Atlantica - 01.11.2002, Page 34

32 A T L A N T I C A
BIRGITTA HAUKDAL, LEAD SINGER IN THE BAND
ÍRAFÁR, WHICH HAS JUST RELEASED A NEW ALBUM,
WANTS SNOW FOR CHRISTMAS.
What are your fondest memories of Christmas?
I am a big Christmas baby. I love being home in Húsavík [north
Iceland] in the snow where my family lives. Húsavík is a quiet
town where everybody knows everybody and I couldn’t imagine
spending Christmas anywhere else.
What do you do on Christmas Eve?
My family and I go to the cemetery at 4:00 pm and light some can-
dles for my brother and grandpa, and wish them a merry
Christmas. Then we go home and cook dinner together and listen
to the Christmas bells on the radio. After
that, we eat a delicious meal, give each other presents and read
our Christmas cards.
Where, how and with whom would you spend your ideal
Christmas?
I can’t imagine a Christmas without my parents and my sister
Sylvía.
What sort of food do you typically eat at Christmas?
We eat smoked lamb – the best food in the world!
When and why did you stop believing in Santa Claus?
I can’t remember, but I let my mother give me presents from the
Icelandic Santa Clauses until I was 15 years old. (I really was a big
baby.)
What do you want for Christmas?
To have my family with me would be the best present.
What's your favourite Christmas movie or story?
Christmas Vacation, and The Grinch, with Jim Carrey.
Who do you hope doesn't show up for Christmas dinner?
The Grinch.
What do you wish for this Christmas?
That the weather will be good so I can fly to Húsavík, and that it
will snow on Christmas Day. And, of course, that my family will
be healthy and happy.
ERIC PETERSSON IS THE SECOND SECRETARY AND
CONSUL AT THE CANADIAN EMBASSY. HE’S LIVED IN
ICELAND FOR OVER A YEAR, AND THUS FAR HAS
ENJOYED ONE ICELANDIC CHRISTMAS WHERE HE ATE
NUMEROUS HELPINGS OF ICELANDIC LAMB.
What are your fondest Christmas memories?
Fighting over the turkey stuffing with my cousins.
What do you do on Christmas Eve?
If I can get back to Canada, I spend it with my cousins, playing a gift
giving/stealing game. When that's not possible I have been fortu-
nate to spend that time with friends overseas; eating a nice meal,
going to church, enjoying the warmth of company.
What sort of food do you typically eat at Christmas?
I do miss the big turkey with stuffing and all the extras from past
family Christmases in Canada, but the Icelandic lamb does help me
get over that loss. The skata on the other hand...
What's the most bizarre present you’ve ever received?
‘The sumo wrestler's weight-gain kit’: a 10 kg bag of rice with a
scale.
If you could open any present from under the tree, what would it
be?
Hmm... I guess Jennifer Aniston doesn't count? (God, don't quote
me on that one.)
What do you want for Christmas?
Well, considering I still have my two front teeth, I'd have to say I'd
love a nice set of speakers. But I'll settle for a CD and a good book.
What's your favourite Christmas movie or story?
I'd have to give two favourites. The first is easy: the original cartoon
version of The Grinch. A true classic. The second may not be as well
known: A Christmas Story. It's from the early ‘80s, where all the kid
wants for Christmas is a Red Ryder air rifle, and everyone tells him
he'll shoot his eye out, and then when he gets it he almost does.
Who do you hope doesn't show up for Christmas dinner?
This may sound pretty sappy, but Christmas is a time for tolerance
and forgiveness, so I do my best to put everything else aside for the
season.
Silent Night
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