November, 2015 -

30 Nov

Snowblind

snowblind INDEPENDENT talks about the finest books of 2015 ‘to to fire the imagination, engage the grey matter and invigorate the spirit over the festive period’. I was happy to notice that amongst the 8 best crime books is the Icelandic novel Snowblind by Ragnar Jónasson.

‘Icelander Ragnar Jónasson’s first novel in the UK is Snowblind (Orenda, £8.99, trans. Quentin Bates), drawing inspiration from both the Scandinavian tradition and the classic English crime novel. His subject is the corruption that stretches to the upper echelons of Icelandic politics.’

Snowblind is the first book in a series called Dark Iceland. It’s set in Northern-Iceland, mainly in and around the small town of Siglufjörður. HERE you can read an interesting interview with the author and here’s Ragnar’s Twitter account, where you can get to know him even better and find out how to get hold of his book.

19 Nov

Dear Girls!

Screen Shot 2015-11-19 at 10.16.38 A group of strong, courageous feminists won this year’s Skrekkur, which is an annual talent contest, held by the secondary schools in Reykjavik.

Hagaskoli, a school in the West Side District of Reykjavik, won the prize with their feminist poetry and dance. The piece was written and choreographed entirely by the teenage girls themselves, with Una Torfadóttir, Erna Sóley Ásgrímsdóttir og María Einarsdóttir leading the team.

Icelandic women are a force of nature, fighting for equal rights with all means. The winning piece sort of embodied the recent revolutionary campaigns, like #freeTheNipple and #outload. HERE you can read more about what’s been happening this year.

As I’ve said it before; the fight for equality is far from over, but at least the future is bright when young people are as strong and courageous as this!

18 Nov

A Unique Video From Iceland!

Screen Shot 2015-11-18 at 17.53.32 I’ve watched a good deal of videos portraying the breathtaking beauty of my homeland, but this one is different. Vatnajökull is the largest and most voluminous ice cap in Iceland. It’s located in the south-east of the island, covering more than 8 percent of the country.

Tim Kemple is an photographer and filmmaker in his thirties, but also a dedicated climber. In this video you see him and his team of professionals on their adventure in Iceland, climbing the stunning Vatnajökull.

If you want to read more about it, here’s his website.

10 Nov

Kissing in the Tunnel

Screen Shot 2015-11-10 at 12.06.32 The British Film Institute National Archive is brilliant and it’s possible to watch quite a lot of old films online. I’ve watched many precious clips from British film history, like this kiss from 1899. It’s the earliest film kiss held by the BFI National Archive.

‘This story derives from a popular magic lantern slide show and shows a couple in a railway carriage, going into a dark, Freudian tunnel, taking the opportunity to steal a kiss. As the train emerges into the light the couple move apart in a guilty fashion, and although scarcely enough to make your Victorian grandmother blush, it gives the scene its slight frisson of naughtiness. (Bryony Dixon)’

07 Nov

Björk Calls to Action!

Screen Shot 2015-11-07 at 15.13.37 Last week I wrote about David Cameron’s visit to Iceland and mentioned how worried I was about speculations of building a power cable from Iceland to provide the UK with energy. As much as I love living here, and wish this country all the best, I cherish the nature of my homeland more. These plans are dangerous. UK has already negotiated getting power from Norway as you can read in Guardian; ‘The UK and Norway are to build the world’s longest undersea interconnector – a method of linking up electricity and gas networks – to provide enough low-carbon energy for almost 750,000 British homes.’

The world famous musician Björk has for years been a spokesperson for keeping Icelandic nature untouched and now she has called to action. ‘Iceland has a deadline!’ she says.

Björk and Andri Snær Magnason, the prestigious writer and activist, held a press conference yesterday about ‘the latest skirmish in the war to protect Iceland’s highlands from industrialisation’. You can read more in Grapevine. They ask the world to join them against the government to help protecting the Icelandic wilderness. The deadline is in 10 days and if you want to help sign the petition HERE.

The news has already reached international media like BBC, Guardian and Pitchfork.

This is not the first time Björk calls to action, in 2008 she teamed up with Sigur Rós in a concert to raise awareness for Icelandic nature. I’ll never forget that magical day.

And here’s her song Náttúra (Nature)

We can only hope the world will listen this time!

http://heartoficeland.org/

https://www.facebook.com/gaetumgardsins/?fref=ts

http://www.framtidarlandid.is/en/natureiceland

02 Nov

Autumn in London – Photo Gallery

IN AUTUMN

by Winifred C. Marshall (1761-1839)

They’re coming down in showers,
The leaves all gold and red;
They’re covering the little flowers,
And tucking them in bed
They’ve spread a fairy carpet
All up and down the street;
And when we skip along to school,
they rustle ‘neath our feet

[Show slideshow]