Happy Halloween

Saturday night we had our Halloween party. Was a lot of fun. A lot of people made or brought some really good food. I made my pumpkin pie and it turned out pretty good and everyone seemed to enjoy it. I was really proud of myself for making it all from scratch, making the purée right from a pumpkin (which was hard to find, only saw a few and very small ones at this one little flower shop). I ended up baking pumpkin brownies today, using the left ove puree, and they are really delicious as well. Fpr the party, other people made brownies, cookies, apple crisp, among bags of chips as well as icelandic harðfisk (dried fish). Most people in Gamli Garður as well as friends dressed up, some really creative costumes too! Pictures of the night will be on my picture site. The party ended up being a pretty big success, and many people´s first halloween, since halloween is really only celebrated in North America (but I think it is starting to migrate to other countries slowly).

Was weird to celebrate halloween though because it doesn´t feel like October to me. Feels like December and that it should be Christmas. We even had a blizzard (a full out blizzard with a lot of snow and high winds) on Friday which lasted the entire day and into the night. I love blizzards though so I really enjoyed it. I even went for a walk downtown and was almost blown away and blinded by snow. I think as long as you don´t have to drive anywhere for long distances, blizzards can be fun. Friday was so rediculous that I would laugh and it made me feel really happy because it felt like being back in Canada (though perhaps in January or February, not October). A few of my Icelandic friends didn´t like it though, and found it depressing. That night though I went to the swimming pool with a bunch of friends and it was intense to be outside in the pool and hottubs (most place in Reykjavik are outdoor) while the snow is crashing down and windy whirling around. We even had a snow fight in the tubs and some of the guys ran and rolled in the snow. Was so much fun. Though now I think I have a cold but I think it was starting before the pool fun (most likely from the long nights at Airwaves last weekend and my immune system finally gave in).

My mom and dad keep asking about my schooling, but really it feels like I am doing nothing, so I feel there is no point in writing about it. I was talking to Leif about how it feels like we are not really learning anything. I think we are learning more from the experience of being in a new country, meeting people from all over the world and being on our own and having to be independent that what we learn in class. The work load here is quite relaxed. I go to classes, do the readings for class, I´ll have a little bit of homework for Icelandic language but not much so I spend most of my time hanging out with friends. My Icelandic Folktales class is really interesting, and the teacher is really funny, but he is kind of unorganized in how he delivers the information so it is very rambled and all over the place. Then my Ethnography for Oceania is neat, but it is in Icelandic so it feels like I get a very shallow knowledge of the material because I have to depend completely on the textbooks (which are in english) since I don´t understand much in lectures (some random phrases in the power point presentation sometimes). All my marks for that class are depended upon one large essay and then two small essays for an exam at the very end of the semester. Then with my Icelandic, it is hard to tell how well I am learning the language. I am learning much on pronunciation, learning new sounds, learning how different languages work and also how they are similar to other languages. Studying anthropology, it is neat to see how different cultures adapt to what they are given, and how they change (but also how they remain the same) from the places they migrate from. I have also learned a lot more about North American culture and even Canadian culture (and how different we actually are from Americans). I have also made amazing friendships, and will continue meeting more new people, each one teaching me something more and different. So I guess I really am learning a lot here.

Iceland Airwaves Festival

Well Airwaves is over. Went Wednesday to Saturday with a few extra shows on Sunday. Was a long and tiring few days but a lot of fun. I saw some pretty cool bands, but I was also kind of disappointed with a lot of the bands as well. Most of them were just very generic bands, not really sticking out, though some would try and be unique like the Apparat Organ Quartet which were 4 organists and a drummer, though they were electric organs so just sounded like electronic, industrial type music. But they had a typical rock band, punk band, indie band, etc. Also there was not much energy from the band nor the audience (which either may have had an effect on the other). The bands didn´t interact with the audience much and the crowd would bob to the music but not give much response though they would always cheer (perhaps out of politeness) when a song was done, no matter who the band was. Maybe it is because of Icelandic indifference or maybe I was tired and music-festival-out, going out for 4 to 8 hours a night to listen to music and I was de-sensitized to the music(which is most probable).

Now that I have made it sound like a horrible time, I really did have fun the whole weekend. I spent most nights hanging with Anna Vala, Ásta and Leif and sometimes with Tom, Chrissy, Kate, Nathan and others. The first two nights were kind of dissappointing, I only saw about 3 bands each night because we tried to go from one venue to another but there were long queues to wait and would have taken about an hour to get inside, but by friday I had figured out a plan of venues to go to where I was able to go to 2 or 3 with out having to wait in line and seeing a lot more bands (though both Friday and Saturday I was out from 8pm until 4am one right and 3am the second night. I think I got my money´s worth). I barely made it Friday night though, I was so exhausted and many times thought of going home but made it through the night and the last band, Jagúar, a funk band played for an hour and a half which was a lot of fun. I also saw Jónsi again, with his possible boyfriend and other bandmate Kjartan at the one venue I went to (pictures on my pic site, though kind of dark). I felt like such a stalker taking a picture of them, considering they are just like anyone else, but I did it anyway.

You can check out the website for info on the bands and such at www.icelandairwaves.com

The bands I would recommend, or the ones I liked at least are ( all icelandic):
Skátar Ókind Úlpa
Jagúar Jakobínarína Lights on the Highway
Hjálmar Ampop Helgi Valur

Then bands other people really enjoyed that I didn´t see:
José Gonzales(sweden) The (International) Noise Conspiracy(sweden)
Junior Senior(denmark) The Zutons(UK)
Architecture in Helsinki(australia) Juliette and the Licks(US)
Benni Hemm Hemm(iceland) Hermigervill(iceland)

There are a lot more who were probably really good but these ones stood out. If you are able to you should download some songs. Some of the bands have mp3s you can listen to on the site but I haven´t looked around much to find where you can download their music. It was frustrating and really difficult because there were so many bands playing and not enough time and too many people to see all the bands you wanted to see, but the experience at least opened me up to new music (especially icelandic, considering I tried to go to mostly to icelandic bands).

This weekend we are having a big Halloween party in our rez. Everyone is suppose to dress up, bring a snack, and their own drinks and we are allowed two guests each. I think I will dress up as a vampire, because it will be really easy to do and all I need is some white make-up to make me look pale. And I will attempt to make my pumpkin pie for the party, hopefully it will turn out, not even sure what I bought is a pumpkin, think it is some type of gourd. Well we will see how it comes out. I´ll try and write about how it goes later but for now should get some rest.

Oh by the way, temperature has dropped to under 0°C now, was -3 yesterday and I think colder today, but still bright and sunny during the day though sun rises at about 8:30-9am and sets around 5:30-6pm.

My celebrity encounter

So right now there is the big Iceland Airwaves Festival going on. I saw 4 bands last night, and hopefully many more tonight and the next 2 nights as well. Last night I heard Cynic Guru, they were ok though were a typical pop rock band; Mr Silla, she had a really pretty voice and Portishead style music; then Jára which was more folky rock music, kind of dixie chick´s sort of feel, and the lead singer had a pretty voice but by the end it was getting kind of dry, reminded me of a female version of Interpol.

Then we decided to head to another venue, Grand Rökk to hear Benni Hemm Hemm but the line up was really long, ended up waiting in line for 40 mins and were still not inside. I was with Leif and Anna Vala from Iceland and she was teaching us some icelandic. After waiting maybe 30 mins the bar´s manager came out and offered people chairs to sit on, and this Icelandic guy behind me gave me one of the chairs and I said "Takk" (thank you). I kind of thought he looked like Jónsi, the lead singer of Sigur Rós, but he looked like a typical icelandic person so I didn´t think anything of it. I sat down on the chair and Leif and Anna Vala sat on top of me to keep warm (was so nice during the day but the temperature dropped so much at night). Our friend Ásta came out of Grand Rökk and so we were not going to make it in time to see the band we wanted to we decided to leave and try another place. We walked towards the place we had been earlier in the night but there was a huge line up so we just went to a café. Ásta then said "hey, did you notice Jónsi standing behind us?". So it was him! But Leif freaked out asking her why she didn´t tell him, because he really wanted to talk to him and brag to his friends back home that he met the singer of Sigur Rós. But I guess Icelandic people are so used to seeing Sigur Rós and Björk that it doesn´t phase them that other people think they are a big deal. But I was amazed that Jónsi was actually waiting in line like everyone else and didn´t use his celebrity status to get in.

Then today tickets went on sale for the Sigur Rós concert here November 27th, so right after my first class I rushed to a computer and bought a ticket. I can´t be in Iceland without seeing them live! So EXCITED!! :) It was funny though because I received an email from Lucky Fares for Icelandair and you could buy a return ticket to Iceland from the U.S and get a free Sigur Rós ticket thrown in as well.

Well now another night of music and fun. Who knows who I will meet tonight.

Sjáumst

Happy Thanksgiving and Oktoberfest

I hope everyone had a good weekend. I had a great weekend. Thursday and Friday was Oktoberfest here, there was a blue and white tent set up on campus, so I went both nights. The first night there were probably about a 100 people or so, just sitting drinking beer and eating brautwurst, staup, and bretzel. Really good, though Tom and Nathan from my floor were complaining that they didn´t have any saurkraut. A brass band played for a few minutes and then a choir sang, mostly Bavarian music. There were a few heaters along the one side of the tent but it was still pretty cold inside. Some people tried to keep warm by drinking the Jagermeitzer.

The second night, which was the main night, was intense. I didn´t go until later, but there was a line up just to get inside the tent. Many people though found a secret way in (though not really that secret) on the other side, which had an opening and people were walking in and out of it. There must have been most of the school´s population there (which is around 8000 students). The place was packed with people, people were even on the tables. At least this time the place was pretty warm. I missed the German Ambassador though, he was suppose to tap the keg earlier in the day. I think they only started having oktoberfest a few years ago, but they get a lot of german exchange students so it makes sense.

Sunday was such a beautiful day. Bright blue skies, fairly warm, a really nice fall day. The leaves are already falling, and there is some colour, orange and yellow on the trees and bright red on some bushes, so I have not missed autumn. Tom and I went to one of the pools in the afternoon and went swimming. I want to try and go swimming more often. Swimming is a big pasttime here, and even their outdoor pools and hotpots are open all year round. I went with a few people last week when it much have been around 5°C or less with wind and was an adventure running from the building to the pool, then to the hotpots, and then back. Though after being in the hottest hotpot at about 42-44°C it didn´t feel so cold on the way out.

The other Canadians on my floor and I improvised a Thanksgiving dinner for the night. Iceland doesn´t celebrate Thanksgiving, and I don´t even think they have turkeys, we haven´t seen any. So instead we had two chickens, potatoes, beans, carrots and gravy, and for dessert we had apple crumble. Very delicious. A few Americans kept asking what we were doing and when we told them we were having Thanksgiving, they would make some comment about how Thanksgiving can´t happen until after Halloween. They´d also make a comment on 'Do Canadians always eat chickens for thanksgiving?'. Harold, one of the Americans, thinks they should be able to get turkeys on the American base here so they might take a trip there (near Keflavik) to get one for their Thanksgiving. But overall it was a good evening.

At Home in the World

I am reading this book for my Ethnography of Oceania class called "At Home in the World". It is actually a really good book, it has really hit me home, and I have been able to relate to it a lot. Though I think I am suppose analyse the ethnography of Austrialian Aborigines, and ignore the philosophy of what is a home. But I suppose it goes hand in hand. Seems every where in the world a culture oppresses another culture until practically annihilation or amalgamation. Europeans on Native Americans (side note: found out yesterday from a friend that Indians actually means 'people of God' which Christopher Columbus called them, and India was not called India at that time), Chinese on Tibetans, White Australians on Australian Aboriginals, men on women. Humans just love to oppress.

But sorry that wasn´t really the point. The book touched on how home is not where the house is, home is where you feel at ease, having a sense of being at home. I am starting to have such a sense here. There seem to be different phases you go through (basing on myself) when you move to another place. You at first have a sense of the excitement of being in a new and different place. Everything seems amazing and wonderful and you notice the differences between the place you are and the place you are from. Second, the novelty begins to wear off. You begin to notice the similarities between the new place and your home country. The exhilaration of being in this new place begins to die out, but not completely. Because at the third stage you accept the similarities and you accept the differences and really begin to 'live' there. You have made a home in this new place and go on with your life.

I really felt it yesterday when I went for a walk around campus. I walked with Tom to the science building, which I had a weird deja vu when I walked into the place because last winter I had a dream of Iceland and dreamt this science building. In the dream I was going to all courses in Icelandic but inbetween the classes I would meet with one of my profs and he would explain everything that he said in class to me in English, to help me learn the language. I walked through the building which had high windows on the one side and a stair way going up the wall on the opposite. It was blizzarding out side the snow blew across the large window. It is strange that I dreamt this building when I never saw it before.

But on our walk, we went behind this building and there was a little wetland there, with ponds and a boardwalk. This area is used for the biology students here. There were long grasses and other plants growing there, and this reminded me of my walking adventures along the Credit River in Mississauga and along the Otonabee in Peterborough. It connected me with places where I felt at home from my home country. And when you´d look up out of this little piece of wilderness you can see you are surrounded by Reykjavik.