Reykjavík Grapevine - 11.02.2005, Qupperneq 10
WONDERINGS
LIVING THE GOOD LIFE ON A MINIMALIST BUDGET
“Grant me two coins, one to buy bread
and sate my hunger, the other to buy a
flower and enjoy the beauty of life.” As
a student in the city I have sought out
ways to live a luxurious life despite my
meager income. Eating is a primary need
so let’s begin with grocery shopping.
Bónus, Krónan and Europris are all
supermarket chains that cut down the
cost of running their stores to a bare
minimum and consequently are able to
offer comparatively low prices. These
stores can be found all over the city.
Drinking beer is no primary need, (It
isn´t? Now they tell me –ed.) but I’m
adding it to the list anyway. Many bars
have special beer offers, but those are
hard to pinpoint because the landscape
of cheap beer is an ever-changing one.
Some places usually have low prices,
for example Nelly’s Café and Kaffi Vín.
Gaukur á Stöng offers beer for 290kr.
for students all winter, and I have heard
of three beers for 1000kr. at Kaffi Kósý.
The key to getting cheap beer is to keep
your eyes and ears open.
Now on to other needs: I just love
treasure hunting and clothes shopping
at the flea markets. The biggest one in
Reykjavík is Kolaportið at Tryggvagata.
There you can find an all-Icelandic food
section, used books, homemade Icelandic
crafts, used and new CDs, videotapes,
clothing, garage sales, exotic products
from all over the world and much more.
Kolaportið is open on weekends. If you
want an all Icelandic knitted sheep’s wool
sweater, then you just might find one at
a reasonable price at Kolaportið or at the
used clothing shops run by the charities
The Red Cross (Laugavegur) and
The Salvation Army (Garðastræti). I
would also like to recommend two fairly
new and exciting weekend flea markets.
One is located in the backyard of the
bar Sirkús. There, many of the Sirkús
regulars sell all kinds of stuff, but mostly
their unique second-hand clothing. The
other one is situated at the artists’ haven
and gallery Klink og Bank. There you
can find used and new clothing, garage
sales, T-shirts, live music and they have
all kinds of happenings. Some artists sell
their products there and hairstylists even
offer haircuts. The great thing about
this market is that anyone is welcome to
bring his or her own stuff to sell, free of
charge.
The Tiger stores at Laugavegur and
Kringlan sell stuff at only two prices:
200kr. and 400kr. There you can buy
all kinds of small stuff like stationery,
toiletries, jewelry, lighters, candles,
pottery, batteries, make up, underwear,
socks, etc. Góði hirðirinn at Fellsmúli
sells used furniture and household items.
All the profits go to charity. You can
get good furniture at very low prices
and some antique items. I once got a
beautiful cupboard there for free.
If you like gardens and museums,
then The Botanical Garden of Reykjavík
is ideal for a calming stroll. The National
Gallery of Iceland offers free admission
on Wednesdays. And last but not least
– my favourite – The Garden of Einar
Jónsson. Containing some beautiful
sculptures by Einar Jónsson, the garden
is situated near Hallgrímskirkja with an
entrance from Freyjugata. It is always
open and admission is free. There you
can just about feel that the best things in
life truly are free.G
úndi
10