ESN Reykjavik newsletter March/April 2013

ESN Newsletter March/April 2013

A welcome note from the new president of ESN Reykjavik

Langt síðan við höfum sést!!!

It has truly been a busy month here at ESN Reykjavík, with the elections over you will see some fresh faces on the ESN Reykjavík board as well as some old ones.

With the month of March behind us, we hope we were able to provide you with a crazy month of activities.

From ESN parties like St. P a t r i c k s D a y , t h e e v e r popular Pub Quiz and the ESN Easter party, the Pole Fitness to the massive trip in partnership with Hikingclub Fjallasnigillinn to Þórsmörk.

W e h o p e t h e r e w a s something for you.

With April just beginning W h a l e w a t c h i n g a n d paintball are already on the schedu l e. Al ong w it h a

possible trip this month ESN makes sure there is always something for you. And let’s not forget the parties ;) If you have any questions or ideas, you can email us at info@esnreykjavik.com we would love to hear from you.

Shishir Patel

The ESN board Vice President

Pétur Marketing Manager

Ingvi Þór Communications Manager

Karyn Kristín

Treasurer

Event Planner

Björn Logi National Representative

Ólafur Páll Project Coordinator

Sigríður Þóra

Sandra Rut IT

Kristinn Helgi Secretary

Ásta Karen

Þórsmörk - The Valley of Thor After almost one year studying abroad here in Iceland, and attending to all the trips, I think this weekend in Thorsmörk has been one of the best one ever organized by the ESN. Funny bus trip on that so-called road and nice hiking all together. For me one of the best moments was the unexpected river crossing! Really exciting. The cabins were cozy and comfortable, and spending the night playing guitar, singing and talking was also really nice. The next day I went to the HikingClub’s trip to hike Sólheimajökull, I was really happy to be able to take part in both trips! Definitely great team work between ESN and the HikingClub!

Unforgettable!

Sandra Ombuena

Did you know?

• Þorrablót is a midwinter festival dating back to the 19th century • People got together and celebrated the Norse gods

• Today Icelanders keep the tradition and eat the food the Vikings ate

Þorrablót -­‐ Through the eyes of a Finn Every culture has its strange customs and many of them are built around consuming disgusting food items. For I c e l a n d , t h i s i s c a l l e d Þorrablót. Dishes consisting of just about every part of a sheep, blood sausages, rotten shark and whale, it is actually strange to Wind some sweet tasting bread and bland dried Wish on the menu. What most cultures do not get is the importance of foul tasting alcohol drinks during the feast, to wash away the s u d d e n e x p l o s i o n s o f u n c o m f o r t a b l e W l a v o r s resulting from the traditional dishes.

As we Finns see it, the antidote is called “Brennivín”, or Black Death. Since most Finns are food-­‐ and drink aWicionados, I ate my fair

share of rotten shark and s o u r w h a l e d u r i n g t h e Þorrablót the nice people in ESN decided to throw for the current Erasmus students.

And I would be lying, if I did not consider brennivin an added bonus, since getting to know a culture is through the alcohol they serve.

I am actually a bit saddened by the fact that Finland does not have a truly nauseating traditional food, because things like Þorrablót bring people together much better than copious amounts of Koskenkorva. For at least once in his life, a man should have a taste of a testicle and bite down, hard. Thank you for this opportunity: I am taking some Hákarl back to Finland.

Tomi Nummelin Lahti University of Applied Sciences, Finland

• It’s always held in the old Icelandic month of Þorri

The old Icelandic months Mörsugur Þorri The Wirst day of Þorri is dedicated to husbands Góa has a winter festival dedicated to wives Einmánuður is the last month of winter, literally means “one month” Harpa is the Wirst month of summer, it is said that Harpa is the child of Þorri and Góa Skerpla Sólmánuður “sun month” Heyannir Tvímánuður Haustmánuður Gormánuður is the Wirst month of winter, the name references the busy time of slaughter “Gor” means half digested food inside the intestines of animals Ýlir

Thursday Party Highlights There have definitely been some crazy Thursday Parties this semester. Some of the more memorable ones include the Meet Your Buddy Party, Trafic Light Party, the St. Patrick’s Day Party and two very popular Pub Quizzes. Don’t worry if you’ve missed them though there are plenty more to come!

IPSUM: Vivamus est ipsum, vehicula nec, feugiat rhoncus, accumsan id, nisl.

• Akureyri is Iceland’s second largest city, after the capital region • It is called the capital of the North • People from Akureyri speak with a slightly different accent which is noticeable • Home to KEA hangikjöt, Brynjuís and apparently the best weather in Iceland there has always been a bit of a rivalry between Akureyri and Reykjavík

Ski trip to Akureyri The beginning of February marked the annual legendary ESN ski trip to Akureyri, and this year did not disappoint.

Even with the long bus ride s p i r i t s w e r e h i g h a n d everyone looked forward to hitting the slopes Saturday morning. Along the way we stopped at the Kaldi beer brewery where the beer-­‐ m a k i n g p r o c e s s w a s explained, with beer tasting included of course! After arriving in Akureyri the group went for a delicious buffet supper and of course checked out the nightlife downtown.

Saturday morning did not have the best weather and

u n f o r t u n a t e l y t h e s k i mountain HlíðarWjall was closed due to high winds, so we had to move onto plan B: explore Mývatn.

We stopped at the beautiful G o ð a f o s s w a t e r f a l l a n d enjoyed the warm water of Mývatn’s nature bath, then feeling refreshed we partied the night away. Sunday completely made up for the lack of skiing on Saturday with the sun shining and fantastic ski conditions. After an incredible day skiing we headed back to Reykjavík, all completely exhausted after a fantastic weekend.

Karyn Kristín

Events

March

April

21

11

Pub Quiz at Mánabar

Drinking Game Party

23-24

13

Trip to Þórsmörk

Paintball

31

25

Easter Party

Summer Party

ESN Reykjavik Fitness takes on...

Pole Fitness!

The ESN Reykjavik Fitness group is a group for students that party hard but also want to take care of their health. You can Wind people to workout with, share your goals, join competitions and even trips when the weather is good. The group is on Facebook under the name of “ESN RVK Fitness” join in!

This month the group took on a new challenge and decided to try out pole Witness.

We were seven members who met at a local downtown studio to test our strength and Wlexibility in this sport that is gaining so much popularity. This type of training is known to be very challenging, yet fun and rewarding at the same time, and these are just some of the reasons it is becoming so widespread. We took a one hour trial lesson in which we learned various spins, poses and transitions on the pole. Some were surprised at the level of difWiculty, however there were smiles all around and everyone thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

ESN Star Power The Game of Thrones is a TV series based on the series of fantasy novels “A song of Ice and Fire” written by George R.R. Martin. The show is a huge success with the rating of 9.4 stars on imdb.com and was the most downloaded show in 2012. Jan Koppandi, a former ESN Reykjavik exchange student, played an extra on the show. He agreed to answer a few questions for the newsletter.

How did you get this opportunity?

A colleague from the Netherlands told me about the opportunity to apply for the casting as a Wildling-­‐Extra. The Icelandic company Pegasus was responsible for all the extras in Iceland and so we applied with some pictures of us. After a short casting I was in, but unfortunately my Dutch buddy was out.

Which scene(s) were you in?

I don’t know exactly. They Wilmed scenes for all 10 episodes of the 3. Season, but we had no inWluence on how the directors will cut the material.

Where was it shot?

All the Wilming locations were near Mývatn and KraWla. Most of the extras (me too) lived in Húsavík in a Hotel during the shot and we drove to the different locations by bus every day.

How were you treated by the cast?

All the cast members were really nice and friendly and in spite of the low temperature and the stormy weather, they always tried to hold up motivation and entertain all of the crew. After the whole shot, the crew organized a party at a hotel and to raise glasses with actors like Rose Leslie (wildling girl) or Kit Harrington (Jon Snow), was a worthy Winale to this adventure.

Jan Koppandi in costume

How did this experience add to your overall stay in Iceland?

Are you a big fan of the episodes?

Do you have any funny stories with any of the cast members?

Any chance you will be back for `ilming?

You know, studying at RU means often a real bunch of work and some nightshifts at Uranus. So it was quite a relief to get out of town and do something totally else, even if that means you stand 14 hours a day in a snowstorm.

Some, but none that Wit into this serious newsletter appropriately.

Yes, I am. I read the books years ago and waited 6 years for the Wifth book “A Dance of Dragons”. I’m really excited about the series and the events and plotlines they added for the TV show, so it never gets boring, when you’ve read the books.

Yeah there’s a chance, but it’s quite difWicult to Wit it into my schedule.

I ESN Discounts With summer right around the corner ESN has some great discounts for card holders, just remember to show your card!

• Renting a car is a perfect way to experience the beautiful countryside of Iceland and travel around on your own pace. Islandia Car offers ESN cardholders 5% off of 1-­‐2 day rentals and 7% off when rented for 3 days or more!

• In the warm weather we’ll (hopefully) be having you’ll be sure to want some ice cream, Eldur og Ís offers a 10% discount to ESN card holders • Are you having family or friends over for a visit?

Reykjavik City Hostel and Reykjavik Downtown Hostel offer ESN card holders a 10% discount until the 14th of May Visit http://esnreykjavik.com/partners for more information about our partners