Verslunarmannahelgi 1

On the first of August, there was a total solar eclipse in parts of the northern hemisphere. However, we in Iceland were only able to see a partial eclipse. And so the weekend kicked off with a great omen. This Merchant's Weekend is the biggest party weekend in Iceland, and the two biggest party places are Akureyri and the Westman Islands in the south. Each city has it's own theme and this year's theme for Akureyri was something like Ein med ollu, which is what you say when you want to order a hot dog with everything on it. So people were dressed in 80s attire, and side ponytails galore. There were also concerts and this guy (I saw him in person). I went to a couple of concerts, hung out with some of Skari's friends, and Jenn and Cynth also came up to visit. Enjoy the pics and vids.



These vids are of this really awesome band called Hvanndalsbræður, and they sing about funny things and tell jokes during their performances. Of course it's in Icelandic so Oskar had to translate for me. Also, I saw the lead singer twice on the street, once in Akureyri and once in a Scottish bar in Reykjavik, the second time he told me hi!! The longer video is a song called Himnana which means heaven, and it's the only word in the song that I know. The other song has something to do with somebody being horny i think.
Me playing with Kasper before going out to enjoy some concerts.

Eli, Gummi, and Skari at the first concert of the night, at a bar called The Green Hat (in Icelandic of course).


Eli, Gummi, and Skari again.

The band. they are so good, and apparently really funny.

This was at another concert that night. The group was a really old and popular Icelandic group called Ny Donsk, meaning New Danish or something like that. They were pretty good, but I liked the other concert better. This is at the Marina bar, closer to the port and like a block from work. Next to Skari is Vala, Eli's girlfriend, and Vala's friend, whose name I have forgotten.

Vala taking a pic of Eli. I like how this pic turned out because I caught Vala's flash at the right time.

This is Ny Donsk, with the Icelandic flags in the background...except they look green instead of blue.

Lead singer of Ny Donsk, with his crazy hairstyle.


After the concert, we called it a night and went to rest for the next day.


The next day, the gang had a BBQ at Vala's friend's house, and I was invited. A lot of good food, good friends, and a fantastic time. :)

After the food we just sat around and waited for the later festivities and also for Jenn and Cynth to arrive from Reykjavik. So in the meantime we took many pictures and had a lot of bonding and loving moments.

After the girls arrived, we headed downtown, which was like 3 blocks away. There was a stage and karaoke. And many people with side ponytails, like this little girl.

Cynth felt that I should not be excluded from the side ponytail fad, and it didnt matter that I had shorter hair now.

The 80s girls on stage.

The non-80s girls dancing.

Skari felt really strong and wanted to carry Jenn in his Viking arms of thunder.

Jenn wanted to show off her strength so she carried me. Skari is just pretending to hold me.
Jenn > Vikings.

Bottle of Austrailian wine: 10.000ISK
Icelandic milk chocolate bar with raisins: 2.500ISK
Skari, Gummi, Jenn, Cynth: priceless...wait who am I kidding everything in Iceland has a price, I'd say 58.000ISK for 3, you get Skari for free.

I stopped by the tourist shop with the girls. I should be a model for the Wear Dead Animals magazine. I could totally make the cover.

More cool trendy 80s ppl.

Later that night we went to a concert at maybe the most exclusive club in Akureyri, called Sjallin. The group is also really popular in Icelandic terms and is called Sálin hans Jóns Míns.

Crazy awesome saxophone player.

Sax player again...Cynth had a music crush on him.

I borrowed some Icelandic person's glasses, and Vala found a wristband on the floor and gave it to me. :)

Cynth, Jenn, and Skari having a great time. A bunch of Icelanders in the background.

Me, Jenn, and Vala also having a great time. :)

After the club, we each went home and rested, for the next day Jenn, Cynth, Skari, Gummi, and I headed to Eastern Iceland.

Energía Hidráulica

After the weekend when the 3 other MIT students came up to tour the power plants in the north, I was flown to Reykjavík mid-week to tour the hydroplants in the south. There is a big river in the south, fed from the glacier, which has been dammed and that is where they get their hydropower. We drove around all day to like 5 different, yet very similar, plants. To finish the day, we went to a pool/hot tub place, which seem to be everywhere in Iceland. So, like my recent posts, I will just try to tell the stories with pictures, since I am still behind.
This is the first plant we went to, called Búrfellsstöd. The design is the work of an Icelandic artist, Sigurjón Ólafsson.

A sculpture by Sigurjón outside of the plant.

The turbines.

Cynth found the colorful-earplug dispenser.

Listening to the guide talking about the turbines and the plant.

Dials and knobs in the control room. Very 70s.

Looking out at water coming out of the plant.

Water spewing out of the plant.

Cynth was up to no good, as always.

Another plant, Vatnsfellsstöd, and a big reservoir and dam behind it.

The reservoir.

The opening to let water in, but it was closed when we went.

Jenn will save you if you fall in.

Cool artwork that makes nice music if the wind blows the right way.

Fun Icelandic sign inside the Vatnsfellsstöd.

Same saying as a sign from a previous post, but with a more graphic visual. And I guess it means Caution High Voltage.

The guy from Mannvit who drove us around and showed us all these cool places, Friðberg.

Our tour guide for Vatnsfellsstöd. We are inside one of the turbines.

Jenn was the only one who did not have to crouch while inside the turbine...

Then we went inside a generator.




Some things outside to cool the turbines.

The river after going through the plant.

The girls: Jenn, Gyða, and Cynth.

These structures are here to slow the water down when it is flowing from the dam. They need to slow the water so that it doesn't change the course of the river too much.

The top of the dam, with some water slowly coming down, meaning the reservoir is full.

Here we are talking about the importance of hydropower, and Friðberg is telling us about the history of the region.

The pool we went to in the middle of nowhere. And yet there were people there.

Well that was pretty much the end of the tour. I returned to Akureyri the next day and waited until the weekend which was the Verslunarmannahelgi, or the Merchants Weekend, sort of like Labor Day weekend.

Until next time, take care.