If you are in Vestmannaeyjabær on Heimæy island, the southernmost town in Iceland, you say: “I am going south to Reykjavík.” Direction: north and west.

At Höfn in Hornafjörður, located directly west of, and at the same latitude as, the capital, you go ‘south’ to the capital. 

In Reykjavík, you go west to Ísafjarðarbær, which is directly north. And in Ísafjarðarbær, you go north to Akureyri although the direction is actually south and east. In Grímsey island, when you say, “I am going ‘north,’” it means “I am going south to Akureyri.”

At the Keflavík International Airport, south and west of the capital, you say, “I am going south,” which means to Reykjavík, north and east of the airport.

You are always going east to Seyðisfjörður, even in Neskaupsstaður, south of the town. And when you take the ferry directly north from Stykkishólmur to the West Fjords, you are going west.

Páll Stefánsson - ps@icelandreview.com