Maybe it would be best for both Jón Bjarnason and the whole country if he were to move to Grímsey, an uninhabited island in the West Fjords.
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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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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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More than 1,200 people have confirmed their attendance to the National Assembly in Laugardalshöll conference hall in Reykjavík on Saturday. Invitations were sent to 1,500 Icelanders at random, aged 18 and older.
The youngest person to register is 18 and the oldest 88, Fréttabladid reports.
The National Assembly is organized by a group which calls itself the Anthill, and the idea is to collect ideas from Icelanders on how to move forward after the economic crisis. A sample of 1,500 people is considered a valid cross-section of the Icelandic nation.
People who live outside the capital region will be flown in to Reykjavík for free. The assembly begins at 9 am and ends with a meat soup feast in the evening.
Participants will be divided into discussion groups and trained moderators will lead discussions in each group. The assembly’s conclusions will be registered and made public.
According to the National Assembly’s website, a number of individuals, companies, institutions and organizations are contributing towards the organization of the event and covering the cost, estimated ISK 27 million (USD 217,000, EUR 134,000).
The Icelandic government joined the group of supporters on Friday when its ministers decided at a cabinet meeting to contribute ISK 7 million (USD 56,000, EUR 35,000) to the National Assembly.
Organizers are now busy planning the final details of the event.
The initiative has caught the attention of foreign media representatives. A journalist from The Economist is among those who will cover the event as well as German freelance journalist Alva Gehrmann, who was interviewed by Mbl TV.
Click here to read more about the event.
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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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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