usual Og Vodafone are selling sleeping bags, footballs and tents. A new product to this year’s essential festival accessory range is a whistle. Presumably for revellers to blow during concerts, but given the number of rapes that occur each year, most commonly committed on drunk young girls, maybe a better use would be as a rape alarm.

So lads, let’s try it.
No means No
Stop means Stop
And being semi conscious and unable to speak does NOT mean Yes.