Iceland: Before I Go, Part 1/4, a Dangerous Country

This summer, I’m going to Iceland for a week with my family. And so, I’ve been reading up.

Iceland is Number One Threat to Icelanders

Deadly

Iceland’s known for Vikings and the musical kids show Lazy Town. It’s also, I'm discovering, a country that fate never wanted to exist.

Let’s look at the facts*:

In the 12^th century, a volcano erupts three times and blankets a third of the country in its ash. Then there’s a mini ice-age. Then the Black Death kills off half the population.

Still, some people keep inhabiting Iceland. This is what we call Not Taking the Hint. In 1783, more eruptions release gas that poisons the air. A quarter of the population and more than half of the livestock die. Everyone still alive continues not taking the hint.

Even when Iceland isn’t actively trying to bury its people in ash, it still gets back in passive aggressive ways, like simply refusing to grow food. Other countries have had the privilege of letting taste influence their culinary tradition. Iceland founded its food choices on the prime question, “does this have enough nutrients and calories to keep me alive?” Which is why we end up with things like putrefied shark fin, ram’s testicle cake, and boiled sheep’s head. (I’d give these the benefit of the doubt flavor-wise, but from all I’ve heard, they really don’t deserve it).

Part of why Iceland is so beautiful is that it’s full of glaciers and lava formations and black sand beaches. Which doesn’t leave a lot of room for growing crops. Soil erosion is a problem even today, and the frigid winters place a sharp cut off on the growing season.

What plants that do grow are pretty stunted and the country’s forte seems to lie with moss and fungi. This leaves Iceland eating a lot of seafood, birds, and sheep (and even the sheep aren’t indigenous).

That said, it sounds like much of Iceland outside the big cities is farms. I suppose it makes sense: if crops are sparse, you might as well dedicate everyone you can to growing them.

Not so Deadly?

Despite all this, Iceland somehow has a high life expectancy rate, great healthcare, and almost no crime. 

* Where am I getting these facts? Mostly from my 2010-edition Lonely Planet guide book, supplemented with the odd internet search.