RSS feed from icelandreview.com 
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.
more
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.
more
The principal proceedings of the first human trafficking court case began in Iceland yesterday. The accused, who is an Icelandic citizen but originates from Equatorial Guinea, is also suspected of organizing drug smuggling and prostitution.
Reykjavík District Court.
The woman is facing charges for human trafficking, threats and enslavement by having tricked a girl into coming to Iceland and forced her into prostitution, ruv.is reports.
She is accused of taking the girl’s clothing and IDs and threatening to hurt or kill her if she wouldn’t do what she was told.
The woman is also charged for having profited from the prostitution of other women in 2008 and 2009 by enabling a number of men to have sex with them for a charge of ISK 20,000-25,000 (USD 161-201, EUR 100-126).
The prostitution allegedly took place in two apartments in Hafnarfjördur and two in Reykjavík, the latter of which are located on Hverfisgata and Raudarárstígur next to the downtown police station.
An Icelandic man is facing charges for having participated in the aforementioned offenses. He is accused of having received payment for advertising prostitution online and for taking pictures of the victims.
The woman is also charged for having organized the import of 400 grams of cocaine, brought to the country by drug carriers in April this year. She is also facing charges of having bitten a police officer in the back while being searched at Keflavík International Airport in February.
At request of the foreign women, who the accused is facing charges for having forced into prostitution, the court proceedings will take place behind closed doors.
In another human trafficking case, Sudurnes Police are currently working on uprooting a crime ring in Iceland, having arrested a number of people and undertaken house searches, Morgunbladid reports.
Their investigation began with the arrival of a Lithuanian woman to the country, who requested police assistance as she was afraid she would be forced into prostitution.
Five Lithuanian men are currently in custody in relation to this case and yesterday three Icelandic men and two women were arrested. “None of them have confessed to the crimes they are accused of,” substitute Sudurnes Police Chief Alda Hrönn Jóhannsdóttir told visir.is.
Jóhannsdóttir said the investigation is constantly expanding. “We are looking at everything which may be related to the alleged human trafficking and other organized criminal activity and means of communication with the men that we have in custody.”
Click here to read more about this story and here to read more about the current court case.
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.
more
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.
more
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.
more
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.
more
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.
more
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.
more
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.
more
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.
more
