Lindsey Cooke
Entry 2: June 26, 2008
The other day we had a very special and unique opportunity. Mr. Ambassador Gundmundur Eiriksson came to talk to us about the Law of the Sea as well as other current political and foreign affairs. The Foreign Minister of Iceland was scheduled to give the talk, but she was sick and could not make it. She got one of her colleagues, Mr. Eiriksson, to come in her place, and it was a real treat.
The man who spoke has an extensive background. He was Law of the Sea officer and ambassador to Canada, Nicaragua, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Venezuela and Peru. He has also worked with the United Nations and is a professor in the UN mandated University for Peace in Costa Rica, where he currently lives part of the year.
I was able to introduce this fine dignitary, and I was so nervous. However, it was truly a special event and I feel privileged to have experienced it. His speech was very enlightening and he talked about issues very dear to me such as the environment and the needs of fishers in Iceland.
On another note,
The mountains seem darker. They don't want to see us go.
Moi non plus.
Entry 1: June 4
Today we got a tour from Kristinn Ólason (the rector) of the church and its history. The church at Skalholt is the oldest cathedral church in Iceland. There has been a church on these grounds since the 11th century. Kristinn told us wonderful stories of the church, and how it has changed over the years. It is also the only church that is now built of stone, though the ceilings are still of wood. The church also has parts of it from all of Scandinavia. The wood ceilings and stone floors are from Norway, the organ and chairs from Denmark, the font from the Faroe Islands, and the bells from Sweden. The mosaic that is in the building on the east wall also has stones from Germany.
The church is also set up so that it faces with the mosaic of Jesus in the east so that the sun rises behind Jesus, a symbol of the resurrection. The church is built long ways from east to west and not north to south for this reason.
On both sides of the church are stained glass windows designed by a woman close to our own age. The right side windows are made with a lot of red and abstract art, symbolizing the passion of Christ. The windows on the left side are mostly made with blue panes, symbolizing Mary. In these windows can be found symbols such as the cross, the star, and the triangle of the trinity.
After seeing the beautiful interior of the church, we went below to the basement. There in the basement, the Sagas take on a bit of historical accuracy. In one of the sagas, the bishop Páll Jónsson asked to be buried in a stone coffin, which was unheard of. In 1954, archeologists uncovered the stone coffin that is assumed to contain the body of bishop Páll Jónsson, the only bishop to ever be buried in that fashion. The coffin has not been opened, however, because on the day that they tried to open his coffin, it rained hard, the most precipitation Iceland had ever seen until that point. Taking this as an omen, the coffin was not opened. It was also said that on the day of the bishop’s burial, it rained just as hard. There are other bishops and bodies buried under the church, and you may escape through an underground tunnel to get out of the church, as we did.
Kristinn was an extraordinary storyteller. I loved hearing all the tales of the church. I love learning the history of different places, and this place was full of it. There were humorous stories such as the one of the bishop Þorlàkur Þórhallsson whose daughter got pregnant from his opponent and then the son became the later bishop Páll Jónsson. It really showcased the fact that Iceland is a small country and you are a few steps away from knowing everyone in the country!
It was also unbelievable to see all the artifacts in the church. The bell from the 1300s and the first edition of the translated Bible from the 1500s were two of these items. It almost brought tears to my eyes to see these treasures taken care of and preserved. Icelanders seem to understand that their history and identity are important, and I really admire that. It was also unbelievable to think that the Hebrew Bible that was signed by the translator of the first Icelandic Bible was just lying upstairs in the church to be discovered. America had barely been discovered by Europeans, yet Icelanders were already far in their history. This really struck me today in the church hearing the stories and seeing these priceless artifacts that Kristinn seemed to take such pride in as he explained them to us.
