May 19, 2025

Not all of Iceland’s imagination comes out in novels or poetry sometimes it comes out in humor, so dry it should come with a drought warning.

Iceland is a country where Jon Gnarr, a comedian ran for mayor of the capital city. When asked what his qualifications were he replied “none.” “I am a comedian; this is a joke.” His campaign platform was a sober parliament by 2015. Ready for this, he got elected and served from 2010-2014. The punch line-he was actually a pretty good mayor.

I didn’t see any, but I was told you will see street signs that make no sense like sheep wearing sunglasses or cows with their behinds facing you for no apparent reason. And children in Iceland are not visited by Rudolph and the other reindeers but 13 Troll Boys who run havoc outside your house in the middle of the night. Some of their names: Bun Leaker, Sausage Swapper and Ooze Slammer.

Today we visited Akureyri, the second largest city in Iceland even though it has a population of only 19,000. The Icelandic sense of humor was on display!

In 2008, during the Icelandic financial crisis the city of Akureyri decided to switch all the red circular stop lights to hearts. It may have been meant to be temporary, but the residents of the city loved them so much that the hearts still remain. Now stopping at a red light can actually make you smile.

The City Council of Isafjordur also came up with a unique idea to make the main crosswalk in town 3D. The intent was that motorists would take special caution when approaching the crosswalk. It has become an attraction all right. Pedestrians routinely now dance across the crosswalk making it into a virtual piano keyboard. And unfortunately, the crosswalk did draw motorists’ attention. Some out of towners were so startled by the 3D crosswalk that they jammed on their breaks causing some accidents and a few injuries. Yet, the crosswalk remains. I guess a good joke is worth a few repercussions. The trash cans are decorated like Trolls! You don’t just deposit trash in the city containers you hug them as evidenced by our cruise director cuddling up to a trash bin.

Some of the humor was just unexpected. I’m not sure if this greenhouse owner had a previous jail record or just wanted to be overly cautious. And I think this sculpture is one of the best I’ve seen. It’s title: The Unknown Bureaucrat.

So where does all this humor come from? How do you make sense of a place that has always been uncertain, a storm or a failed crop could mean disaster. Humor is insulation. It is the wool sweater for your emotions. Expect the unexpected. And when in doubt, add a joke.

It is how people here cope with hardships: long winters, volcanic eruptions, collapsed banks. If you can’t change it, you might as well laugh at it!

Chongae and I will be in Reykjavik the capital of Iceland for the next few days. We will be staying at a hotel, and I won’t be bringing my laptop so I will update you upon our embarkment.

Thanks for traveling with us.