Grænkálspestó

Kale pesto

In other countries, kale is a typical winter vegetable. It is often said that kale should only be harvested after the first frost. Kale doesn't actually need frost to convert starch into sugar; generally low temperatures are enough. Ripe kale contains hardly any starch that could be converted, but continues to produce glucose through photosynthesis. And “generally low temperatures” are not a problem in Iceland, where the low temperatures often exist all summer long.

Here in Iceland, kale grows outdoors and thrives particularly well. The harvest time is usually from July to December and the kale can then be bought fresh in the supermarket. Since there are not that many vegetables here that can grow without geothermal energy, kale is used in a variety of ways in Icelandic cuisine, for example fresh in salads, smoothies or juices, cooked in soups, fried as a side dish or casseroles. There are also kale chips - and they are also very suitable for fresh pesto.

Kale is also good for a healthy diet - like most types of cabbage, it is rich in vitamins, minerals, fiber and protein. It even ranks first among cabbage varieties in terms of its content of vitamins B, E and K, calcium, folic acid and iron. It also contains a number of phytochemicals that regulate cholesterol and blood sugar levels and strengthen the immune system.

Ingredients

100 g fresh kale

3 Tbsp fresh basil

60 g pine nuts

30 g parmesan

1 pinch of garlic powder

1 pinch of fresh pepper

1 pinch of coarse sea salt

80 ml rapeseed oil

Preparation

Wash the kale and basil.

Remove the stem from the kale and pick the basil leaves and cut everything into small pieces.

Place the kale and basil in a tall container, add the pine nuts, parmesan, garlic powder and pepper, pour the rapeseed oil over it and puree everything thoroughly with the blender.

If necessary, add a little more rapeseed oil and mix until the desired consistency is reached.

Finally, season with salt and pepper to taste. Be careful with the salt as the parmesan cheese is already quite salty.

We had the kale pesto as a side dish with the grilled meat and on buttered rye bread (rúgbrauð), both of which were very tasty!

[Translated from here.]

Neyðarkall björgunarsveitanna

Emergency call - the rescue team's keyring

It's that special time of year again - the rescue workers' annual fundraising campaign here in Iceland is underway!

From October 30th to November 3rd, 2024, the rescue workers' volunteers will be back in the country's shopping centers and supermarkets and will be selling the "neyðarkall", the rescue workers' annual keyring.

The small figure costs 3,500 ISK, the equivalent of a good €23.

The proceeds from the sale go to the various departments of the rescue teams and are used to finance their work. By purchasing the key fobs you support the work of the thousands of volunteers who rely on these donations for their training, further education and the purchase and maintenance of their equipment including tools, vehicles and devices.

Landsbjörg / ICE-SAR

The first search and rescue team in Iceland was founded in 1918 in the Westman Islands, as accidents at sea and off the coast of Iceland were common. Since then, numerous Icelandic rescue teams have been deployed voluntarily , ensuring the safety of the population and visitors.

In its current form, Slysavarnafélagið Landsbjör g, the Icelandic rescue organization for air, land and water rescue , was created in October 1999 from the merger of the sea rescue team founded in 1928 and the land rescue teams. It is a voluntary organization with approximately 18,000 members .

These people are voluntarily on call day and night all year round to prevent accidents in an emergency and to save lives and ultimately property.

The association's patron is the President of Iceland .

Iceland lives with natural hazards of various kinds, so it is essential that every village and town has a team of volunteers . According to the association, there are currently 93 rescue teams , 37 accident prevention departments and 48 youth departments in Iceland, which form a close-knit network throughout the country and provide voluntary help in the event of an emergency.

Financing the work

The member units are financially independent. They consist of volunteers who take on important tasks for the community. They rescue stranded hikers in the mountains, fly accident victims to the hospital, take care of travelers who are stranded in bad weather, pull cars out of the water and are always available when help is needed. The helpers work on a voluntary and unpaid basis and rely on donations .

Landsbjörg's financing comes, among other things, from the sale of fireworks (flugeldasala). Here in Iceland, Landsbjörg has the monopoly on the sale of rockets, firecrackers, batteries and everything else you need for a proper fireworks display - and there are also safety precautions and tips. After all, it is also Landbjörg who respond to accidents involving fireworks. If you don't want to buy fireworks but still want to support the rescue workers, you can also symbolically buy a seedling , which will then actually be planted by volunteers as part of the country's reforestation.

Neyðarkall - emergency call from rescue teams

Another fundraising campaign is the sale of keyrings. Since 2006, the rescue teams have been selling their keyring - their "neyðarkall" (= "emergency call") every year in a special campaign to finance their work.

Each year there is a different keychain, each with a specific outfit and equipment. Over time, the little figure already carried, among other things, mountain rescue equipment, sea rescue equipment, there was also a dog handler for rescue dogs, a specialist for rescue from wreckage, a rescue diver, a medical first aider, someone who rescues missing people with a snowmobile or searches for them with a drone, and there has also been a historical rescuer with equipment “from the past”.

As emergency services say in statements about this year's campaign, the people of Iceland have been reminded in recent years that they live in a harsh country. There were violent earthquakes, especially in Grindavík, the volcanic eruptions on Reykjanes, but also the collapse of a glacier cave and many other operations. Therefore, this year 2024, the small figure on the rescue teams' "emergency call" keychain is a "hamfarasérfræðingur", i.e. an expert in disaster control.

On Thursday while shopping in Skeifan I saw a volunteer selling the keychains at the front of Hagkaup. And after my shopping I took one of the little guys with me. Sure, 3,500 ISK for a keyring is a lot of money, but ultimately it's about financing all the volunteer rescue teams who work voluntarily and tirelessly here on Iceland. And 3,500 ISK really isn't much...

[Translated from here.]

Grikk eða gott

Trick or treat

The Icelandic word for Halloween is “hrekkjavaka”, which literally translates to the “night watch in which you play tricks on somebody” or perhaps simply the “night watch of pranks”.

In recent years, it has also become more common in Iceland to decorate houses with glowing pumpkins, skeletons and witch folk and to celebrate spooky parties at the end of October. However, I have the feeling that children, teenagers and young adults are more likely to celebrate there. On social media I see a lot of photos of beautiful costumes worn by Icelandic friends or people who live here. I haven't noticed any excessively decorated houses yet.

The call for the children who go around collecting sweetsis "grikk eða gott", i.e. "trick or treat".

There are also Halloween decorations in stores. For example, here at Krónan three witches have taken over the action area in front of the fruit and vegetable department.

And the town center of Selfoss is always decorated to match the season, two years ago there was a poor old skeleton and a few big, scary spiders.

Personally, I like the Halloween decorations at the hardware store much better: just a small artificial Christmas tree decorated with an orange garland, a chain with grinning, glowing pumpkins and a chain with illuminated eyeballs. I find that much cuddlier!

And in the background all the Christmas decorations have already broken out...

To be honest - I'm looking forward to unpacking the Christmas decorations again after October 31st and making our Iceland house a little more Christmassy...

[Translated from here.]

Bleiki dagurinn 2024

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Every year, this international health campaign runs under the motto “bleikur október”, with its climax on the “pink day”, the “bleiki dagurinn”.

This is about breast cancer, namely prevention, researching the causes, finding therapies to cure or treat breast cancer, as well as advising and supporting women affected and the people around them.

Here in Iceland, the campaign, supported by Krabbameinsfélagið, the Icelandic Cancer Society, is really in the public eye - October is really pink here. In public places, such as here at the roundabout on the bridge in Selfoss, there are pink flags with a ribbon on it; buildings such as the Hallgrímskirkja in Reykjavík or the church here in Selfoss are illuminated pink.

Well, at the end of October the foil over the spotlight was a bit worn out and last year only half the church was lit in pink, but that also had something.

Bleika slaufan - Pink Ribbon

The "pink ribbon" is the symbol of this annual awareness and fundraising campaign by cancer societies to combat breast cancer in women. You can buy them here in Iceland in numerous shops across the country, the shops took part in the campaign free of charge and, as far as I know, there is no VAT, so all proceeds go directly to the campaign.

The money will be used to offer free advice and support to people with cancer and their families, but also to medical staff and social workers, and to promote research, education and prevention work. All projects aim to prevent cancer, reduce the number of people who die from it and improve the quality of life of those affected and their families.

Bleiki dagurinn 2024

The “pink day”, the highlight of the campaign, was this year on Wednesday, October 23rd.

This day is about two aspects - on the one hand, everyone is encouraged to wear something pink on this day - wear pink, drink a pink milkshake or post your pink soup or pink salad. Give the day a pink glow and give a sign of support and solidarity to all women who have been diagnosed with cancer.

On the other hand, companies that support this campaign offer certain services and products from which part of the proceeds go directly to the campaign. At the electrical retailer, for example, 10% of the proceeds from all pink products sold go to the campaign throughout the week, a health salon donates the daily proceeds from October 23rd, a pink Zumba party donates the entry fees, bakeries and pastry shops take part, sometimes offering extra pink candy and donate a portion of the proceeds, numerous companies (from fitness companies to clothing stores and galleries to payment service providers) participate and donate a certain percentage of the proceeds.

In this way, public attention for cancer is gained, including on social media, as well as concrete financial support for the numerous projects.

This year, 2024, the campaign around the “bleika slaufan” is celebrating its 25th anniversary . There was also a special anniversary exhibition at the beginning of October, at which all of the cancer society's "Pink Ribbons" were shown from the beginning, a different ribbon every year. Additionally, 9 artists have designed special t-shirts that will be auctioned off to support the Icelandic Cancer Society. This auction runs until October 31st.

A few figures from the Icelandic Cancer Society

According to official figures, Iceland had exactly 383,726 inhabitants on January 1, 2024, around 49% of whom were women. Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in Iceland, accounting for approximately 1/3 of all cancers diagnosed in women. From 2018 to 2022, an average of 971 women per year in Iceland were diagnosed with breast cancer.

By the way, around 1% of people suffering from breast cancer are men.

From 2017 to 2024, a total of 562 million crowns were awarded to 58 Icelandic cancer research projects from the Icelandic Cancer Society's science funds. That's the equivalent of around 3.8 million euros.

[Translated from here.]

Breytingar á Geysissvæðinu

Changes - Increased activity in the Geyser area

Since October 19, 2024, the Icelandic Meteorological Agency (Veðurstofa Íslands), which is also responsible for monitoring the forces of nature and the dangers they pose, has reported unusual and increased activity in the hot springs in the Haukadalur geothermal area.

Due to reports in the media, I took advantage of the good weather on Sunday (October 27th) to look at these changes on site. Apparently many Icelandic families had the same idea; I've rarely heard so much Icelandic here.

Strokkur erupts more often, stronger and higher than usual

Normally, Strokkur, the large active geyser in this area, erupts every 5 to 10 minutes, usually once, sometimes twice, and very rarely three times in a row. The water column reaches a height of up to 20 meters, but can sometimes be significantly smaller.

Photo from August 2024

Due to the increased activity in the area, the Strokkur is currently erupting much more strongly.

Pictures from October 27, 2024

The cloud of water eruption reaches a height of up to 30 meters. The eruptions are sometimes so violent that rock material and stones are thrown into the air.

Yesterday, as I was about to leave, the strokkur felt like it was "escalating" - first I heard the water fountain and the shouts of the people behind me, turned around again and took another "farewell photo". But then it went on, the next burst followed, and another, and another... When I counted, I got 9 or 10 bursts in a row, but I was so surprised that I may have gotten confused when counting.

Based on my photos, I'm sure about at least 8 eruptions in a row; according to my camera, there are a little less than 3 minutes between the first and the last photo.

In a newspaper report from October 24th, the park ranger in Haukadalur reported 12 eruptions within 2 minutes. Such an “escalation” from the Strokkur is apparently really happening at the moment, but it is extremely unusual.

Blesi is cooking

Blesi thermal spring is located above Strokkur. It's usually quiet here, but things are completely different right now. The path directly in front of the spring, which was beautifully paved just this summer, is cordoned off and there is a large, solid wooden sign in front of it: "Lokað / Closed" and that is "vegna hættulegra aðstæðna / due to dangerous condition".

Blesi is a hot spring with two different colored pools. The water from the spring first flows into the first basin, which is filled with colorless, boiling hot water. Depending on the outside temperature, the hot water lets the pool steam to varying degrees. Some of the water from the first pool then flows into the second pool. The water cools down and the silica contained in the thermal water reacts with the air. The water surface in the second pool then reflects the surrounding light, usually creating a wonderfully bright, intense blue color.

Blesi is currently "boiling" - it's steaming enormously, small bubbles rise on one side, the bubbles get bigger, a small column of water slowly rises, splashes, bubbles and bubbles, splashes into the other basin and floods the surrounding area. Then it becomes less again for a short time - and then starts again.

I've absolutely never seen it like that before. However, friends have assured that they have already experienced activity in the spring some years ago. The water here is said to have sometimes reached a height of 0.5 to 1 meter. I have a really hard time estimating it, but judging by the people in the background, I think that the water certainly reached a height of more than 1 meter yesterday.

There have been no changes to the geyser itself, so far

There have been no changes to the Great Geyser itself, despite the increased activity in the other springs. In any case, yesterday the water level was smooth and calm, with only light steam rising from the hot springs.

Subjective: Noticeably high water level

My subjective impression yesterday was that the water levels were unusually high everywhere. At Strokkur I had the feeling that the water level in the pool was higher than usual, it was overflowing all around and the "edging" from which the water column shoots upwards was hard to see under the surging water.

At Blesi, where you can usually easily see the two pools of the thermal spring, a third pool of water had apparently formed between the two pools.

And the watercourse, which normally burbles gently next to the path to the exit, roared clearly audibly yesterday and carried more water than I have ever experienced before.

The environmental agency is asking tourists to exercise extra caution and distance in the Geysir area due to increased activity.

The situation on site is being monitored, but so far no clear causes for the increased activity have been identified. Changes in the water table may have caused more pressure in the hot springs. However, the authority is currently assuming that the changes are still within the usual variability of the geothermal system.

Photo from July 2020

Background information about the Haukadalur geothermal area

The Geysir area in Haukadalur is one of the most famous areas with springs (goshverir) in the world, especially one of the few that have been known for centuries. The Great Geyser is probably the oldest known and still (occasionally) active geyser in the world.

In 1294 there was a large earthquake in southern Iceland and in writings from the end of the 13th century the Great Geyser was first described as a hot spring in this area. However, geological studies indicate that the geothermal area in Haukadalur has probably been active since the end of the last great ice age in Iceland around 10,000 years ago.

The Great Geyser was first mentioned by name in 1647, after several large earthquakes in southern Iceland from 1630 onwards. Although the geyser did not erupt regularly at the time, its water column probably reached a height of around 60 to 80 meters at that time. Over the centuries, the geyser's activity has changed significantly. Around 1845 it reached a height of up to 170 meters, but from 1900 onwards its activity decreased significantly, probably because the surface of the lake (= cooling area) became too large. In some cases it was caused to break out by soapy water. After the earthquake in the summer of 2000, the geyser erupted again, but it has now been a while since the last eruption.

There are numerous other hot springs around the Great Geysir and its now more active colleague Strokkur. e.g. Konungshver and Blesi.

Strokkur - photo from December 2023

Strokkur eruption, photo from February 2023

The area immediately around the hot springs Geysir, Strokkur and Blesi was purchased in 1935 by the Icelandic entrepreneur Sigurður Jónasson (1896 - 1965) and donated to the Icelandic state. The remaining area is still privately owned.

The Geysir area in Haukadalur was placed under protection as a natural monument on June 17, 2020.

[Translated from here.]

Eggjakaka með gráðosti og eplum

Omelette with blue cheese and apple

Today I have a recipe for a nice, cozy weekend's breakfast for you, maybe for a brunch.

I found the recipe for it in an Icelandic cookbook from 1982, Omelet with cheese, apple and blue cheese. Sounds a bit unusual, but I think it's actually really tasty!

But I also love blue cheese. Here I used my personal favorite Icelandic cheese: Ljótur.

"Ljótur að utan, ljúfur að innan" - "ugly on the outside, lovely on the inside" is the motto of this blue cheese, which has been produced for several years by the Icelandic dairy MS in Búðardalur in western Iceland. The cheese is not particularly crumbly and it looks impressively ugly from the outside, but tastes wonderful to us!

Ingredients for 1 serving

3 eggs

30 g grated cheese

1/2 apple

50 g blue cheese

1 pinch of pepper

2 Tbsp butter

Preparation

Wash, peel, quarter, core and cut the apple into thin wedges.

Heat a pan on the stove over medium heat and slowly melt 1 tablespoon of butter.

Heat the apple slices in the butter for about 1 minute, then remove them from the pan and set aside.

Melt the second spoonful of butter in the pan over medium heat.

Beat the eggs with a fork, add the grated cheese and season with fresh pepper.

When the butter begins to simmer, add the scrambled egg to the pan and fry over medium heat until golden brown on the bottom.

Cut the blue cheese into small cubes.

When the bottom of the omelet is golden brown, but the top is not yet fully baked, spread the apple slices over half of the omelet...

...sprinkle with the blue cheese...

... and carefully fold the omelet together.

Let it stand briefly in the hot pan so that the blue cheese melts a little, and then serve immediately.

I served the Eggjakaka here with freshly buttered Icelandic rye bread (rúgbrauð) and fresh parsley. The parsley adds a bit of freshness and crunch, and it also looks so beautifully colorful.

I wish you a nice, cozy day!

[Translated from here.]

Fyrsti vetrardagur

The first day of winter

The Old Icelandic calendar only knows two seasons - winter and summer. Both seasons last 6 months each.

The first month of winter (gormánuður) begins on the Saturday after the 26th week of summer, usually the Saturday between October 21st and 27th (also October 28th in leap years). The first day of the first winter month is therefore the first day of winter in Iceland (fyrsti vetrardagur).

The first day of winter 2024

So for this year, yesterday, Saturday, October 26, 2024, was the first day of winter in Iceland. It's winter now.

The weather here is currently very changeable, it feels like it changes between sunshine and hailstorms every 10 minutes, and it is still just over 0 °C.

The photo here is from the morning, taken around a quarter to 9. You can see that everything is still wet, the clouds are hanging low, but the dawn is shining on the horizon.

On the other hand, there have been gaps in the clouds in the evenings over the last few days and I was able to enjoy the northern lights, like the view to the north from the study window here. By the way, the moon had just risen at the bottom right.

Seriously - I took the picture here on the right about 20 minutes before midnight last night, then I went to bed. And just before midnight the storm was blowing so hard again and the hail felt like it was sweeping horizontally across the terrace that I got up again and checked to make sure everything was okay because it was rattling so loudly. Really - maybe 15 minutes after this Northern Lights picture here!

Winter month - slaughter month

The first winter month in the Old Icelandic calendar was also known as the "slaughter month" - after the cattle round-up took place at the end of September, the animals that were not to be brought over the winter were slaughtered. Therefore, the first month of winter is the perfect time for a really good meat soup made from freshly slaughtered Icelandic lamb. Accordingly, Kjótsúpadagur was celebrated on the Skólavörðustígur in Reykjavík for several years on the first day of winter; Unfortunately, this beautiful tradition is no longer being continued.

Vetrarboð

There used to be large celebrations and invitations at this time, probably also for very practical reasons: the freshly slaughtered meat had to be consumed quickly, as it used to be difficult - without salt and without modern freezers - to preserve the meat sufficiently. And even though a lot of things were smoked or marinated in whey, a lot of things had to be eaten straight away so that they didn't spoil. So it's the perfect opportunity to invite your neighbors to be generous - and look forward to the return invitation.

Although winter in Iceland was never an easy time - cold, dark, snowy and full of storms. People often feared the winters and in order to perhaps prepare themselves a little better for what was to come, at the beginning of winter it was also necessary to read from various omens about what the coming winter would be like.

Veðurspá fyrir vetri

Some people tried to read from the Milky Way in early November what the winter would be like. The band of the Milky Way stretches across the sky as an irregularly wide stripe - the entire strip then stood for the coming winter and the places where the stripe was particularly thick were intended to indicate at which times the winter would be particularly snowy.

Another method was to read the course of winter from the intestines of the first sheep slaughtered on the farm in the fall. The intestine represented the course of the winter and was "read" from bottom to top - the free areas in the intestine then represented the particularly hard, deprived times in the coming winter.

Alternatively, the sheep's spleen was used for weather forecasting: the spleen was removed, two or three incisions were made blindly and the spleen was then hung on the wall. The spleen gradually turns white as it hangs on the wall and dries, and the parts that turned white first were said to foretell the snowiest phases of the winter.

With that in mind - thank you for the past summer and I wish you and all of us the best possible winter!

[Translated from here.]