Day one of classes

Today was the first day of classes for my MA program. As an indicator of the workload I have to deal with, I shall post my schedule for Mondays:

11:40-13:10 Old Icelandic/Old Norse
15:00-16:30 Viking Age Archaeology (supernumerary to my MA, but important for my PhD, starts next week)

That's it. No foolin'. The rest of my week is similar; no more than 3 hours of class per day.

Of course, the reading list for my Old Norse Literary Corpus class on Tuesdays was ~100 pages, including supplements, so there's that. Still, I burned through those fairly quickly, so that's good.

The class itself was good; being in an academic setting again helped me to remember things things that I forgot that I knew (like, you know, vowel-stems - an important thing for learning word declensions!) and kicked my brain back into gear.

After class, Ryder, David and I hung out for a bit - went to a couple of book stores, went to a music shop (Ryder is a master of harmonic string instruments, or at least better than I am at them) and talked about maybe setting up an MIS jam-band; there was both a Hapi drum and a small hand-harp/lyre, and I was intrigued by each. The Hapi produces this super mellow, resonating hum while the lyre is, well, a lyre. However, the Hapi cost a little less than two months rent, so finances dictate that I'm going to be looking at the lyre.

Also, there was talk of making ravioli. I decided that I'd make home made ravioli for folk, which rapidly spiralled into a trip to a local delicatessen. This particular place sold Taleggio, but at 7800kr per kilo, it's a touch expensive. Of course, it's not like things are inexpensive here (1900kr for 500g of bacon! BACON!) but even still. We'll have to see who's all interested and who can chip in. If there's enough, then I figure we can go all out and make an awesome meal. If there are enough folk interested, this should be relatively inexpensive and quite fun!

Finally, I've determined that I need to purchase one of the famous Icelandic Wool Sweaters, which are around half a month's rent when new or about a quarter-month's rent if I get them from Kolaportið, the local flea market. Either way, a pricey prospect.

Oh yeah! I almost forgot to mention that I a) went to see the new Conan movie last night, which was closer to the Robert E. Howard stories than the Milius/Schwarzenegger version, but not as re-watchable and b) have had one of the finest hot dogs ever at Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur. These people take street meat to a new level. Simple, cheap (a hot dog and pop is 470kr, or around $4.25 CAD) and damned tasty. If and when you come to visit, I highly recommend it.

Oh, and more folk are being added to the Dramatis Personae:

Ásids - An Icelandic-American; PhD candidate, very intelligent. Moreso than I, at least. Which seems to be a theme with my fellow MIS students
Myriam - A Russo-American PhD candidate and former MIS student; she's going to be my new flatmate in October, as Hana is moving out. A fan of things Fantastical and grimdark.
Bahb - An American-American from Kentucky and current MIS student. Much like everyone else in the program, barring your humble narrator, an extremely intelligent dude. Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner and classical scholar.

More updates!

So, yesterday was fun - we had an informal Student meeting with Miriam, a former MIS student and now a PhD candidate.  Good times were had by all of us - the MIS members of the Dramatis Personae, that is - and we met a friend of Sarah's from Germany.  We were also at a pub called Ölsmiðjan, which means, and I shit you not on this,"the Alesmith."  Which was pretty badass.  It's also one of the few bars in Reykjavik which hasn't been trendy, which means they serve decent draught for 490kr, or around $4.25CAD  Not bad pricing, when you consider that the average cost of a pint or bottle around here is 900kr/$8.75CAD

Afterwards, we went to Hlöllabátar, grabbed some 'boat sandwiches' - the local variant on subs - and just shot the shit.  I had a really tasty one consisting of shaved lamb, ham, fried onions, lettuce and Hlölli sauce - essentially a remoulade.  Tasty stuff.


So, we all remember how my Visa troubles were, well, troubles, right?  Well, my RCMP prints and check arrived the other day, got scanned and mailed to me and I mailed them to UTL, so right now my 'I'm not getting deported because I'm no longer an illegal alien!" paperwork is in the process of being filled out.  And I might not have to go to another country to do it!

Also, the lady from the Canadian Embassy with whom I've been chatting is, apparently, the Canadian Trade Commissioner for Iceland.  And she wants to meet up for coffee next week.  Crazy?  I think so.

Speaking of other countries, I've met two new folk who are being added to the Dramatis Personae:

Rouan - A Kiwi and MIS student; quiet but seems like a decent enough fellow.  Likely capable of constructing an entire house from 2x4 and baling wire.
Einar - An Anglo-Norse MIS student.  He is his own Danelaw, essentially.  A quiet Danelaw, but those are the most dangerous.

There are plans afoot to go to the flea market on Saturday, so I might come back with a camera and then there might be pictures!  However, for now, that's that.  So catch you later!

News!

So, met up with a few other folk from the University and I'm adding them to the Dramatis Personae post.  I'll give you a rundown on who's who, though (and, this way, I only need to copy and paste the entry, not write up a  new one!  Score one for being lazy!)

Ryder - Another Yank, fellow MIS student, fan of Fantasy and fellow nerd.  Paul's roommate.

David - An Englishman, from Cambridge, and thus he sounds smarter than anyone else.

Jonas - Another German, doing an exchange semester here for his BA.  Solid dude.

Andrew, Paul, Ryder and I had a meeting with Torfi yestday.  Andrew and I are still in limbo viz. our immigration status while Paul, Ryder and Sarah are having issues with their kennitölur.*  Andrew and I will be in that boat too, once things show up here for us.

After the meeting with Torfi, I went and collected Sarah and Jonas from our flat and the lot of us - Sarah, Ryder, Paul, Andrew, Jonas and I - went to Pizza Pronto for dinner.  It certainly wasn't the best pizza I've ever had, but it was certainly the best "it's 3am, I'm hammered and I know I need to eat something" pizza I've ever had.

Today, the plan is to go to the Post Office and mail in OSAP info, then there's talk of swimming going on.  We'll see how that goes.

Also, I'll need to get a camera by Friday; there's a trip to Þingvellir (where the two continental plates of North America and Europe meet) and Reykholt (where Snorri Sturlusson lived and where the Snorri exhibit is), so that'll be cool.

Also, I'm going to need to get an Icelandic keyboard at some point - constantly using Alt-Code or copy-paste diacritics is getting ridiculous.

*Kennitölur (sg. kennitala) are Icelandic National Identification numbers.  Think Social Insurance/Social Security numbers for Canada and the US.  They're also needed to get registered with the University and with Ugla, the University's online registration system, the computer labs and get study carrels at the National Library.  So yeah, kind of a big deal.

Dear Iceland:

Thank you for the awesome welcoming party.*  This doesn't mean I forgive you totally, but we're getting there.

Of course, this "hangover" which you have left me with isn't exactly my style, but you know, when in Reykjavik, right?

*I apparently landed on the morning of culture night which, according to Ancient Custom, requires a massive booze-up and much partying.  I am, of course, totally down with it.

Jim versus Iceland, Part 2: The Revengancing

I'm in Iceland right now.  Flight landed at 0702 GMT, had things sorted and cleared and onto the Skybus by 0730 and was here - the apartment on Njalsgata in Reykjavik - by 0900.  Finally got to meet Sarah, who is awesome, and we went and did some shopping for the basics.  Now, I am back here, we're going to make some pasta and chips (fries, for most of my audience) for dinner and I'm just updating to let you all know what is what.

Speaking of updates.  You remember how I said I'd post pics?

Yeah, well, about that.  I would post pics, except that I didn't bring a camera with me (save for my webcam) and thus you are bereft of the barren and rugged landscape that is Iceland on the highway from Keflavik airport to Reykjavik.  Also, you're bereft of photos of the three (!) volcanic plumes I saw on the way here.

Suffice it to say, the island knows Jim has arrived, and this time, it's personal.

Post-Jimpocalypse news and an update on The Visa Situation

The Jimpocalypse


Alas, I was a fool and did not bring a camera to the Jimpocalypse, and thus there shall be no photos of the night.  Suffice it to say, though, a good time was had by all and I greatly appreciated seeing all of my non-coworker friends for a last time before I leave.


The Visa Situation


Is there a sign on my head that reads "Do not supply Visas to this man"?  No?  Then why is Iceland so reluctant to supply a Visa to me?

Allow me to explain; I've got my Visa application in, everything is proceeding apace and I'm just short the proof of registration at the University to get everything done (I can't register until I'm there, which is proof that the government designed it's bureaucracy after reading Kafka and watching Brazil)  and I would assume everything is going swimmingly.  However, Andrew and I received letters on the same day* stating our background checks were insufficient and we needed RCMP checks.  This would be impossible to get in such short notice and, being my charmingly direct self, I let the Directorate of Immigration know.

The result of that and a direct phone call?  An email from the Canadian Embassy in Reykjavik stating, essentially "Chill, James, and wait until shit clears up on Monday.  If it's not clear by then, call the Directorate and find out what's up."

So, I wait for another 12 hours and some change before I find out what's what and, hopefully, I will have an answer in the key of 'Awesome' regarding this.

Conclusion

I depart in 5 days.  This is craziness.

*No small feat, considering Canada Post's recent labour issues.

Another update!

Emily is a knitter of fantastic ability and speed.  She is, I'm convinced, some sort of wizard who can take string, two sticks and some fluff and make this:

This is Irving.   He is a plush monster that Emily whipped together for me to take to Iceland.

He is freakin' awesome and LOOK AT HIS EYES.  SO CUTE.

That concludes our post for today.  Look for post-Jimpocalypse photos later in the weekend.

By request...

Ren has requested that I include, for you, my faithful readers, a picture of the Jim Action Figure she found when she was in Iceland earlier this year.

So, because I'm just that kind of guy, I present the infamous "Ren and the Jim Action Figure" pic:

So there you go, folk.  Iceland is already preparing for me - they've got mini statues of me for sale in their airports.

The Plot Thusfar...

Our brave and intrepid hero - yours truly, lest you forget - is preparing for a return visit to Iceland, for take two on the MA, for a second crack at a foe which had bested him once before, in 2007.*

As of this moment, I have handed in my two weeks notice at a call centre job I never really liked and the vast majority of my Visa application is already completed and in the hands of the Icelandic Directorate of Immigration (also known as Útendingastofnun or UTL).  The labyrinthine passages of UTL's Visa approval system notwithstanding (I need to provide proof of registration in my program to apply but can't register in my program unless it's in person, for example), things are looking to be progressing much better than they did in 2007.  For one, I have an actual place to live this time, not a couple of places I can look at before deciding on one like last time (that was a trainwreck and a half, I tell you), I know who my housemates are and I've actually spoken to them (a massive improvement over last time as well) and my landlord isn't a prick.  I also know what I'm doing for my thesis.  All of these are huge improvements over last time.

I leave for Iceland on 19 August, 2011, at 21:10 EST and should arrive in Keflavik at 06:25 GMT on 20 August, barring any delays.  In the intervening 11 days, Emily and I are finishing the packing, looking for a new, smaller place for her to move to and preparing for various and sundry going-away related things.

There may be a few posts between today and the 20th, likely one after the going away party I'm throwing (dubbed, of course, The Jimpocalypse) and possibly another the day I leave.

Stay tuned, faithful readers!


*For some clarification and background, Emily and I went to Iceland in 2007 so I could do my MA in Medieval Icelandic Studies.  Unfortunately, the sheer impenetrability of the Icelandic Directorate of Immigration's Visa process resulted in a quick retreat to Canada after a week of trying to figure out how in the nine hells our Visas would be approved because we'd not completed the Double-Secret Handshake that UTL requires.

At upphafi

As your humble narrator, I should probably begin with letting you know what's what.

About me:  I'm in Reykjavik working on my MA in Medieval Icelandic Studies at the Háskólí Íslands here.  As most of you who're reading this are aware, I'm originally from Ontario, Canada and I'm married to an awesome Lady who's still there at the moment.

Why I'm there:  As I've said, I'm doing my MA in Medieval Icelandic Studies.  I'm looking at a couple of weapons used in the sagas by

Dramatis Personae:  There are a few names I'm going to dropping along the way, so I might as well let you know who's who:

Non-MIS Students:

Emily - My ex-wife.  Originally came to Iceland with me in 2007.
Ren - One of my best friends.  Dedicated to making my life as interesting for her as possible.
Hana - My other housemate.  A dive instructor and fellow Canadian.  Although she's from Dundas, so, you know...
David - An Englishman, from Cambridge, and thus he sounds smarter than anyone else.  Doing the Erasmus Modern Icelandic program.
Jonas - Another German, doing an exchange semester here for his BA.  Solid dude, also in Erasmus
Hayley - A Canadian from BC, doing work in Literature.  A mutual friend of Johanna and Andrew
Magda - A German PhD candidate working on Viking-Age grave finds in Iceland.
Johanna - Ryder's ladyfriend and our housemate.  Half-Icelandic and half-Finnish.
Siobhan -  A dive instructor who works with Hana, of dubious English extraction. Willing to go go on lunatic adventures with me


MIS Students:

Andrew - A fellow Canadian and MIS student.  From Whitehorse, Yukon Territory.  Bear wrestler, moose whisperer, etc.
Paul - A Yank and fellow MIS student.  Also, a bitter Nihilist and Anarcho-Capitalist (although he prefers the term "Libertarian")
Ryder - Another Yank, fellow MIS student, fan of Fantasy books and fellow nerd.  Paul's roommate and Folk Music Afficianado.
Sarah - My German former housemate.  A fellow student in MIS.  Huge metal fan.  Not as in a large appliance to move air about, but as in she enjoys heavy metal music.
Einarr - An Anglo-Norse MIS student.  He is his own Danelaw, essentially.  A quiet Danelaw, but those are the most dangerous.
Ásdís - An Icelandic-American; PhD candidate, very intelligent. Moreso than I, at least. Which seems to be a theme with my fellow MIS students
Myriam - A Russo-American PhD candidate and former MIS student; she's going to be my new flatmate in October, as Hana is moving out. A fan of things Fantastical and grimdark.
Bahb - An American-American from Kentucky and current MIS student. Much like everyone else in the program, barring your humble narrator, an extremely intelligent dude. Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner and classical scholar.
Bond - A Texan-American and Fulbright Scholar.  Fantastically intelligent, quiet, has the stereotypically academic quality of drifting off deep into thought at a moment's notice

What you can expect:  Probably some photos.  Certainly some stories.  Maybe even semi-regular updates, if you're lucky.