My Icelandic Experience in a Week

Eva Firicka is an editorial intern at the Reykjavík Grapevine. She will be spending the next four months with us. Here you can read some random reflections from her first week.

-Editor





Since my childhood I have a dreamt about a trip to Iceland. A country famous for its beautiful nature, geysers, glaciers, handball, Bjork, Sigur Rós and Eidur Gudjonssen. When I first got a colour display cell phone, I downloaded a picture of Icelandic scenery. I come from Slovakia, a country situated in the heart of Europe. We also have beautiful scenery, especially the Mountains Tatra in the North. But everyone who saw my pictures from Iceland was amazed and asked me to send them the photos immediately. When I got the chance to come and play volleyball for Reykjavik team, I did not hesitate with the decision.

After a six hours long flight I arrived at Keflavik airport. The first thing I saw was the view of the mountains in front of me. My jetlag disappeared immediately. After half an hour driving in a car I realized that my mouth had actually been open for all that time. Everything was awesome to me. I have been to many countries in Europe but I have never seen anything like Iceland before. It's not easy to define why, but to me it seems like another planet here. I was amazed at the lonesome highway which lead to the capital, of the speed limit, which is lower than in most countries in Europe, the big jeeps on the roads driving on really enormous wheels, the clean air… These are the things I haven't experienced before.

I searched some encyclopedias and some tourist guide stuff for information before I came to Iceland. I was surprised that nobody mentioned the fact that Icelanders take off their shoes almost everywhere before they go in. It is a really pretty and useful habit, I think.

On my fifth day in Reykjavik, I faced a test on if I was still the same nice person who came here from Slovakia. On Saturday night there was a European championship handball game on TV. Slovakia vs. Iceland. Fortunately, Slovakia lost the match 22:28 so there was no reason to be afraid of losing brand new Slovak-Icelandic friendships.

It is said that you create an opinion in the first two minutes of communication with a person. According to my short stay here, I think that Icelanders are really lovely, helpful people and they are not shy at all. They are really into sports, cinema and music. I have never been to a more active country. The winter darkness does not discourage the residents from being active.

Small island, small country, small towns but big people, in the measure of their humanity. I am a Slovak who speaks no Icelandic, the only thing you need to recognize me as a foreigner is my open mouth when I am amazed at something that Icelanders treat as "ordinary." This is the first time I have been to foreign country where I don't feel like a foreigner, and not only because of the Škoda cars on the roads… It seems to me I am living my fairy tale in a fairy country.

Text by Eva Firicka