North Icelandic Town Celebrates First Day Of Sunlight

Today, the inhabitants of Siglufjörður, on Iceland’s north coast, celebrated a very special day today: the return of sunlight, MBL reports.

It’s no secret that Icelandic winters are characterised by long periods of darkness, but some places fare better than others. Icelanders who live in Reykjavík, for example, are spared the worst of it, as the city is in the southwest and the landscape to the south is relatively flat. Further north, especially for towns flanked by mountains to the south, such as Siglufjörður, they can only enjoy ambient sunlight for much of the winter.

In fact, today marks the first day since mid-November that Siglufjörður residents have been able to enjoy direct sunlight.

The occasion is marked by a massive pancake bake-off, where some 2,000 Icelandic pancakes are consumed. School children were permitted to go on a guided walk to enjoy the sun’s rays, culminating in a sing-along by the local church.

It’s a touching moment, and hopefully one that reminds people that we should be grateful for all the little things that make life worth living, even something as taken for granted as sunlight.