April 20-26

This week was a very special week during our time at RES, and as a fluke was also marked with many coincidences. Due to the financial turmoil that has hit the country over the past 6 months, elections were moved forward to elect a new government who would, presumably, fix the country’s problems. RES had the opportunity to meet with, Mr. Steingrimur Sigfusson, the Minister of Finance, who was up for reelection. He spoke about how the economy was based on a sound footing, and it was only a matter of time before there was a recovery. He added that education is still a priority in Iceland regardless of the economic climate, and the educational aspect of life in Iceland has seen very little negative affect. This makes sense, especially since Iceland has one of the highest literacy rates in the world.

This week we learned about fuel cells and their potential applications. In addition to potential use in cars, they are also well suited for many other uses, such as energy storage units, backup power for hospitals (which was a thesis topic for two of last year’s students), buses, boats, advanced military applications, and even portable electronics. It is currently possible to power cell phones, laptops, and mp3 players by a fuel cell. It might soon be possible to put a small amount of methanol into a laptop and not have to charge it for a week, similar to refilling a cigarette lighter. In addition, fuel cells can be adapted to other sustainable fuels besides Hydrogen, such as biomethanol or biobutanol.

During the weekend we had a chance to take a day trip to Siglufjordur, one of the most northernmost towns on the main island of Iceland. The group stopped in Dalvik and Olafsfjordur along the way. A tunnel is currently under construction that will connect Olafsfjordur and Siglufjordur, which is surrounded by high cliffs on all but one side. The tunnel is not scheduled to open until next year. Coincidentally, the tunnel would be open for traffic to pass through for a few hours later during the weekend for the public to see how the construction has progressed. Unfortunately, we did not have that long to wait, so we instead chose to drive the long route on a gravel road, which took us 3 times as long and cost us a flat tire from the frequent potholes. The drive was still scenic, however, and we got our first glimpses (and touches) of the open Arctic Ocean.:

The city of Siglufjordur is described (by Arthur Frommer) as impossibly picturesque, and he is definitely right. Even though, coincidentally, the clouds lifted and the snow stopped right as we pulled into town, it was impossible to really do the town justice in photographs.

Since the town is surrounded by cliffs, avalanches and rockslides are a constant danger. To lessen this risk, the town built avalanche berms to deflect any danger to the town’s residents. We hiked up a few berms to get a good view of the area.

One of the town's main claim's to fame is the herring museum, that celebrates the town's rich history as the herring capital of the fishing world:

While the museum was technically closed until summertime, a call to the caretaker allowed our group special entry into the facility. Coincidentally, even before we called him to say we had arrived in town, we met him in the center of town right as we pulled in. The museum was surprisingly entertaining and very informative. The facility was awarded the best museum in Europe a few years ago, and even has two old fishing boats housed in it, which we were only too happy to climb aboard

Hundreds of these types of ships would bring back millions of tons of fish, which would be salted, iced, or canned and shipped all over the world.

By coincidence, our roadtrip took place on election day, and the only two restaurants in Siglufjordur were both rented out to host different political parties. Apparently it is common for the different parties to hold a potluck event organized local party members, and everyone brings an elaborate dish or dessert. We were told by one restaurant manager that he ‘Didn’t want to cook for us’, but by coincidence, we ran into the organizer of one potluck (organized by the Independent Party I think), who invited a few of us in. This is what we stumbled upon:

The food was amazing! If only democracy was this tasty in the US, it might be a little more exciting and encourage more people to vote. I’m sure people would definitely be more likely to vote if there were cake involved. Our group compared the various parties (and their parties) later on. Ironically, even though the Independent Party had the best food, they ended up not doing so well in the polls. Just goes to show that even though good food can’t fix everything, it certainly helps.