Well, You Asked: Habitats and Hunting Grounds

What is the Reykjavík Grapevine staff’s favourite lunch break restaurant?

Given that the office is close to the harbour, we usually have to fight it out with the seagulls over who gets the biggest crumb of cinnamon roll or piece of pylsur that some kind-hearted and easily entertained tourist tosses our way. Nobody said writing during increased inflation was easy. I have a particularly vicious rivalry going on with a one-eyed gull I named Goliath. The feathery bastard likes the same pastries I do, but we’ll see who gets the last laugh.

What’s the prevailing local opinion on all of the electric scooters in downtown Reykjavik?

Although they can be considered an invasive species to the local pedestrian environment, home-grown and then set out to intermingle with the natural surroundings, the electric scooters of Reykjavík have shown a remarkable adaptability. These days they can be found cohabitating with the gaggle of geese, as well as the ducks and swans in the pond. Some have acclimated to seawater and share nesting grounds with flocks of seagulls. The more land-bound scooters can often be found stretching out on sun-warmed concrete along with the cats of Reykjavík. Local residents seem to have mostly become accustomed to the scooters, stepping over them confidently without disturbing them. Although we need to keep an eye on the reproduction rate and how a further increase in the scooter population post-spring may influence the shared living environment.

Why is Pippi Longstocking LINA in Iceland?

Uhm, I think you mean Sigurlína Rúllugardína Nýlendína Krúsimunda Efraímsdóttir Langsokkur. Get it right. But yeah, “Pippi” isn’t really a name here and Iceland is sort of known to change names around a bit to fit the language. Everything gets translated. Everything. Which, yes, can cause an eyeroll here and there but who doesn’t love a little alliteration? Let literature last long, lyrically and lively leaping like a limber lizard off the page.

Well, You Asked is an advice column that we at the Reykjavík Grapevine take very seriously. Send your most pressing questions about Iceland to grapevine@grapevine.is and we may just answer it in an upcoming issue.