We interrupt our regularly scheduled wordiness to bring you this: Read More
ByGD
Heavy Metal Road Trip: Iceland Northern Route
I’ve already written here and in other places about the close-knit Eistnaflug festival that drew me (and about 200 other foreigners) to a remote fjord in Iceland in July. Iceland really only has one main road outside of Reykjavik – the Ring Road, which, you guessed it, rings the island. The north route along the ring road to the Eistnaflug festival is only slightly longer than the south route; both take a solid day of driving. I would rather see as much of the country as possible. Wouldn’t you?
I caught a ride in a festival-sponsored van driven by the man responsible for Iceland’s Wacken Metal Battle. The organizational skills required to pull off a national battle of the bands was in evidence as we embarked on a customized, two day, heavy metal road trip, following the southern route to Eistnaflug, and returning along the northern half of Iceland’s ring road. This post is about the northern part of the circuit.
ByGD
Heavy Metal Road Trip: Iceland Southern Route
Iceland attracts a lot of specialized tourism. Some people come just for volcanoes, or for glaciers, or for the sagas. Now with big festivals like Airwaves and ATP, music has become a big draw. This summer, Iceland was the destination for my heavy metal road trip. Read More
ByGD
Sólstafir at Seattle’s Barboza
I tried to curb my excitement, remembering stories of people who allowed their joy to flow too freely and attracted the attention of angry spirits, stories of children named Worthless to protect them from jealous gods. I know the danger of anticipating a show too intensely; the more you expect, the greater the chance of disappointment. So I was nervous all day. My favorite band, Sólstafir, was going to play Seattle for the first time in their 20-year career. Read More
ByGD
I Can’t Commit
At the first annual Iceland Writers Retreat, I got to take two workshops from Pulitzer prize-winning writer Geraldine Brooks. For each workshop, she asked us to bring a short piece of writing to introduce ourselves. Because “travel” was the loose theme of the retreat, one of the options was to write 300 words about your favorite place. Here is mine. Read More