The little things, Iceland

When it's the middle of winter outside you begin to appreciate the little things that make the cold dark times a bit more fun. You might think in Iceland that means trolls and elves but I refer of course to friends, partying and fish (for some people not necessarily in that order). Fortunately this week our slightly eccentric German friend we all know and love as Sonja decided to turn "twenty something" this week just to break the monotony of daily living. With the promise of a small shindig and plenty of very cold ones on offer a car load of hopefuls set off south to a small town near Varmahlið.

The hostess with the mostess ... Sonja

As with any good event, thanks must be given to "the ladies in the kitchen who put on such a lovely spread for us here today". Sonja really outdid herself with the catering and could literally have fed the Marist Old Boys Saturday arvo post game style. While I gorged myself on meatballs, pastry whatsits, chocolate stuff and some kind of cake thing the other guests were issuing happy birthdays all over the place.

Bjarni and Cat watch on as Dan mauls Sonja

Condolences for another year lost

Presents!

With most of the food dispatched shortly after my arrival the Jaggermeister took a beating courtesy of Catherine Chambers. She doubtless had accomplices but they need not be named, and I've already admitted eating all the food.

Cat slipperying in another Jaggie without being noticed

As with any story staring with Jagger, I can't really remember how it all ended up except to say that I woke up safely in my own house. And with that piece of good news ... let me move on the the fish. I stumbled across this half frozen monstrosity outside of the office the other day. You will remember it from here and probably more memorably from here as the disgustingly aromatic Hárkarl that adorns the table at þórrablot. I figure they must just be letting this one get a little more inedible than usual seeing as the festival was only a few weeks ago ... or they've never heard the phrase "be a tidy kiwi".

A Greenland Shark festering in it's own deep sea marinade

Seeing (and more seriously smelling) this fish made me glad that I work with a much more photogenic species. This is an Arctic charr that is being raised in the aquaculture station where I work. I like to help out with the routine measuring and stuff every month or so just and pretend I'm back on the Waitawheta or Esk and have just bagged myself a nice Rainbow on a tasty little dry fly. Dah. Hey - it passes the time OK. Don't judge me for being a fisherman.

A trophy to be sure, but I'm all about catch and release

Northern lights, Iceland

Living in the dark has it's benefits. You never have to worry about getting burned, sunnies aren't compulsory and you get to see these little beauties out ya window on almost any given evening.

The Aurora Borealis or 'Northern Lights'

Zap!

Ooh ahh pretty ...

February is a particularly good time to see the lights because it's the middle of winter - so deep inky black darkness is not hard to find around midnight. For those of us lucky/stupid enough to live in the middle of nowhere, light pollution is also at a minumum. Midnight road trips therefore became commonplace for a few hardy Holar residents willing to tolerate the freezing cold for the chance to see a spectacle that truly has to be seen to be believed. All of the pics you see here are courtesy of Birgir (and to tell you the truth don't really do the scene justice). My camera ceases operations when it feels that it's too cold out. Living in Iceland it has caused me considerable trouble to say the least.

Mark, Birgir and Eydis caught in the flash

Northern Lights devouring Sauðárkrókur

Death ray intensity

Pow pow pow, Iceland

The sun is back - snow is good - work is suffering - I am happy.

Unbelievable conditions - sun and snow ...

The longest tow

Plenty of time to soak in the scenery on the way up

Snow blindness isn't really and issue

The view from the top (click to enlarge)

Oh so freshies

As some of you may know, I am a bit of a sun worshipper. Give me jandals and shorts over boots and insulated body suits any day. This week however, I began to appreciate some of the benefits of below freezing temperatures and living so close to the North Pole. These conditions, it turns out, are perfect for laying on acres and acres of powder.

I spent more hours on the slopes this week than I did in the office. Unbelievably on some days we were the only people there, which meant we could ride virgin powder for hours. Sitting in the car waiting for the back window to defrost enough to let us put our gear away, we were amazed at how many runs of untouched snow remained. It's just a shame it gets dark so early ...

Struggling to stay afloat in the delicious powder

You can all guess what happened next .. no Chesty - it wasn't a backflip...

It was something much less awesome, involving snow in my pants

Pamela shredding the gully run

The gully run shredding Örn

Birgir takes a seat

Late arvo carving

Lines lines lines