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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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Some European Union member states are said to be of the opinion that Iceland should not be granted a loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) until an agreement with Britain in regards to the deposits of Icelandic banks has been reached.
These same EU member states allegedly also believe that Iceland should not be granted a loan from the union’s emergency fund until the dispute surrounding the deposit accounts has been solved, Fréttabladid reports.
Icelandic Committee Members of Parliament of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) Countries (CMP) said they had been given a clear message in that regard from EU officials during a meeting in Brussels earlier this week.
“I believe that extortion is involved,” said MP for the Left-Greens Árni Thór Sigurdsson, who is on the CMP. “[EU officials] said that a loan from the IMF would not happen unless we reached an agreement with Britain. They have influence in the fund and can set terms like that, which is known as extortion.”
Katrín Júlíusdóttir, an MP for the Social Democrats and chairman for the Icelandic division of the CMP, said Iceland’s representatives on the CMP had pointed out that Iceland intended to respect laws and regulations but that they disagreed with Britain on the interpretation of some legal issues.
Júlíusdóttir said Iceland’s representatives in the committee had also pointed out that there should not be a connection between international financial aid and a dispute on insurance for deposits.
British authorities have offered a loan to the Icelandic state so that Icelandic authorities can honor their obligations to Landsbanki account holders in the UK. However, a prerequisite for such a loan is an agreement with the IMF.
According to Fréttabladid, British Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling emphasized that a loan to Iceland would not be granted otherwise in an interview with the Dow Jones news agency on Monday.
Icelandic banks Landsbanki and Kaupthing, both of which have now been nationalized, accepted deposits through their subsidiaries in some European countries, primarily in the UK and the Netherlands. Landsbanki’s Icesave is an example of such a subsidiary.
Click here to read more about the potential IMF loan and here to read more about the development of the Iceland-Britain dispute.
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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The average temperature of the three summer months, June, July and August, in Reykjavík this year was 12.2°C (54°F), which makes this the warmest summer in the capital since temperatures were first recorded in 1871, according to meteorologist Trausti Jónsson.
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The comedy sketch show Spaugstofan, which has been shown more or less continuously for 21 years on the Icelandic national broadcaster RÚV, has now been relocated to the private television channel Stöd 2.
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The crew of the sailboat Santa Maria from Hamburg, Germany, called for assistance when they ran out of fuel 140 nautical miles west of Reykjavík last week. The guard post of the Icelandic Maritime Administration contacted ships that were nearby and as it turned out the whaling ship Hvalur 9 was located closest to Santa Maria.
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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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REVIEWS
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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