OK, as my last blog wasn't incredibly broad in content I wanted to provide an overview into my last week here in Iceland, for my own reflection if nothing else.
I cant help noting i should probably keep a Diary, yet it some how feels a lot less contrived to just write down my thoughts and experiences here, maybe thats a reflection of the times and a change in media consumption; or maybe I´m just over thinking.
As I mention my last week here in terms of my placement was my busiest and most exciting yet. Due to the language barrier there isn´t a great amount for me to carry out during my time in the office. KOM produces 2 weekly newsletters in English, so I have been editing these on a number of occasions. Fortunately I have been kept busy with meetings outside the office, traveling round to meet with a number of in house and agency based PR practitioners which has been really helpful. I have realised that where I thought previously I might like to specialise within a specific area of PR; i had thought about the film and media sectors- However all of the in house practitioner i have spoken to have conveyed a similar story of never seeing themselves within the sector they are in but can now not imagine being anywhere else. I think its an exciting prospect of not knowing where you are going, and the journey getting there just makes up the experience.
Alongside my meeting with Islenska I also had a meeting with Árni Svanur Daníelsson, who is a priest within Evangelical Lutheran Church of Iceland. his role within the Church- i don't want to go into a great amount of detail here because I think my meeting here with Arni deserves its own blog- however it was extremely insightful, and the juxtaposing ideologies held by the Icelandic church and the UK church could warrant a whole separate debate. the information I was given here was probably the most interesting with regards to social media and its place within the institution of the church. it really was fascinating to find the levels of social media deployed by the church and the gains achieved by these.
my week continued with a trip to a meeting for the National Institute of Icelandic Farmers- concerning the possible food shortage we can expect to face in the upcoming years, this made a change from the usual meetings i have sat in on as it was in English, it also provided (excuse the pun) food for thought with regard to the mention topic.
Friday presented me with something slightly out of my comfort zone- my first Thorrablot celebrations- a yearly festival in Iceland where a number of peculiar delicacies are consumed throughout the month of Þorri in a tribute to past Icelandic culture. I went to a local rotary club in the suburbs of Reykjavik- again another first for me. The feast was held on a small island in Seltjarnarness accessed during low tide. There was a selection of traditional Thorrablot food available from boiled sheeps head, putrefied shark, ram´s testicles and wind dried fish, I´ve not had much exposure to these types of food before, as you can imagine being from the Midlands. However I gave them all a go, and they weren´t bad suprisingly- though the Shark is definitely an acquired taste and something I will not be trying again!
This weekend I planned a number of trips for my week before I arrive back in the UK, I also planned a trip to see the Northern Light on Sunday evening, however poor conditions ment this was cancelled- I am really not having much look with them, though I am sure they will be worth the wait.
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