Iceland in Pictures

Anonymous asked: i am from turkey. i am a geomatic engineer. can i live in iceland permantly? i know that there is some issues with goverment in iceland. i heard that you dont love turks. so is it true?

Since you are from outside the EU/EEA/Schengen, you need to acquire a working permit, which basically means you need to find an employer that would like to hire you. I could imagine that there is demand geomatic engineers in Iceland. Maybe not always, but definitely when large projects, dams etc. are being constructed. You can read a bit more about residence permits etc. in previous questions.

Traditionally Icelanders don’t like Turks. That however is all built on a big misunderstanding and is history. I don’t think that would cause you any trouble, although it may be an interesting conversation starter. The thing is that in 1627 a group of Moroccan pirates under a Dutch commander working for the Ottoman Empire attacked several villages on the south coast of Iceland and took people as slaves. These poor people were then sold as slaves in Algeria and Morocco. The event was quite devastating, particularly for the Vestmannaeyjar islands and Grindavík, where about half of the populations were kidnapped.

The thing is the event is known in Iceland as “Tyrkjaránið” or the Turkish Abductions, even though there were no actual “Turks” involved. But of course they were under the Ottoman Empire. After this event, Turks were of course not particularly popular in Iceland (not that they really came to Iceland anyways). Also many Icelanders believe that there was a forgotten law still in place, until recently, that said that it was legal to kill Turks. This is actually an urban legend and not true at all.

The story of “Tyrkjaránið” is quite amazing and it would definitely come up in conversations with Icelanders if you move to Iceland. But I’m sure it won’t affect you negatively at all, just a nice conversation starter.

Anonymous asked: First of all i must say thanks to you for this social help to needy people. Thank you very much. Sir, for a student who is going to take admission in university of iceland, what is the minimum accommodation cost he must keep him in mind. Secondly accommodation on rooms sharing is available in iceland or not. please consider it that my issue is not standard but cost minimization.

Glad to provide some help.

Iceland is not a cheap country to live in. It is comparable to the other Nordic countries in that regard. The only thing that is generally cheaper in Iceland (at least compared to the large Nordic capital cities) is the cost of housing. I would guess that the absolute cheapest housing available to a student are the rooms in Gamli Garður. There you pay 42,000 ISK and share the kitchen, laundry etc. I don’t think you could find cheaper accommodation anywhere. Maybe if you found several people to share some tiny private apartment. According to a government index I found the estimated minimum cost of living (housing not included) for an individual was 57.800 (food 44.800, hobby 2.100, clothes 4.600, medical 4.200, misc 2.100). That seems reasonable as an absolute minimum.

sir here it is written in website of directorate of immigration that along with application for residence permit bank statement of your account is required to check financial stability. the problem is, it is further added that the account must be of approved currency of central bank of iceland but how i will know that our national currency PKR Pak Rupees (Country Pakistan) is approved or not plz guide me.

I would guess that your currency is recognized. It’s a whole lot more important in the world economy than the ISK at least :) It is not on the list Central Bank’s list of major currencies, but try sending the Central Bank an email (sedlabanki@sedlabanki.is) and asking. One advantage to a small country such as Iceland is that bureaucratic institutions answer emails. 

javigonbus asked: Hello! I read somewhere in the internet that it was very difficult to get a job as a foreigner in Iceland... Is is true? if it is, then why? I'd really like to live in Iceland in the future, but if there's no jobs, it would be a very big problem... anyways, I love this blog! and Thank you :)

Being a foreigner will have both advantages and disadvantages when finding a job in any country. Typically the bonus is that you know a language most locals don’t know and the downside is that you don’t know the language of the locals.

Now pretty much all Icelanders are fluent in English, but the work language in almost all companies is Icelandic. That said, if you have valuable skills, you can of course outweigh your lack of Icelandic.

Unless your a programmer (always in demand) the easiest industry to find jobs in without knowing Icelandic is probably the tourism industry. Tourism in Iceland is very seasonal and requires a lot of extra hands in the summer.

You might find some relevant info in other questions that have been asked, particularly those tagged with immigration.

Do keep in mind though that unemployment is high after the financial crisis. Compared to most countries though it is low. It also fluctuates, due to tourism and other seasonal work. It is 4.4% right now, but was almost 9% in May.

Anonymous asked: Is it expensive to live in Iceland? How much it costs to rent or buy an apartment, a detached house?

Iceland is expensive relative to much of the world. A few years ago Reykjavik was one of the most expensive cities in the world. After the financial crisis however, much has changed. Prices in general are comparable or lower than those of our Scandinavian neighbors.

Housing prices are actually much lower than in the other Nordic countries. At least if you compare with the larger cities. What is different though is that most people own their homes (loans) and the rental market is therefor quite small. You can check out a question I answered about finding housing in Reykjavik. You might also want to look at a bunch of posts about moving to Iceland.

Regarding costs. The cheapest apartments you’ll find in Reykjavík cost around 10-15 million ISK. You have plenty of choices for 20. Outside Reykjavík prices are considerably lower. For the price of a super cheap Reykjavík apartment you could get a nice house in a more remote area. I don’t know the rental market as well (it’s small as I said) but I guess between 100-150 thousand ISK per month you have a lot of nice options. The absolute bottom might be at around 75.

Anonymous asked: Hi ♥ First of all your blog is amazing; the pictures are beautiful and you're so kind answering to everyone! Also, you're the only "active" source that I found about Iceland. I was thinking to make an Erasmus experience and Iceland is my top choice but it is also the most "extreme" ( the other ones are German, France etc ) so I'm doing some research but mostly I'm afraid that people could not "like" us (we are italians)! I've thought to ask you for advices :3

Thank you.

I met a few Italian Erasmus students when I was at university. I don’t recall anything other than they were content in Iceland. I do remember however that they were always inappropriately dressed for the weather. Icelandic weather is pretty extreme.

I don’t see any reason why Icelanders should not like Italians. Still there is a considerable culture difference you might encounter. This may make you think that we don’t like you. Icelanders tend to be a shy group of people, quite the opposite of the Italians I’ve met. When we meet open and friendly people we get skeptic. But just give us a little time and perhaps get us a little drunk. Then we’ll open up. Perhaps you can contact some former Italian Erasmus students that have been to Iceland for some tips.

Hope you find your way to Iceland! Góða ferð!

halcyonstorm asked: Hello :) I was wondering, how much trouble would someone have either visiting long term or moving to live in Iceland permanently if they spoke only English and no Icelandic?

Pretty much everybody in Iceland speaks good English, so getting by on English alone is generally easy. Of course if you are thinking within the workplace, then that varies. Depending on your line of work, there are plenty of companies that have non-Icelandic speaking employees. Tourism, software as well as plenty of labor jobs.

You might also want to check out several answers to questions regarding moving to Iceland.

Anonymous asked: I asked the last question and wanted to clarify. In the USA there is a lot of tension between the sexes such as fighting, cheating, and the highest divorce rates we've ever had. My question was more like, 'is there more love' or 'is it a good place to start a family'. So I meant more about family values, being monogamous, and just generally how nice people are there. I may move to Iceland for work someday and I ask since I'm single. You don't have to post this, maybe just edit the question =)

I think Iceland is a great place to start a family. Main benefits are minimal crime, social benefits, good free education and health care.

Oh yeah and the kids can be outside at midnight playing soccer in the summer midnight sun.

Unfortunately I can’t really quantify or compare family values or love. The divorce rate in Iceland is actually not that high (2 per 1000 inh. p. y.), but what skews that figure is that the marriage rate is low. So there are actually a lot of single parents in Iceland, I’d guess higher than in the US. But I would also guess that Iceland is a really nice country to be a single parent in. Again because of state support and also since most people live in Reykjavík, you don’t have to split families up as much.

Hope that answers something :)

alexisroberto asked: Hi there! I am an artist writing a project proposal that involves travelling ALL OVER Iceland for a time span of 1yr. I have heard travelling is considerably difficult and expensive. Could you elaborate on this for me? Also, if you have any other words of wisdom/resources/references for an artist looking to do things cheaply in Iceland, comments would be much appreciated. Takk!

That sounds interesting.

Yes Iceland is expensive compared to most of the world. Prices are comparable to those of the other Nordic countries. We tend to be most comparable with Sweden in that regard. Housing costs will generally be lower though.

Iceland is really big and has very few inhabitants. This means that public transportation is not that great and you won’t find any cheap flights. I wrote a pretty detailed post on ways to travel around Iceland a while ago. Generally the best way to travel around Iceland is by car. If you are on a tight budget, then rentals are probably prohibitively expensive. For a full year though it might be a good idea to get a car or bring a car over with the ferry if you are within driving range of Denmark.

Also if you plan to travel between towns and spend longer periods in each, it should be easy to hitchhike. Standing at street corners in the middle of winter waiting for a ride is not nice, but in a small town you’ll probably find somebody who knows somebody who’s on their way to someplace. You can also check out samferda.is which organizes carpools. Don’t worry, no hitchhiker has been killed since 1982.

As an artist you might also be able to get cheap or free housing intended for artists. I know several towns have artist accommodation of some sort although I can’t find much about it. I did find that the Association of Icelandic Visual Artists has some accommodation and workshops in Reykjavík. You could probably contact them to ask about other places around the country.

You could also combine accommodation and transport in one as Emily Lethbridge did while researching the Icelandic sagas.

Góða ferð!

electrictreee asked: Hi! The blog is looking super fantastic. Thanks to your help I have managed to track down a studio apartment (Fiskislóð, 101) for my move to your glorious land! Although I have not signed any lease/contract yet. Please, if you see any "FOR RENT" signs in a window near the city centre let me know. I will buy you many beers. Cheers friend.

Thanks and you’re welcome. Didn’t know there were any apartments on Fiskislóð. It is kind of an industrial street by the harbor. I guess it might be fine if the price is good, but you will most likely be bothered by people racing their cars in the area at night. The people living in nearby Ánanaust have been complaining about midnight racing on Fiskislóð. Here’s a video shot from a window in Ánanaust overlooking the Grandatorg roundabout at the end of Fiskislóð.

I don’t know if they’ve managed to stop this behavior, but I doubt it.

Good luck and hope you’ll enjoy Iceland.

Anonymous asked: Hi, I'm not from any Nordic country and I really want to go to college in Iceland, the thing is I live in Brazil and my school system is very different from Iceland's. I've read about applications everywhere and I still have doubts about it, like, should I start college here and then go there or can I go straight from here to there? That if, of course, they accept me. If you can't help me with the info, thanks for reading this anyway. You're doing a great job with your blog, one of my favorites!

É claro que tem jeito para Brasileiros vir estudar aqui!

You have two main choices, you can go as an exchange student or you can enroll completely in Iceland.

If you are ready for college and want to become an exchange student, then I think your Brazilian university would have to organize it.

If you are 18 or younger, then you can very easily come over as an exchange student through AFS or Rotary.

To enroll full time you need to make sure you are eligible study wise. The school system is a bit different from Brazil. You can see a good overview of it on Wikipedia. I think in your case you would have to have finished Ensino Médio in Brazil to qualify. Also since, we have lots of choices during our Menntaskóli years (comparable to Ensino Médio), not everybody has had the same courses. This means that each university program will have its own requirements. They may require a minimum number of courses in math etc.

I don’t think I can help you much more specifically than that other than point you to the University of Iceland’s foreign student portal. You can also just email them and explain your situation. I’m sure they are helpful.

Finally: Tenho certeza que você vai gostar tanto de estudar na Islândia como eu gostei de estudar no Brasil.

electrictreee asked: Hallo! I'm happy to see you answering questions, because I'm moving to Iceland from Toronto Canada this August and it's so hard finding housing sites for a flat. Going to school in Reykjavik and need a 1 bdrm or studio. What's The Best Way To Find Rent!? Thanks.

Yes I had quite a backlog of questions since I’ve been travelling for the past few weeks.

The largest site with rental apartments in Iceland is probably the one run by the mbl.is news site. You can probably find your way around it by running it through Google translate (Interestingly it translates the town of Garðabær as “California”).

If you are studying in Háskóli Íslands (University of Iceland) and you want to stay within walking distance, you should look for miðbær (downtown) or Vesturbær (west town) and perhaps Hlíðar. The University also has some apartments and dorms. Here’s the English website. It is a waiting list system, but recently the general price of rentals has gone down in Iceland and the student apartments are just a little bit cheaper than the free market. Therefor, last time I checked the waiting lists were minimal.

lovecigarettesandliberty-deacti asked: Hey there. I'll stay a year at iceland and I really don't know what to bring as a present. I'm 18 when I go there and so there's no possibility to take a bottle of "Jägermeister" (liquor), which is produced in my hometown, with me. Would you recommend me something else to take with me?

Jägermeister is popular in Iceland and would definitely be an appropriate gift seeing as its from your hometown. However the drinking age in Iceland is 20. This is usually not respected by 18 year olds, but it is the law.

When I was an exchange student in Brazil, I had with me a few picture books of Iceland, a flag, Icelandic candy, dried fish and some Icelandic music. Your local food or candy could be a good bet. Just keep in mind that you are not allowed to bring any uncooked meat to Iceland.

If you have a local football or handball club, then you could bring a team jersey to your hosts. Icelandic sports fans sometimes follow the German leagues, especially the teams that have Icelanders playing.

Good luck and góða ferð!

lovecigarettesandliberty said: Really sad,this would have been the perfect present.Would you say German sweets like Kinderschokolade/Haribo would be good?I think they’re pretty well known in some other countries.I’ll work at a ranch/hotel and stay there.Maybe it’s s.th different?

IcelandPictures: Kinder eggs are well known in Iceland and Haribo is also sold in Iceland. Although the World may not agree on this, we are convinced that Icelandic candy and particularly Icelandic chocolate is the best in the World. You could still bring some.

Even though the drinking age is 20, as a foreigner you would probably never be stopped in the customs gate with your bottle of Jägermeister in your baggage. Unless you have dreadlocks and a Bob Marley shirt. In any case at worst you’d say you didn’t know better and lose the bottle.

lovecigarettesandliberty said: So would a German sausage be better? And because of the Jägermeister I’m scared about a tax whitch I maybe have to pay at the airport. But on the other side it’s pretty unlikely that they will control me. Well thank you so much for your help. :)

IcelandPictures: A good German sausage is a great idea. You’ll have no problems with the tax. You are allowed to bring some alcohol (if you are over 20) and some tobacco (if you are over 18) without paying any tax.

Alcohol (one of the following options)

• 3 liters wine and 6 liters beer
• 1 liter of strong alcohol and 9 liters of beer
• 1,5 liters of wine and 9 liters of beer
• 12 liters of beer

• 200 cigarrettes
• 250 gr. of tobacco.

lovecigarettesandliberty said: there’s the problem. i’m not over 20. i’ll be 18 for just a month when i go abroad :/ oh man reaaaaaallly hard decision. Do you know about the tax on meat/sausages?

IcelandPictures: Don’t worry we’re not that tax crazy. You can bring all the sausage you can carry. Well actually being perfectly law abiding… you’re not allowed to bring some sausages. Full info here: http://www.tollur.is/default.asp?cat_id=301

Anonymous asked: How do people in Iceland generally feel about people of different racial and ethnic backgrounds? and are there people of color living in Iceland?

I think we are relatively open, but not perfect.

I have answered nearly the exact same question before: Are Icelandic people generally accepting of racial diversity?

Regarding your second question, then yes there are people of pretty much all colors in Iceland. However, this is a recent change. To give you an idea, I can tell the story of my cousin who is now in his mid 30s. When he was 6, he saw a black man for the first time while on a trip to Denmark. He was so surprised by this that he began crying.

I’m pretty sure all Icelandic 6 year olds today have seen a black man.

caughtunawares asked: Hello,
I saw your post about Iceland universities.
I live in the United States as well and I have a question.
I read somewhere that in order to visit Iceland, you have to have some sort of tourist visa. If you want to live there, you have to have a worker's visa. What about if you go to school there? Do you still have to apply for some kind of visa?
Thank you!

Hi

When travelling from the USA you should not need a visa. However if you plan to stay longer than three months you need a residence permit. Here’s a link to the student residence permit.

Good luck.