Tuesday 6 May 2008

Top 5 Underrated Countries - Updated (Iceland)


A new addition to my underrated countries: Iceland.
"Iceland?" I hear you ask, "Is that even a place?"

Why yes, it is. It was first inhabited by Irish monks who thought that medievil Ireland wasnt a remote enough place, so took off there. Not a great start as an advertisement for a place, but it gets better.

After the Irish monks came the Nordic Vikings, who convinced the Irish that the party was over and it was time to move on. The Nordics used the place as some sort of 'Thunderdome', with the place seemingly being populated mostly by outcasts and those exiled from society. What better way to make someone feel bad about what they did in a cold country populated by Vikings but send them to a cold country populated by lawless Vikings?

Eventually the Norwegians thought that they should take control of the place, so they did, but then decided it wasnt a good idea and put it on the market (like in Monopoly) where it was bought by Denmark (who also had Pall Mall and Mayfair).

A couple of hundred rolls later the Germans were buying up (or taking) everything, so Iceland bought itself off Denmark while the Danes were busy working out whether they should pay flat income tax or $2,000.

Since then, they have continued living on the edge of the arctic circle as some of the happiest people on earth. Whats more, they have developed a sense of humour unheard of in other Nordic countries (e.g. "Dont like the weather, wait 5 minutes, it gets worse"). I attribute that to the Irish.

Today its a prosperous enough place, with a quaint mix of environmental destruction, environmental preservation, outdoor sports and great food. Also has a thriving cafe scene despite being the size of Albury-Wodonga.

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