Reykjavík Grapevine - jan. 2020, Blaðsíða 6

Daníel !ór Ólason, Professor of Psy-
chology at the University Of Iceland,
is the preeminent expert on the
science and history of gambling in
Iceland. Here, he explains why you’ll
never need to learn card counting
in Iceland.
At the beginning of the last century,
Icelanders were participating in for-
eign lotteries, causing the authori-
ties concerns about a flow of capital
leaving the country. This led to the
country’s first gambling law in 1926,
which stated that any gambling op-
eration in Iceland was illegal with-
out specific permission and that any
participation in foreign lotteries was
also illegal. However, a discussion led
in Congress in 1933 permitted the
University of Iceland to start oper-
ating a monthly lottery. Since 1933,
only five other licenses for gambling
operation have been issued, each by
a specific law that specifies the type
of gambling allowed for each license.
Iceland’s policy for gambling
could, therefore, best be described
as a licensed based monopoly sys-
tem where certain non-govern-
mental institutions or charities are
licensed to operate certain types
of gambling to fund their organiza-
tion. Thus, the legal gambling mar-
ket today consists of three-monthly
lotteries, EGMs (electronic gambling
machines), scratch cards, National
Lotto, Viking Lotto, Euro jackpot and
sports pools.
Casinos are, however, not permit-
ted in Iceland, and any forms of or-
ganized betting on card games (e.g.,
poker) including internet gaming
(casino games) is illegal. The most
probable reason for this is a concern
that increased participation in ca-
sino games could lead to an increase
in problem gambling.
39 tourists, including several chil-
dren, needed to be rescued from atop
Langjökull glacier on January 7th, RÚV
reports, when their snowmobile tour
was caught in a storm. Several of them
have reportedly sustained injuries
from frostbite, and a meteorologist
tells reporters that a severe weather
warning was issued long before the
tour began. Police are now investigat-
ing the matter.
About 200 rescue workers hurried
to the scene when the distress call was
made just before 22:00 in the evening.
It took great effort to locate and trans-
port the unfortunate travellers to shel-
ter, and the rescue effort was further
complicated by very poor visibility and
many closed roads in the area.
Storm warning
While there were thankfully no casu-
alties, some of those rescued suffered
from frostbite on their fingers, and
one woman needed to be transported
to hospital. They had reportedly been
on the glacier for several hours.
Elín Björk Jónasdóttir, a meteor-
ologist at the Icelandic Met Office,
told reporters that the tour company
in question, Mountaineers of Iceland,
should have been well aware that
weather conditions were going to
get worse. As reported, news of an
impending storm was sent out earlier
in the morning, and by midday, flights
and bus service had been cancelled.
Déjà vu
This is not the first time Mountain-
eers of Iceland has been in the news
for reported mismanagement of a
snowmobile tour. Last January, an
Australian couple sued the company
for allegedly abandoning them on
Langjökull and leaving them trapped
in a storm for seven hours.
A re p or t er for F ré t t a b l a! i!
attempted to get a comment from
Mountaineers of Iceland, and were
told by tour guide Ólafur Tryggva son
that they were “looking into the issue”
but otherwise had nothing to say. The
reporter made several more attempts
to call the company before being told
by Ólafur to “shut the hell up.”
Fréttabla!i! also reports that South
Iceland police have been interviewing
people as they were being rescued, and
the matter is being investigated.
ASK A
Professor
Q: Why Are Casinos
Illegal In Iceland?

You would think that prepar-
ing a simple mixed Christmas
drink would be banal, but
when it comes to preparing
Icelanders’ favourite Christ-
mas concoction, your life and
reputation just might depend
on your Malt og Appelsín mix-
ology. But first, what are Malt
and Appelsín, the dual ingre-
dients in Iceland’s traditional
Jólaöl (Christmas ale)?
Malt is an old Icelandic
drink that we started brew-
ing yearly around 1915. If you
can imagine a slightly sweet,
non-alcoholic Guinness, then
you’re close. For decades,
the drink was quite expen-
sive, which resulted in the
tendency to mix it with other
drinks to make it last a little
bit longer.
Enter Appelsín, an Ice-
landic orange soda that
Ölger$in, the biggest brewery
in Iceland, began manufac-
turing in 1955. Icelanders
quickly learned that the
result of combining sweet
Appelsín and heady Malt
resulted in a tasty Christmas
ale.
Now we get to the con-
troversial part: How one
combines these drinks is
nothing less than a religious
custom. Every year, it must be
the same family member that
takes on this great respon-
sibility—and they better not
mess it up if they want to
keep their family member-
ship. For hardcore believers,
the perfect blend is 60% Malt
and 40% Appelsín, while oth-
ers swear by a clean 50/50
mix. Be mindful of with whom
you discuss the sacred ratio,
as the conversation could
easily lead to banishment
from Icelandic society or a
good old fistfight.
There are outliers in Ice-
landic society when it comes
to the Jólaöl. Some noncon-
formists preach a blend of
50% Malt and 30% Appelsín,
with Coca Cola making up the
di"erence. In the past, there
were even some idiots who
preferred Pepsi over Coke,
but the Yule Cat hunted them
all down and rid the country
of such heresy.
So there you are, Malt og
Appelsín: The drink that could
literally ruin your reputation
and status (perhaps your
whole life). Enjoy. VG
Ma
lt
&
Ap
pe
lsí
n
Company Leads Tourists On
Snowmobile Tour On A Glacier,
Requirin$ Rescue From Storm
39 tourists saved from #rave dan#er on Lan#jökull
Words:
Andie Fontaine

Photos:
Landsbjörg
First 6 The Reykjavík GrapevineIssue 01— 2020
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