My Friend Ruth



Ruth grew up in Reykvavik, and she has shared some of her favorite things about Iceland with me. It was Ruth who introduced me to Summer at Little Lava and Dreaming of Iceland (see reviews in earlier postings). She contacted her brother Petur, who sent me some travel brochures. Ruth and Jim had us over for dessert, and treated us to Ponnukokurs. Ruth tells me that her favorite things to do when she goes back to visit Iceland are: walking along the main streets of Reykjavik, swimming, and talking with friends and family. She was preparing for a yard sale recently, and found an Icelandic puzzle which she gave us--haven't put it together yet, but we will have fun doing so! As she owns a bookstore, Ruth and I spend many hours talking about our favorite books. I was able to introduce her to Bill Holm, and she particularly enjoyed Eccentric Islands and the Boxelder Bug Variations.

Icelandic Pönnukökurs (Pancakes)

(Oli Olafsson’s mothers recipe, from the Icelandic Association of Utah.)


2 cups of flour
2 or 3 tablespoons of sugar (depending on taste or how much sugar you have)
1 or 2 eggs (two eggs if you have them, one egg otherwise)
1 teaspoon of baking powder
3 or 3 ½ ounces (50-100 grams) of melted margarine
A touch of vanilla or cardamom seeds (according to taste)
Milk to thin the batter

Mix ingredients. Thin with milk until the batter is just thicker than the milk.

You will need a special Icelandic-pancake pan. [note: a crepe pan should work]

It’s about 7 ½ inches in diameter and has a 1/8 inch ridge, which keeps the batter in the pan.

On a burner that’s larger than the pan, heat the pan until the pan is so hot that the batter will almost boil when you pour it into the pan. (When the batter boils, small holes appear in the pancake. (The holes allow the jam and cream to ooze properly.)

Place a small “scraping” bowl near the bowl of batter. Ladle the batter onto the hot pan. Quickly tilt the pan so that excess batter pours back into the bowl of batter. Using a butter knife, scrape excess batter from the lip and edge of the pan. Scrape the batter off the knife, into the scraping bowl. Place the pan in the center of the burner.

Cook the batter until holes appear uniformly in the pancake, until the pancake is golden brown. This step typically takes less than a minute. While the pancake is cooking, quickly run the pointed knife around the edge of the pancake. (This step makes sure that the pancake doesn’t stick to the side or lip of the pan when you are ready to flip the pancake.)

Lift the pan off the burner, slide the sharp-pointed knife an inch or so under the edge of the pancake and lift up slightly, to begin freeing the pancake from the pan. Continue moving and lifting the knife until the pancake is completely unstuck from the pan. Place the knife in the center of the pancake and then flip the pancake, so that the uncooked side of the pancake is now against the hot pan. Place the pan on the burner and finish cooking the pancake. This step happens quickly, in thirty seconds or so. (If you overcook the pancake, it becomes stiff and breaks when you try to fold it.)

Remove the pan from the burner and turn the pan upside down over the plate, flipping the pancake onto the plate.

Adjust the heat as you cook so that the pancakes cook a golden brown but don’t burn. Using a spoon, place a teaspoon or so of jam in the center of the pancake. Then place a tablespoon or so of whipped cream on the jam. Fold the pancake in half, so that the pancake looks like a half moon. Fold the pancake again, so that it looks like a wedge of pie. Using a fork, enjoy the pancake.

If you prefer sugar to jam and whipped cream, sprinkle sugar onto the pancake. Then roll the pancake and fold it in half.

Summer at Little Lava: A Season at the Edge of the World
by Charles Fergus
1998

illustration: Petur Baldvinsson

Charles Fergus introduces us to Iceland's moods, it's flora and fauna, it's seasons of death and rebirth. Fergus himself journeys from death to rebirth as he learns to accept the unacceptable and unthinkable: the violent death of his mother. He quotes Halldor Laxness:

"Who could take your mother away from you? How could your mother leave you? What's more, she is closesr to you the older you become and the longer it is since she died."

Fergus, his wife and young son rehabilitate a rustic cement house located on land that had been farmed for six centuries. Hiking, kayaking, and contemplation are Fergus' main occupations during his summer of healing.

Fergus includes a line from a poem that an Icelander shared with him: "You have not lived until you have stayed awake a summer's night in Iceland."

Do you think it is true?

Dreaming of Iceland: The Lure of a Family Legend
by Sally Magnusson, Hodder & Stoughton, 2004.



Rating: 4 puffins!

Scottish journalist and broadcaster Sally Magnusson explores her Icelandic roots with her father, the famous Magnus Magnusson, as she convinces her father to accompany her on an odyssey back to Reykjavík and the old homeplace at Laxamýri.

Magnus is well known as the 25-year veteran of BBC's Mastermind quiz show, and is highly respected as the translator of works of Halldor Laxness, and many Icelandic sagas. He is portrayed as a brilliant, irascible individual. It is a pleasure discovering Magnus through the eyes of his daughter.

The journey takes only 4 days but encompasses several lifetimes, literally! Sally interweaves her history and that of her parents, and as the pilgrimage takes place she interposes family stories ... some of which turn out to be true, some which fade in the light of scrutiny, and some which turn out to be more interesting than the family sagas which emanated from them.

Early in the journey Sally discovers something essential about her father, when she unwittingly disparages Icelandic moss as being "sickly green."

"The moss matters to Icelanders," Sally’s father tells her, and she realizes that he is "pre-emptively offended on his countrymen’s behalf ..." [See my similar reaction to Bourdain's film, below. You don't need to remind me that Icelanders are not my countrymen. I only forgot for a moment.]

Sally, meanwhile, proceeds to refer to Icelandic moss in increasingly glowing and laudatory terms throughout the book, at regular intervals. On the way to the Blue Lagoon, the road 'takes us across miles of grotesquely formed lava where heroism beyond the call of duty has long been demanded of the moss.'

Other highlights: Magnus relates his father meeting his future wife at a perfume counter in Reykjavík, where she sold him a bottle of 4711 (one of my favorite perfumes, which also happens to be a cologne when used by men). The Magnussons are related to the builder/founder of the Hótel Borg, who also happens to be the Strongest Man in Iceland and a glíma wrestler: Jóhannes Jósefsson (Jóhannes á Borg). They are related as well to Jóhann Sigurjónsson, a famous Icelandic playwright and poet, and the grandson of Laxamyri's founder.

Sally provides what could be the ideal epitaph for this book when she quotes Pastor Jon from Laxness' Christianity at Glacier as follows, "The closer you try to approach the facts through history, the deeper you sink into fiction." --Also a suitable motto for my husband's genealogy research!

Why FooFace?

Because he's our dog (our son Gabe has joint custody with us!), and he's cute, and he's a Shih Tzu!

The Shih Tzu/Icelandic Connection

What is the connection? Here is my theory: the Icelandic horse has the Tolt--the fifth gait that is s-o-o-o smooth (see earlier posting). So, have you seen the dog shows on TV, where the Shih Tzus are all tarted up with long, flowing hair and silly bows? And have you noticed that they glide along, with a super-smooth gait? I believe that the Shih Tzu gait is the dog equivalent of the Icelandic horse tolt! Is that brilliant?

Who is the Mary, and who is the Rhoda?

Me or Foo...your comments welcome!

My Essay

Icelandair Contest, 3/1/06

Behold a desperate woman--my spirit is in Iceland, but my body is not. Unite my body and spirit in Reykjavik!

My obsession for Iceland was born in books. The words of Snorri Sturluson, Haldor Laxness, Bill Holm, W.H. Auden and Olaf Olafsson consumed me.

The Sagas ignited a passion in me. I long to commune with the spirits of the warrior poets at Pingvellir.

Laxness’ The Fish Can Sing was so mesmerizing that as soon as I finished it I turned back to page one and began again.

Laxness, his home

A shrine.

I yearn to divine

his words

still suspended in the air.

I am absorbed by Icelandic film, language, natural wonders, bloggers. I seek to share my fledgling Icelandic phrases with Icelanders in the coffee shops, museums and hot pots of Reykjavik. I crave Brennevin and pylsa, hunger for the cleanest water in the world and the freshest fish. I ache to see the Aurora Borealis, listen to rimur, and meet huldufolk. My obscure passion confuses and bewilders my family--but that does not deter me.

Meanwhile, I gaze north.

An eager whisper escapes my lips:

“Iceland, O! Iceland!”

This is a true story. This is me.

Winning Entry

And The Winner Is... A big thanks to everyone who entered the Sebastian Spring Break contest. We loved your stories and are truly impressed with your creativity. So, without further adieu, we're please to announce Elizabeth Tubergen from Lookout Mountain, GA, as the lucky winner. .

Elizabeth has won:
- Roundtrip airfare for TWO from Baltimore/Washington (BWI), New York
(JFK), Boston (BOS), Orlando (ORL) or Minneapolis/St. Paul (MSP)
- Three (3) nights hotel in a double room in Reykjavik
- Blue Lagoon Tour
- Roundtrip Airport/Hotel transfers

Here is a copy of the winning entry:

"Ever since I was a wee lass I have wanted to visit Iceland.
Icelandic landscapes enchant me. When I was young, my dad gave me a calendar
(you know, one of those free ones from the office) that was full of rich photographs from around the world. I immediately wanted to visit all of the places, especially Iceland. I want to go to Iceland, but I can’t afford it right now because I am a college student, and I am very poor
and have debts.

In addition to the lifelong fascination that I have with Iceland, many of my favorite artists are from Iceland, which makes it all the more interesting to me. I want to go to the sculpture
museums, and see the works of sculptures that are rarely shown anywhere else. I love the music that comes out of Iceland. Besides these things, I want to go to Iceland to relax. After a tough semester at school, the Blue Lagoon looks awfully nice. Please pick me."

Comments, anyone? Which essay would you have chosen?

Many times happiness

FIF: Only Iceland outranks Australia for happiness and life satisfaction, according to Andrew Leigh in the 4/7/06 Daily Telegraph of Sydney.

My Rant: Anthony Bourdain Offends My National Pride

Rating: no puffins

OK, so I don't have much Icelandic blood in me. Well, not any, actually. But I was insulted by Bourdain's Iceland-Special Edition which aired recently on the Travel Channel.

I have viewed a number of Icelandic travel films, and haven't seen any that were worthwhile. So I had high hopes for this one, and settled in for an interesting evening. I never would have watched the whole show if I had imagined that it could maintain such a high level of meaninglessness throughout.

Bourdain is self-abosorbed and shallow, and seems to think it very amusing to insult the people who are his hosts and guides. This is a "scene by scene commentary" typical of feature films on DVD. If there is a "real" film that goes with this, I don't want to see it.

How do I learn Icelandic?

Rating: 4 puffins

It appears that Icelandic is impossibly difficult to learn! But not to fear: Daisy L. Neijmann makes it as palatable as possible. Colloquial Icelandic: The Complete Course for Beginners consists of a book, and an audiocassette or CD. It is about $50. for the set, and there are three reasons to buy it: 1) explanations are clear, and progression of the course well-paced, 2) the narrator has a lovely voice (apparently she's British), and 3) Daisy Neijmann is the Halldor Laxness (my favorite author!) Lecturer in Icelandic at University College London. Buy both the book and the recording.

FIF

Bless means "bye."

My Own Father, and I quote:

Dear Daughter: So sorry you are going nuts in the head! Ann tells me this is a wonderful thing you are doing! She is going nuts in the head too! How does one post comments on the blog web? I would like to have what I say posted and not just directed to you alone. The Hawaiian music is just right for that cold, cold island. I hope this does not mean the whole world is going cold and crazy. Actually it is fun that you are getting so worked up over this trip. No other trip to anywhere with anyone that I know has ever shown such spirit. WAY TO GO!

FIF

Icelanders are very poetic, even evocative. In the Reykjavik Grapevine Paul Fontaine-Nikolov quotes his guide: "As the solar wind from the sun penetrates the earth’s magnetic belt, its light builds slowly, eventually reaching a climax that can fill the whole sky."

Of course, you must visit when the weather is cold and crisp in order to see the Aurora Borealis. That means, NOT SUMMER!

W.H. Auden: What's the Buzz?

Rating: 4 puffins

Letters from Iceland was published in 1937. Wystan Hugh Auden (age 29) and Louis Macneice alternate the composition of these "memoirs" of their trip. What better way to engage the reader's attention than to begin the book with a letter, in poetic form, to Lord Byron?

Excuse, my lord, the liberty I take
In thus addressing you. I know that you
Will pay the price of authorship and make
The allowances an author has to do.
A poet's fan-mail will be nothing new.

And,

I hope this reaches you in your abode,
This letter that's already far too long,
...As to its length, I tell myself you'll need it,
You've all eternity in which to read it.

My personal favorite: "Hetty to Nancy"-- a letter from an English gentlewoman in the wilds of Iceland, camping with Girl Guides and Formidable Women. This is a literary device that is effective and perfectly convincing. Macniece was the author, and he fooled me. It also serves to lessen the self-indulgence of the rest of the book.

Other features: price of tours, guides, food, rentals; quotes from other Icelandic travelers over the centuries; photographs; a dialogue with the ghost of Grettir; conversations with Icelanders; rummy, horseback riding, hiking and bus trips.

It is disturbing to read the numerous references to Nazi Germany. It gave me an eerie feeling of forbodeing to have the ability-- that Auden and Macniece lacked-- to foresee the future.

Opinionated, yes; occasionally tedious, yes ; compelling, funny, evocative: yes, yes, yes!

Why read Auden's Letters from Iceland?

"Having put up the tents we ate a large meal... smoked mutton. Smoked...you put your teeth in a hunk and then haul away the hunk in both fists."

"The people themselves are not nearly so foreign...You can't imagine any of them behaving like the people in the sagas, saying 'That was an ill word' and shooting the other man dead. Disappointing, still one needn't travel if one wants to see odd behaviour. You are wonderfully situated, of course, in Cambridge."

"all we could think of was getting somewhere else. But we didn't. We went on and on and the landscape remained the same. It was like walking the wrong way on a moving staircase."

"Finally the remoteness of Iceland, coupled with its literary and political history, make it a country which, if visited at all, is visited by people with strong, and usually romantic, preconceptions. Few...people take an interest in Iceland, but in these few the interest is passionate."

W.H. Auden Rocks! More reasons next time...

FIF (Fun Icelandic Fact)

Icelandic horses, which are of small stature but are not ponies, have a unique fifth gait called the tolt. It is smoother than a trot, so that the rider doesn't even need to post. It is so smooth that you could drink from a glass without spilling while riding (do you believe that? I'll let you know once I've tried it).

Fun Iceland Fact: Public institutions of higher learning in Iceland are tuition free for residents!

Your Questions: Answered

When did your obsession begin?
Approximately 3 years ago.

Have you ever been to Iceland?
Only in my dreams.

Are you a lazy sod, or what?
No, I recently spent the major part of a week revising an essay for an Icelandic Air Spring Break contest. I didn't win, but it sure felt like a winning essay to me! You'll have a chance to see it soon.

What can I look forward to on this site?
Reviews of books on Iceland! Rants and raves! More fun facts!

Why Blog?

The subject of Iceland might possibly become tedious to my family and friends. They may have reached their breaking point already. Or passed it, weeks ago. This blog may be a "healthy" outlet.

Why Iceland?

Bill Holm. The Sagas. Halldor Laxness. Gunnella at Xanth.is. Icelandic Communities Association of North Dakota. It goes so well with Hawaiian music.

Why me?
I can't help it.
Why you?
Are you berserker about Iceland too?