
Watch an audio slideshow of how traditional Icelandic rhubarb stew is made. Rhubarb is one of the few vegetables that grows effortlessly in Iceland and for that reason it used to be a highly-valued addition to the traditional diet of fish and lamb.
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The German film festival “Í skugga stríðs” (“In the Shadow of War”) opened in Reykjavík City Library in cooperation with the Goethe-Institut on Friday and will run through May 13.
The films, which will be screened on the 5th floor in the library’s main building on Tryggvagata, provide a good insight into German cinema in post World War II years, both in East and West Germany, the library’s website states.
The films include Die Mörder sind unter uns, Abschied von Gestern (Anita G.) and Spur der Steine. Click here to read more about the films and program.
On Sunday at 8 pm the Reykjavík Shorts & Docs Festival will open in Bíó Paradís on Hverfisgata with the documentary Town of Runners by Jerry Rothwell, featuring three talented long-distance runners in Bekoji in southern Ethiopia, and the Icelandic short Krass by Tómas H. Jóhannesson about two brothers who operate a car wash and have to deal with a dodgy client with a fancy car.
The opening screenings will be preceded by a reception hosted by UN Women and W.O.M.E.N. at 7:30 pm, an association of women of foreign origin in Iceland. Admission to the event is free.
In other film festival news, the sixth annual Icelandic documentary festival Skjaldborg will take place in Patreksfjörður, the southern West Fjords, May 25-27.
Click here to read more about the Reykjavík Shorts & Docs Festival, which will run through May 9, and go to shortsdocsfest.com to learn more about its program.
ESA
The exchange of power in Iceland took place yesterday when the government of Sigmundur Davíð Gunnlaugsson formally took over from that of Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir and ministers exchange keys.
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Mountaineer Leifur Örn Svavarsson became the first Icelander to reach the peak of Everest, the world’s highest mountain, by the North Face from Tibet just before sunrise yesterday morning.
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Iceland’s new government formally took power today following a state council meeting at Bessastaðir, the presidential residence.
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One of the last tasks of Steingrímur J. Sigfússon while in office as minister of industries and innovation was to issue a regulation on Monday extending the reserve for whales in Faxaflói bay, off Reykjavík in Southwest Iceland. The regulation took affect at midnight.
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The 2013 April-May issue of Iceland Review & Atlantica has been released. Packed with informative and entertaining stories, highlights include an interview with outgoing Prime Minister Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir and the people who know her best, a photo essay of ice caves in Europe’s largest glacier and a colorful feature on life in the West Fjords.
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The 11th Reykjavík Shorts & Docs. Catch it while it lasts!
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The 11th Reykjavík Shorts & Docs Festival opens Thursday, May 9.
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