Quaint

Sprinkle some snow into this picture and you have a lovely holiday scene from downtown Reykjavik. Those of you who've been here will most probably recognizethis charming house on Bankastræti, right next to the tourist info center. It's one of my favorite buildings in our little city. The very nice restaurant Lækjarbrekka is housed here, and in the greenish building farther off the street is Humarhúsið, or The Lobster House. Both are highly recommended.

More soon...

Rink

Ice skating at Ingólfstorg in the heart of Reykajvík

I took this photo today before this evening's storm hit. I'm wondering how the skating was when the wind picked up and started slamming wet snow all about...I'm sure there were at least a few hearty souls braving the weather to get in a few minutes on the ice. There's always one or two.

A local insurance company is sponsoring this rink at Ingólfstorg plaza downtown. It's a great idea. The plaza is generally considered a metropolitan design disaster. It was intended as a gathering place for locals in the heart of the oldest part of Reykjavik, somewhere where you can rest your feet and chat with friends and such. The square is depressed a few feet from ground level and lined with benches, but nobody ever sits on them. It's become a skateboarders paradise, with short ramps, steps and rails to slide. No one dares walk through it for fear of getting a board in the head (the skaters aren't very good!) and aside from the occasional rally or concert, this is the best use its been put to in years.

Choir

It's that season again, when choirs of children sing angelic songs at Sunday services and Advent candleabras grace windows across the country. Strings of Christmas lights are twined through bare tree branches and thousands of tiny lit bulbs outline houses, making the long darkness of winter more tolerable.

Right now, at 9 a.m., it's nighttime black outside, with a few hours left to go. I like the coziness of the dark days, personally, but I thank the stars for sweet holiday music, warm scarves and the wonder that is electricity!

Art

Just a little something from a wall in downtown Reykjavik...