Order in the Chaos

For city-born Icelanders, it almost feels as if the world of farming is foreign to their own urban culture. At times, it almost feels as if there are two slightly similar nations living in the country. The rural "culture" is more tightly knit, neighbouring farmers must rely on each other, leading to a stronger sense of community overall, which culminates in a yearly event known as réttir. After gathering sheep from the mountains where they graze all summer long, all the farmers show up to sort their sheep from the others. A centuries-old tradition, the sorting of the sheep, is an occasion where all the farmers in the district meet up, and the atmosphere is festive. This year, the farmers of Þverárrétt were joined by a city-born journalist seeing réttir for the very first time.