Letter from Iceland #30
The "what do you want from me?" edition
Komið þið öll blessuð og sæl!
Now that we’re at the start of a new year and this little project is moving briskly along, I felt it was time for a wee survey to see how I might better serve you, dear reader.
Obviously this newsletter has Iceland as its focus, but Iceland is a land of many facets, and I know that not everyone has the same interests when it comes to our fair isle.
Full disclosure: with the proliferation of accounts dedicated to Iceland, many of which have huge followings, I sometimes wonder what I can bring to the table that is of any value, above and beyond what others are doing. Then I remember that not all have the advantage of being both an outsider and insider in Icelandic society, which I believe is what makes my voice unique.
I have an insider’s perspective primarily because I have full command of the Icelandic language. This is the essential ingredient when it comes to being plugged in to Icelandic society. I can follow discussions and debates and have my finger on the pulse of public opinion. I keep my ear to the ground and know and what concerns the Icelandic people. Moreover, I have studied Icelandic history and folklore, and this gives me insight into our nation’s past and allows me to draw parallels between past and present. I can therefore place current affairs in historical, social and political contexts.
My outsider’s perspective comes from the fact that I was brought up overseas and spent my formative years in a different culture. I moved to Iceland at the age of 31, so came into this society as a foreigner and can definitely relate to those who immigrate here. In many ways I am a native, yet there are a multitude of ways in which I am not, and this has given me the ability to view the Icelanders with what they call the gests auga, the “guest’s eye”—seeing things that someone who is entrenched in a society would not, ordinarily, see.
And since I was brought up in an English-speaking country (Canada) I have a command of English that not many Icelanders have, which allows me to effectively articulate the insiders’ perspective for the outside world.
BUT! enough about me. Back to my original query.
I am very curious to know what you, my valued subscriber, are most interested in getting from these scribbles of mine, so I would be grateful if you could take a moment to answer the following survey.
They only allow five categories and very short questions, so allow me to elaborate:
Everyday life in Iceland today — posts about life in the land of fire and ice, including living with a volatile climate and regular geological upheavals like earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
History and folklore — what life was like in centuries past, what the folk beliefs tell us about survival on this rock in the North Atlantic, and how our history relates to life as it is today.
Political/current affairs analysis — Icelandic politics and corruption, and what it all means for ordinary citizens.
Tourism/tips for touring — the impact of tourism on Icelandic society, plus tips on how to be a responsible tourist and how to tour the island safely.
Even though I have broadly grouped the above into categories, they cannot always be separated from one another. For instance, everyday life in Iceland is inextricably tied up with our history, and that often cannot be separated from politics or corruption (as I wrote about in this post).
I left out the Icelandic language as an option above since I will continue posting and reading my Little Book of Icelandic for paid subscribers, as outlined here.
Oh, one more thing. In-depth analyses of culture or politics can be somewhat complex and difficult to write about with the brevity that a space like this requires. I’ve therefore wondered if folks might be interested in short (10-15 minutes) podcasts here on Substack, on different topics like, say, the quota system, or whaling, or what the stories of the hidden people mean, or the effects of centuries of colonialism on the Icelandic people … to name but four.
And so …
The above two polls will be open for one week, during which I welcome your input.
Meanwhile, if you have anything else you’d like to share, or if there’s something I’ve missed, do let me know in the comments. 🫶
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I like the mix. But I'm also the kind of person who minored in English, because my focus was Anglo-Saxon history, so, of course, I had to learn Anglo-Saxon and read everything available in it (which is not as difficult as it sounds, we really don't have that much).
One idea is the different kinds of milk in Icelandic grocery stores. I was hugely confused when I visited right as the banks were crumbling and was in Bonus, trying to figure out what to buy to eat in the hostel. Also, I was really impressed by skyr flavours. I'm not much for flavoured yogurt, but raspberry apricot skyr is positively addicting (and impossible to get in the US).
A segment on Icelandic candy and chocolate bars might be fun (no, actually, I'm not hungry). With a warning about salty licorice. I love it, but every friend of mine I've given a piece to has threatened to murder me for trying to murder them.
I do love the political and corruption segments.
For those wanting to visit Iceland, how to dress might be useful. Iceland was not nearly as cold as I expected in the winter. Being from Michigan, I know how to layer and the importance of not sweating in the cold, but many don't.
I think you have a good mix of all of them at the moment so I can't say I ever think "well I wish she would do this".
I used to often dream of living in Iceland, but Brexit put pay to that idea (well it being easy anyway) but learning about the politics and leadership in Iceland has certainly been eye opening in that respect (tho I still think UK is less dieserable!)
But I will say there was a podcast called "the week in Iceland" (with Gusgus as the opening music, even better!)which I used to listen to and enjoy a lot as it covered the realities of life in Iceland and not the rose tinted tourist view that many of us (well me certainly) are guilty of leaning towards. I don't know why it stopped but I'm sad that it did. There is a ruv podcast that I have been listening to and it does cover some good topics but focusing on one thing mainly , wheras as that covered a few topics per episodes with a guest each week . I know you can't copy that but just wanted to say how important I thought that podcast was in giving a wider insight into life, politics etc and what you provide as prob been the closest to it in some respects.
So err yeah - I think you have the mix pretty good so far! Maybe a bit more about TV/film/music/books but that all depends on if you can get it I guess (maybe some hot gossip from the filming of Black Sands series 2? 😉😉)