Sometimes one needs to laugh. And when one needs to laugh, one turns to the Twitter account of the Queen. Countless times I’ve cried with laughter reading it and if I feel irritated or sad for some reason, reading it always helps. It’s not the real Queen Elizabeth II tweeting of course, but one doesn’t really care. It’s funny!
So, good people. Check THIS out! You will not be disappointed!
I can’t think of anything more Icelandic than soaking in a hot tub on a cold starry night.
The Hot Tub is a short documentary by Harpa Fönn Sigurjónsdóttir & Askja Films. The film is due to be released in the autumn and is seeking funding on Karolina Fund. A worthy cause to support.
The Hot Tub captures the unique culture of the Icelandic HOT TUBS. Iceland has long been known for its natural, warm water due to geothermal activity. Hence our great, warm swimming pools all around the country with traditional hot tubs on the side. After a good swim it has become a tradition for many Icelanders or “Hot-tubbers” to relax in the hot tub and socialise. On a cold winter morning, this is something that cannot fail.
For some, this has become more than just a tradition, but rather a fundamental ritual to start out the day. In the documentary, we get to know these people and what it is that drives their dedication to the hot tub, what makes them tick, what makes them laugh and what makes them cry.
Anna Sæunn, Harpa Fönn and Eva
Directed by: Harpa Fönn Sigurjónsdóttir
Produced by: Eva Sigurdardottir & Harpa Fönn Sigurjónsdóttir
Production Manager: Anna Sæunn Ólafsdóttir
Animation: Lára Garðarsdóttir
Music by: Kira Kira
Production Company: Askja Films
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I’m standing by the window and it’s a beautiful sunny day in Hampstead. I’m pretty sure it’s warm outside. Back home in Iceland, I would hope it was not just another day of “gluggaveður” which literally means ‘window-weather’. It’s when the weather seems great, when you’re looking through a window from inside, but is actually cold and not so great when you step out without a jacket.
In Iceland Magazine you can read about 10 words and phrases in Icelandic that don’t exist in English. At least not with the exact same meaning.
The article got so popular that now there is another one with more Icelandic words and phrases. My favourite is probably ‘hundslappadrífa’, but what I’ve most often missed not having here are English words for ‘sólarhringur’ and ‘mæðgur/feðgar’. Check it out!
I noticed this street art in my neighbourhood a while ago and I like it. There is something about the little kid that fascinates me. Can’t quite put my finger on it.
I did some research and found out it was made by a street artist called Bambi. Rumours say Bambi is female and a former celeb in the music industry. Nobody knows. Some call her ‘the female Banksy’.
Bambi is from North London and in 2010, the vandalism of a popular Bambi stencil in Primrose Hill reignited a long running London debate over the preservation of street art and resulted in Islington Councillors proposing a community committee be established to rule on the future protection of street art. Her best known work is probably when she commemorated the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton with the satirical slogan ‘A Bit Like Marmite’ across their chests.
When it comes to a new music video from Björk, you wouldn’t expect anything less than something extraordinary, innovative and brilliant. Her new video for Stonemilker, the first track of Vulnicura, is now online and it’s amazing. Directed by Andrew Thomas Huang, it is a 360° virtual reality video shot in Iceland.
To get the full 360 degree experience you can interact with the video. Use your mouse, pull on the screen, or click on the arrows in the top left corner and see what happens! You can get more information about the people behind the video by clicking ‘show more’. Enjoy!
When it comes to traditional British food, I’ve promised myself to try everything at least once. Marmite. Yeah, once was enough. Cream tea on the other hand is something a lady must have regularly. Good thing I’m not a lady then, ’cause it‘s really rich and leaves you feeling like a stuffed puffin. Tastes good though, can‘t deny that.
The reason it‘s called cream tea is not that they pour cream into the tea. Cream tea is a combination of a scone with clotted cream and jam and a cup of tea. However, Cream tea should be served with milk. It got its name from Devonshire cream, or clotted cream as it‘s usually called, produced in the county of Devon. The texture of clotted cream is somewhere between whipped cream and butter and it is not as light as whipped cream. It‘s a bit like what you get when you whip the cream too much.
Fun fact. It matters to some people whether you spread the clotted cream or the jam beforehand. This has been the subject of a long standing rivalry between Devon and Cornwall. In Devon, you traditionally spread cream on the scone first, then you top it with jam. In Cornwall, it‘s the opposite. Jam first, then cream. I’ve tried both methods and haven‘t been able to decide which is better myself, so I’m not taking sides.
The debate doesn’t end here though. They can’t even agree on whether the pronunciation of the delicacy should be “skoan”, or “skon”. So what do you think? Clotted cream or jam first? Skoan or skon?
Yesterday was a grand day for Icelandic film history. I’m still smiling. An Icelandic feature won the ‘Certain Regard’ prize at the Cannes Film Festival. It’s the first time an Icelandic feature gets this prestigious award. The movie is called Rams and it’s director Grimur Hákonarson’s portrayal of the relationship between farmers and their animals in a remote Icelandic valley. I mentioned it in my first entry. The result was not that surprising, after all Rams had gotten great reviews in the media;
The top prizes for the main selection will be awarded tonight during the closing ceremony at the Palais des Festivals in Cannes. Jury presidents, the Coen brothers, will announce the winners. The big question of the day is who will go home with the Palm d’Or!
The year is 1975. I’m 14 years old, standing in front of my grandparents radio singing loudly to a tune that’s been played in the weekly show “Óskalög sjómanna” (Favourite songs of the sailors). The song has come second in The Eurovision Song Contest and is popular in Iceland.
And now let’s fast forward to 1999. The song All Out Of Luck, sung by Selma Björnsdóttir, has become really popular in Iceland, even before it’s Iceland’s entry in The Eurovision Song Contest. On the night of the contest I was visiting Sweden and had a bad fall on the way to a Eurovision party. I twisted my ankle and in the waiting room of the hospital, accompanied by Icelandic doctors working there, I watched Selma perform. Fortunately I made it to the party before the results were in cause Sweden won and All Out Of Luck came second. It’s not unlikely that Sweden will win the contest next Saturday as well.
Not every tourist is blown away visiting Reykjavik Iceland. This hipster most certainly isn’t impressed. Check out the video diary from his trip to Iceland.
Well, truth be told. It’s fictional. In March the Webseries Cloud of Ash went viral and this is a bonus clip. You can also check the series out on Facebook.
Had a lovely day at the annual Primrose Hill Spring Festival. There’s always a variety of tasty street food from different corners of the world, music playing and stalls where artists, designers and antique dealers are selling their products.
Today I spotted quite unusual jewellery and was told it’s made from Vegetable Ivory. It’s a seed produced naturally by the “Phytelephas Macrocarpa” palm tree which only grows in the tropical rainforest of Colombia and a few South American countries.
Vegetable Ivory has become increasingly important as the only natural, ethical and sustainable alternative to elephant ivory, because the texture and colour are almost identical.
I talked to the designer, Martha Lizarazo, who is born and raised in Columbia but has lived in London for a long time. She is passionate about elephant conservation and says the use of this special seed also stimulates the economies in South America and preserves the rain forests. She founded Caliz London some time ago and it is growing fast.
Primrose Hill Spring Festival