It's that time of year again

Yep that's right it's berry time, the blue berries as you can see are only just turning blue so it is still very early on in the season, but this does not stop my mother - berry queen picker. It doesn't matter how bad her back is or how tired she is she always takes every opportunity to go berry picking. So after a rather "heavy" Friday night, she got me to take her at 2pm on the Saturday - twas probably the best thing for me.

Mum in her berry picking outfit - she lies amid the growth and picks and picks and picks....

Freyja and I meanwhile wonder around and look perplexed. I did also try and pick some but Freyja was intent on surveying the surroundings. I couldn't let her run free as we were just above the paddocks where horses were grazing and I wasn't in the mood for chasing her around and then exlpaining myself to angry horse owners.

She found this most unjust! Then in the evening it was food from the middle ages. Saturday was a day for Sturlunga. Sturlunga is a saga which documents one of the bloodiest fueds in Icelands history, and it took place here in Skagafjordur. At the moment there is a group active in the fjord promoting the different areas where the different battles took place and making the saga a living thing... Cultural / historical tourism at it's best. I hadn't taken part in any of the days activities I just went to the dinner that was held in the evening - with the bestest of people.. family and friends anywho, the menu was to be based around food that the folk of the time would have had available to them, a part of the evening's entertainment was the band Voces Thules - they were brilliant.

Also a writer Einar Kárason (the head on the left) said a few words as well as a few other local identities. Now to the important bits -- the food:

Entré dried fish, salt fish mush on rye bread, smoked beef tongue, lamb pate and flat bread.

Main - Icelandic lamb soup... had quite a bit of pepper and I didn't find any lamb but did get lots and lots of bláberg which I think is wild thyme.

More mains, lots of barley type things, honey and almond arctic charr, wild salads, turnip mash and for those that like the pig, they had an apparently really good crackling...

I forgot to take a picture of dessert, but it was skyr (Icelandic cheesy joghurt thing) served with blue berries (but apparently very sour - sugar was not readily available in the year 1200 you know) ábristir (spelling probably wrong), which is the first milk from a cow after she has calved. You heat it in a bowl over boiling water - becomes sort of custardy, I love it - but not many of my friends do... then there was mountain grass milk.... which is apparently very good for you - need I say more.

Twas a good night, I learnt a little about the saga and feel that now I really should try and read the damn thing....

Friday night.. was Buff night - the guys that came to the wedding will know that a good time was had by all.... they are an amazing cover band - play nothing but happy tunes but they all look really depressed doing so. Classic.