Strangers In The Night

It was 3am. I couldn't sleep. So I decided to go for a walk and check out this chilly city of Reykjavík which never sleeps. The clubs were in full swing. A tall lanky fellow stumbled out of a doorway to grab a smoke just as I was passing by. He said hello. He saw my camera and wanted to guess where I was from. Sweden? Norway? He was thrilled to discover I was from the United States and immediately professed his love for President Obama. I asked if I could take some pictures as we talked. He was flattered and totally game. He passionately talked about the Icelandic people. Their beliefs. He was especially proud to tell me about Vigdís Finnbogadóttir who served as the fourth President of Iceland from 1980 to 1996. In addition to being both Iceland's and Europe's first female president, she was the world's first democratically elected female head of state. And how with a presidency of exactly sixteen years, she also remains the longest-serving, elected female head of state of any country to date.

Another friendly fellow approached and asked if I needed to be rescued from his friend. Since the answer was 'no' he happily joined us and the conversation continued. From politics, to growing up in a remote Islandic village of 300 people, to the power of Facebook, there was never a dull moment. As we waved goodbye, my new friend hollered, "I hope you got some lovely snaps!" That I did. If only I had gotten his name.