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Click on the picture to watch an audio slideshow of a hike to Hraunsvatn lake in Öxnadalur valley in north Iceland, which lies at a height of 490 meters, interlocked between two steep mountains and a small glacier with a view of the majestic Hraundrangar peaks.
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Fjallabyggd (“Mountain Settlement”) is a skier’s dream. Its slopes are perfect for slaloming and there are also tracks for telemark skiing. Winter sporting enthusiasts can also go ice skating or rent snowmobiles. In summer, Fjallabyggd turns into a paradise for hikers. Read this special promotion about one of Iceland’s best hidden gems.
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Iceland’s President Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson met authorities in Washington DC yesterday to discuss a potential cooperation between Iceland and the US on renewable energy.
According to mbl.is, Grímsson and Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, discussed Iceland’s contribution to environmentally friendly energy, including geothermal, and the possibility of harnessing such energy in the US.
A potential cooperation between Iceland and the US on environmental and energy issues was also discussed. Tom Lantos, chairman of the House International Relations Committee, attended the meeting between Grímsson and Pelosi.
Geothermal energy was also a topic of discussion between Grímsson and U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who comes from Nevada where there is geothermal energy. He has lobbied for harnessing such energy in the US.
Grímsson and 2008 presidential hopeful Barack Obama also discussed a potential cooperation between Iceland and the US, and the possibility of opening an international university and research center at the formal US Naval Air Station near Keflavík, Iceland.
Obama said he was interested in visiting Iceland to learn more about how the country switched from coal and oil to renewable energy.
Iceland’s president also met Alexander Karsner, Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, senators Tom Harkin and Jon Tester, Rick Boucher, who sits on the House Energy and Commerce Committee and Ed Markey, chairman of the newly formed House Panel on Global Warming.
A committee from the House Panel on Global Warming is planning a trip to Arctic areas in the next few months, mbl.is reports.
The 11th annual Night of Lights festival begins today in Reykjanesbaer municipality in southwest Iceland. Tomorrow and Saturday night, many of the country’s best bands will play in Reykjanesbaer and on Sunday local choirs will entertain guests.
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Iceland’s cabinet met at the presidential residence Bessastadir at noon today where new ministers were announced: Gudbjartur Hannesson of the Social Democrats will lead a new Welfare Ministry and Ögmundur Jónasson of the Left-Greens a new Ministry for Internal Affairs.
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The average temperature of the three summer months, June, July and August, in Reykjavík this year was 12.2°C (54°F), which makes this the warmest summer in the capital since temperatures were first recorded in 1871, according to meteorologist Trausti Jónsson.
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The comedy sketch show Spaugstofan, which has been shown more or less continuously for 21 years on the Icelandic national broadcaster RÚV, has now been relocated to the private television channel Stöd 2.
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The second issue of the print edition of Iceland Review 2010 has just been published. Entitled “Under the Volcano” the magazine dedicates 20 pages, words and pictures, to the volcanic eruption in Eyjafjallajökull glacier which made headlines all over the word. New subscribers will receive the book 2010 Eruptions as a gift and all subscribers are part of a draw to win a trip to Iceland. Click here to subscribe to the magazine.
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REVIEWS
Dadi Gudbjörnsson's art with its smiley faces, Aladdin's lamps, gleaming hearts, blue mountains and psychedelic flora of unearthly origin reminds me of the cheesy R.E.M. song “Shiny Happy People”. The sugar-sweet naivety fails to amuse me but I must admit it infects my mood with delirious joy.
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Former President of Iceland Vigdís Finnbogadóttir turned 80 on 15 April this year and Mayor Hanna Birna Kristjánsdóttir—in making her an Honorary Citizen of Reykjavík to mark the occasion—observed that Finnbogadóttir’s life was interwoven with that of Reykjavík. In June 1980 Finnbogadóttir made history when she became the world’s first democratically elected female head of state.
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Today, August 30, and tomorrow is your last chance to visit the exhibition “Eau De Parfum” by Andrea Maack at the Spark Design Space in Reykjavík. In the exhibition space, Maack introduces three perfumes that are the result of her collaboration with French perfumery apf aromes & parfums.
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