my saga

2006-04-10T15:04:00.000-01:00

The chapter about mutton´s testicals, shark´s meat smelling of ammoniac and all the other ‘Thorablot’ yammies…..

Sheep´s head (including the eyes and teeth), mutton´s tongue, mutton´s testicals, shark´s meat with the strong smell of ammoniac, and…well, all this and a couple of similar traditional icelandic yammies – rather weird for the central European tastebuds – are being relished during this special time of the year starting in the middle of January by almost all the Icelanders and a bunch of foreigners present.

But let´s start nicely in order.
On January 20th began so called THOR (see above the name of the event called THORABLOT; as it comes from the same stem). Long time ago, this period of the year, represented one month in the Icelandic calendar.
The thing is that Icelanders did not know our usual Januaries or Augusts, but had their special months (lasting a little more than 30 days). Most of these months name were inspired by the mythological gods (such as Thorir or Goa, etc.). All these months were very much connected with the weather of those old times and were not matching with our months. That is why, Thor for example begins 20th of January and not 1st of January.
During those old, old times, when the weather in Iceland was really harsh and it was rather cold, there was definitely not an abundance of livestock, but the opposite was the case. And not only the amount of livestock was the problem, but also the way how to store the crops and the food. As a matter of fact, human being is very creative, and the Icelandic Viking even more and thus thanks to the trials and errors, Icelanders have reached to the following conclusions:
It is dangerous to eat raw shark meat. However, once it is left resting in big tubs (there are still disputes, whether the piss was used or not in the past) for some months, it loses its poisonous part and can be fully enjoyed. When the ammoniac odor starts coming out of the tubs and the meat gets brownish, then Vikings are sure that the right time for the full enjoyment of shark’s meat has come.
On top of that, ever searching Vikings have come up with another clever recipe regarding the meat storage. As you can understand, the smart way of storing meat was one of the key things in the time of no electricity and no refrigerators. They´ve figured that using a sour liquid (side product of the dairy called SKYR – similar to yogurt) helps a big deal. The recipe is rather simple. After having chopped and processed all parts (including the head and testicals mentioned already) of the killed animal (usually sheep), it was enough to marinate the pieces of meat. Just to give you and idea, simply imagine 6 pieces of testicals in the whole, marinated and then kept in the cold place.
In addition to the above, smoking was also quite a popular way of storing the lamb meat. And just to paint the picture for you. Well, the Viking took the sheep´s head, then smoked it and then right before eating it, they would just boil it. So imagine a whole sheep´s head being served including the eyes. Yes, yes, you read it well, including the eyes.
Last but not least, we have to mention the fish, of course. Apart from the fact that fish was a part of everyday menu, Vikings have come up with the idea to dry some parts of the fish and as the result have so called dry fish. Ideally, the fish fillets would be hanging on racks somewhere next to the sea and thus would get naturally salted.

And why Thorablot these days at all? What is it all about? Well, at the beginning of the last century, thus it happened that some Icelanders living on Copenhagen felt like remembering the above mentioned traditional food that they used to grow up with. As the result of this, they simply organized a special evening solely dedicated to the celebration of the old ways of food processing as described above.
Thorablot evenings vary depending on each town (village) traditions, but basically it follows the following pattern:
Local communities, be it villages or just small settlements, appoint a committee each year, that is responsible for organizing the whole evening. The evening consists of the entertaining part (usually self irony related to the locals, played in the form of sketches or monologues or short drama pieces, songs, etc.) and eating and drinking part. On top of that, there is a dancing part, of course which usually comes after the eating and entertaining part. The fun starts around eight in the evening and flows all the way till five or six in the morning. All those participating are smartly dressed and are full of glamour and glitter.
I was lucky (just as one can be in Iceland) and was privileged enough to be invited to two Thorablots. One of them took place in the east fjords of Iceland, in the magical town called Seydisfjordur, twice as smalls as Dalvik. This picturesque place is an arrival point for those who reach Iceland by boat, and believe me, it truly is a special place that will catch you from your first step there. The other Thorablot was at ‘ours’…so to speak. Not exactly in Dalvik, but very close to it, in one of the nearby valleys that belongs to magical parts of Dalvik´s surroundings. Dalvik as such had to cancel its own Thorablott due to gradual decrease of the participants.

No need to point out, that my first Thorablot ever was flowing in the spirit of: “Try everything, no matter how disgustingly it might smell.” And even though I have tried everything, I have to say that I´m keeping only a couple of specials in my Icelandic menu. Neither the mutton´s testicals, nor the sharks´meat belong there. Just for your better understanding:
Shark´s meat is being served as a cocktail snack on a toothpick. As soon as you lift the shark´s snack and draw it near your mouth, a draft of the strong ammoniac smell blows your face and that´s the point when the central European tastebuds get stubborn and you hesitate for a moment whether you really want to be a hero. Well, based on the Icelandic advice, it´s important to have some locally distilled liquor at hand so that you can nicely down the piece of strong ammoniac flesh, once you have it in your mouth. It´s good to use BRENIVIN alias Black death belonging to one of those strong ones in Iceland. Well, and once you have it all in your mouth trying to down it all, you try to flow nicely with the ‘enjoyment’ hoping that you´d not need to be flown to the bathroom.
Well, in my case, there was no need for the toilet, but I did have to have a shot, brbrbrbrbrbrbrb. To paint the entire picture, especially for the female part of the readers, I´m sure you can all imagine the odor of the hair colours containing ammoniac. Well, so just let your fantasy work and imagine that I had in my mouth sth very similar to this that you usually have on your head when you´re dying the hair…and I even bravely swallowed it …
The taste of the testicals is not worth describing as I think it´s more than enough to say that I did not like them at all and had really hard times to make myself swallow that one and only gulp.
All in all, the entertaining part was really amusing and enjoyable and there was always someone pleasant to dance with (at each Thorablot, there were around 350 locals present). And in the case of Seydisfjordur, the above, meant pretty much the whole village. I adequately relished all the bits of the both blots. The one close to Dalvik was special when it came down to food. The thing is that everybody present brought his/her own food. People were coming with big baskets full of specials described above and some salads and special local bread with it. Concerning the fact, that the Dalvikian Thorablott was the second one in a row for me, I stuck to my favourites and did not force myself to suffer in relation to the goodie such as shark and so on.
To conclude the whole chapter, I have to point out that not all the Icelanders render homage to the shark and testicals and sheeps´heads including the eyes. But there are still many of them who were brought up with this special food and love it just as much as for example Slovaks love HALUSKY and Czechs BRAMBORAKY (potato dumplings).

All about the journey back from Seydisfjordur and about all that we saw and the places we stopped at will come in the next chapter. ( be patient dear readers!)
Just to draw you in, we also passed a bit of the Icelandic moon country, where the mud is bubbling constantly and the Earth has been endlessly eructing the chimneys of the steam….

2006-04-05T14:48:00.000-01:00

2005-12-12T17:47:00.000-01:00

2005-11-02T14:45:00.000-01:00

After almost one month, enjoying it here up north, with all the possible weather changes, I was lucky enough to get the ride all the way to RVK and back, and could join the rest of the volunteer crew for the whole weekend. This 5-hour ride was just a beautiful movie full of colours, running in front of my eyes…. it was full of mountains with all the possible shapes ranging from the huge ones to those small lava ones. There´s only one main road around Iceland…and so the feeling of being on it and knowing exactly where the south and west is, and what fjord you´re passing, even without the map is rather pleasant. Just imagine the road, which is winding a lot due to the mountains, and as you´re watching it all ahead of you, sometimes you get the feeling that the road ends at the bottom of one of those endless mountains and simply won´t let you further. Aside the road, there are quite a few earth cracks scattered to remind of the strength of the mother earth. And inside them, there are small waterfalls, rivers, be it glacier ones or just the regular ones…..and it all that beauty, there are farms houses in the most lonely places possible, elves´ houses, gorgeous Icelandic horses and fjords and the endless feeling of freedom. One could almost feel like a lord of all this around him. But beware, this land full of contrasts and threats can very quickly remind that the Lord in here is also someone(somethink) else. Well, The mother earth, is The mother Earth.
And today, after a poetic beginning, I will share some bits of the way how Icelanders keep themselves entertained. Well, basically I will do my best in order to present the myth about the hectoliters of alcohol sliding down the Icelandic throats. Bearing in mind that almost every weekend I end up at some parties, or pub nights or all the possible variations of the mentioned, I truly hope that the picture I´m just about to paint for you will be very close to the real one.
Well, however, it is all based on the observations of the laiman and expresses a subjective opinion of the writer and thus can not be considered as the opinion of the publisher :))
(I strongly recommend to discuss this issues with the Icelanders by the pint of a good beer).
Using the style a-la lenka, I will describe the whole picture by pointing out all the necessary details and pertinences.
The fact remains, that the Icelanders work their asses off – literally. They do work a lot and it´s not unusual for an Icelander to have 2 or 3 jobs. In some of them working on 75% basis, or 80% and in some being only during the w-ends and in some during the evenings…and so on. The reason is obvious: just the potatoes and lamb are not sufficient anymore, and the import of all the possible goods from all the world is rather expensive. Well, so it´s not a surprise that after the exhausting work, they really need to party and go adequately crazy. However, party time does not come until Friday, as from Monday to Friday it is important to stay sober. So all the accumulated desire for proper party can explode to its full power, both on Friday and Saturday :)
Here in Iceland, the party story begins in one important alcohol store, owned by state. These chain stores all over the country (in major towns and villages) are the key to the successful hunt for alcohol of all the possible tastes and colours and strengths, but of course for the Icelandic=very expensive prices. I had a good laugh, when I saw the specials of this store J e.g. Czech Budvaiser cost 199 instead of 202 Icelandic Kronas – hahahaha, those who´ve been to central Europe know what I´m trying to say :)
So, here it comes, Friday evening, and the above mentioned store called VINBUTH gets filled with the locals aged over 20 (this is the age limit here) and they buy and buy and buy, loads –really loads, you can hardly imagine the amount. Seems that beer is the most favourite here, but the spirited liquids do get their chance too :)
At this point, it is worth mentioning that the alcohol in bars can be 3 or even 4 times more expensive, and considering the prices here, it is extremely important to drink well enough before you get to the pub or bar. As the result of this, Icelanders usually get together in small groups in the houses of friends and have sth like a preparty, in order to get pissed as much as possible. The more pissed you´re before coming to the pub, the less you´re going to spend there …
And so it happens, that streets and bars get filled around half past twelve or one after midnight. Reminds you of the Spanish style? Correct, but the reasons for getting out so late are very different here, from the ones in Spain.
So, all those who are successfully reaching the streets and bars are pretty much full as eggs already and many of them are watching the ant racesJ Music inside the bars is in its full power and the same goes for my little Dalvik. At the beginning I´d thought it was just some special nights with DJs, but no-no. I was confirmed that Friday and Saturday are simply the loud and crazy days and thus the idea of me having a good chat in the pub like I´m used to had to change quite a bit. Exaggerating a bit, for me it means to repeat the phrase ‘I´m from Slovakia’ in Icelandic at least 30 times, so that the one asking could nod his head in the end and full of surprise say: Ahaaaaaaaa, Slovenia…..
But apparently, there are some special days when even Icelanders can talk to one another in the pub with the relaxing music in the background (let´s see).
The nights out here, usually finish around 4 or 5 in the morning and this is the time, when the crowds head to their homes and finish it all off with the after-party….and…well, you know how it all usually ends.
But, here in Iceland, there is one more specialty worth knowing. It is very usual here that the day after you partied, you simply forget and don´t recognize folks you were going really crazy with the day before. Some told me that the reason is the shame for all that they were doing and how much in their cups they were the past night. Well, thanks to the prep seminar we had at the beginning, once I came here, this phenomenon does not surprise me anymore and I get nicely amused watching this in practice.
As far as the amount of alcohol is concerned, the Icelanders do drink loads. On top of this, they´re really well trained and thus despite being beaten down to ankles, they keep on ‘fighting’ and do carry on, and get some more coffee and get some nap on the table and go on…..of course, it´s Saturday…and it is only once in the week.

2005-10-10T15:37:00.000-01:00

My dear close souls, finally a bit of my icelandic saga that I´m trying to write in order to reflect on things happening to me since I got here.

So, yeah, get tuned, turn some pleasant music on, get yourself your favourite tea or coffee and we’re starting now:

Once upon a time, there not only was, but still is….right below the Arctic Circle in the harsh waters of the Atlantic, magical land called ICELAND. Well, and up north of this land, in one of the nicest fjords (so say the locals) surrounded by great and big mountains (without any trees, of course), is a small place called Dalvik, where I’ve been living for, hm….for almost 3 weeks now.
And as obvious from the picture attached (masterpiece of my dear uncle Dick – for those who know him), Dalvik is really well placed, as it is protected by the slopes of the big mountains from one side and touching the sea in the fjord from the other side. When overlooking the fjord to the other side, we actually see our close neighbours living on the island called Hrisey, which is right in the middle. (haven’t been there yet, but will go soon to check the local farmers and their fresh lamb meat :) and maybe some more…)

Well, when I got here, the mountains had the snowcaps on tops only. But soon the weather got really really crazy, even to the surprise of the locals, and it started snowing a lot, covering the slopes with the white blanket. Basically, it was snowing on and off the whole past week and in some moments I could not help myself and simply felt that the Christmas will be here and that I should start buying the presents - you know this feeling - when you come out in the dark and you see snowflakes falling in the orange light of the public lapms.....
Apart from the fact that I already forgot, what autumn means, I had to get used to the extremely strong gale and hail and all the possible variations of the mentioned. Of course, the Icelandic wind is the one who "wears the trousers here" and if it/he decides to blow you away, it/he has all the means to do it.
And the fact remains, that this wind always whispers in my ear : "The arctic circle is close, my dear!"
The weather had calmed down a bit this week. I almost forgot that winter was here for a while and could actually go for a walk without fighting with the wind. As you can imagine, sun is a rare product here and I only remember a bit of its beam I saw sometime last week. Never mind, as AURORA BOREALIS = Nordic lights have theirs shows every now and then….so it’s a good substitute.
Well, it’s funny how easily the concept of a good weather can change. When I’m walking to work in the morning and there’s only a slight wind and bits of snowflakes flying here and there I consider this a nice day :) But, it’s only morning….cause everything can get different as quickly as within 15 minutes …..velkomin til Islands ….

Do you get the impression that I must be freezing cold here and can simply never get warm? Almost right, but…..since we’re in Iceland we have some other delightful product to compensate the cold with.
The thing is that this land full of contrasts in its every corner, is proud to have not only glaciers but also abundance of the geothermal waters. In practice, this means that every small settlement, including Dalvik, is taking advantage of this as much as they can. Many of you might know that the Icelanders have been having this hot water running in their radiators, heating up their houses. This not being enough, as they also want to do the dishes and have showers. So guess – which is the best hot water to be used? Yes, the one straight from the ground with the odour of sulfur, hmhmhmhmh. But on top of all this the best way to enjoy this hot water is in the pools and hot pots that are all over the country, even in the places, you’d expect them least.
Swimming pools, meaning outdoor ones, and open all year round. And “The Swimming pool” is a truly sacred place here, something like the pubs for Slovaks. It is the place where the Icelanders come to chat about politics, weather, local gossips and all the other important stuff. You must be wondering, how come? Isn’t the pool a place for swimming. Well, it is, but the term swimming pool, means much more than a non-icelander would usually imagine. Apart from the long pool with the lanes, the most important parts are the so called HOT POTS. Hot Pot is a little pool (diameter about 2 meters) with the hot water ranging from 37 to 42 degrees. Just choose the one of your taste, or simply join the one in which the handsome boys or beautiful women are sitting …
Well, and if the Icelander says: ”I’m going to the pool tonight”, in most cases, this would mean the following: They come and sit in the hot pot and while getting nicely warm with the freezing air outside, they get all the important gossips and discuss all the important issues.
You can imagine, that as soon as I started with my regular swimming trainings, they must have thought: Oh, another foreigner …., as I was the only one swimming long distances in the long pool. (this is a bit exaggerated, of course, and there must be some locals swimming long distances too, I just did not happen to see them yet during my hour :).
Well, and so that you have an idea. The pool for swimming has sth like 28degree water or so, well, don’t remember exactly, but its waters are definitely warmer than the air outside.
So as soon as you come out of the changing rooms, you just run and smash yourself to hot water and start swimming to keep warm. And that’s a nice feeling, spiced up with the HOT POT-boil up after :).
During my old times (soon after I arrived in Iceland), when we were around Reykjavik, we’ve discovered a nice hot pot right at the shore overlooking the harbour. And it was really something to be there an hour before closing with the sun set, on my own or with one more soul….No wonder that this one was my favourite and whenever I would go back to RVK, I would definitely dip myself there and hope to enjoy it with some of you visiting :).
Dears, since I’m dalvik I’m kinda agreeably stuck in the middle of nowhere. To get to RVK, takes around 6 hours of driving or 45 minutes of flight from the nearest town to me, which is AKUREYRI (AKU). This is said to be the second biggest in Iceland, with,.. well, 18.000 folks…are you laughing now? Don’t forget this land has only ¼ of a million Icelanders.
I flew away from RVK around middle of September and watched the middle of the planet Iceland breathlessly from the top, following the glaciers and craters and volcanoes with the finger on the map during the flight, looking forward to the explorations waiting for me in the summer. Since then, I’ve been in and/or around Dalvik only. Meaning that thanks to nice locals I get to AKU, anytime someone is driving there – I just need to ask around but so far I only go there to shop in this big cheap store – much cheaper than the one in dalvik – or to party and get together with the other volunteer Teresa, who’s been “stuck”, there :)
But, if the weather is not good, I either get stuck in Dalvik or Aku. One w-end, I truly got stuck due to heavy snowing and just slept over in AKU one more night than planned and was happy to get the ride on Monday when the weather got a bit more sane….yeah, yeah, never make plans in Iceland :).

Well, this is just a beginning, telling some bits about weather mainly – U see, I've already taken up some of the icelandic habits (talking about weather a lot) …next time I’ll share more of the social life here :) and how the locals treat me …:)

P.S.: By the time I've posted this bit online heavy snow and wind has been around for the past night and day and I become snowwoman after 5 minutes of standing out....ah well, the winter has come too early.