Brezk-íslenzk viðskipti - 01.05.1947, Blaðsíða 21

BRETLAND OG ÍSLAND, Maí, 1947
CL Viðit
te JJUng-aeííéc
By Hcnor Wilson
Miss Honor Wilson, who served in lceland during the war doing
canteen work, is writing a book called “ Twelve Months
in lceland ” about her impression of the Country and its
people, of which we are bringing a few instalments.
THE lcelandic Parliament is an old
institution, it celebrated its
thousandth anniversary in 1930.
For over 800 years, from 930 to
1798, this Parliament, or Althing as
it was called, had met in a great
mountain - encircled plain called
Thingvellir, which is about 28 miles
from Reykjavik. I saw this wonderful
spot for myself in May, 1944.
The drive out to this historic place
was very enjoyable, although it was
a dullish day; but every now and
again the sunshine burst through the
clouds and lit up the snow-capped
mountains with an ethereally beauti-
ful light. So one kept one’s eyes on
the mountains, for the countryside
was rather barren and there were no
trees to break the monotony. I
couldn’t help thinking how greatly
enhanced it would all have been by
a coppice or even a clump of trees
here and there, but not a sign of a
tree did we see.
Eventually we came to the top of
the hill which leads down to the
historic plain. And here we got out
of the car to get our flrst glimpse of
it all. In imagination one went back
hundreds of years and saw this
famous spot filled with people who
had come on horseback from all over
lceland for the Annual Session which
lasted about two weeks. Here they
put up their tents, and the more
important leaders went to their
booths where they stayed with their
favourite attendants. We examined
the ruins of one or two of these
booths later and they struck us as
being very small and we felt that they
must have been rather uncomfort-
able, especially in wet weather. In
those ancient days they were built of
turf and stone and covered with
homespun.
In this great plain, with the beauti-
ful lake Thingvallavatn bordering it,
laws were made, disputes which had
proved too hard a nut to crack by the
local authorities in the country, were
settled, and sometimes skirmishes
and even battles took place when
riotous Chieftains objected to the
jury’s verdict ! Everyone would
know, or at anyrate know of, every-
one else; and what gatherings of
friends and chatter and lovemaking
there must have been! And plenty
of excitement too, for we saw a spot
where, in ages gone by, some chief
had jumped a great rift, fully armed,
in order to escape justice. This must
have been an incredible feat, unless
the gorge had widened with the
years or the fugitive had had un-
commonly long legs !
Just below where we stood looking
out over the great plain, we saw the
place amongst the rocks which was
called Löberg; from which spot
speeches were made, all important
declarations were announced, and
justice was meted out. The British
Minister told me later, that after
much searching, the chieftains selec-
ted this spot where the acoustics
were particularly good and the voices
could be heard right down the
gallery - like, rock - enclosed ravine
below. He also said that an earth-
quake had originally formed this
curiously long, narrow and deep
passage between high-flung rocks—
rocks which stood like great guardian
walls on either side. We saw too
where hundreds of horses used to
be stabled—en plein air.
After this preliminary survey of
the whole scene, we continued down
to the plain, crossing over a very
rickety bridge underneath which
dashed a lovely little waterfall, into
which, it is said, all unfaithful wives
were thrown! I wanted to know
what happened to unfaithful hus-
bands, but no one seemed to know,
and history doesn’t relate ! Then
we came down on to a level with the
lake which stretches away into the
distance and is dotted here and there
with islands and fringed with moun-
tains. The plain itself is intersected
with rifts, both large and small, in
which still, clear waters lie, reflecting
in their depths the rocks above them.
And actually at one point there is a
Wishing Well ! Of course we went
to this, and looking over the bridge
which spans the well we saw great
numbers of glistening coins lying
deep below the translucent waters
—coins representing the unspoken
wishes of countless visitors. Need-
less to say, before we left, a few more
coins lay shimmering beneath the
clear, cold water; it was fun to watch
them spinning down, down, down,
out of all reach.
We walked from here to the little
church which is almost lost in the
vastness around; and I looked at the
attractive grey-green-roofed house
near by, which is the Parsonage and
also in part an Almshouse. Nearer
the lake is a low-lying hotel, which
was in the process of being brought
up to date. I liked the look of it
from a distance and would much like
to stay there one day and explore
at leisure the fascinations of the
country around. Two Arctic Terns
pecked at the ground close beside
us as we stood admiring the whole
scene. They were apparently with-
out fear. .
Before rejoining our car we had
yet another treat in store, for after
climbing a short distance over the
rough rocks we came into a gorge
where a lovely, graceful waterfall—
the Öxará—fell from the high wall
of rock opposite us, into the little
green paradise in which we stood—a
quite lovely little oasis, bounded by
upright, stiff rocks. We walked a
little way down this gorge over the
green sward, getting glimpses of the
mountains beyond. It was all in-
descri bably beautiful, and I defy
anyone to say that with all its
barrenness, its lava fields, and ice-
plateaux, its stark mountains and
bleakness generally, there are not
parts of lceland which are truly
lovely in the Summer, and which
merit a visit to the Island for this
alone, quite apart from its historic
and other attractions.
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