Today’s photo of the day, taken by Flickr user Samer Farha, depicts an Icelandic lighthouse. Nothing speaks to the isolation of the ocean like a lighthouse. This one, taken in the county of Gullbringusýsla in the west of Iceland, is weatherbeaten. And while its bold red stripes may compensate somewhat for its worn state, the overwhelming sense here is of a place stranded at the end of the world.
Got an image of a lighthouse in your personal photo archive? How about another symbol of solitude upon which viewers will be able to project their every last instinct toward wistfulness? Let your fingers run–not walk–to the Gadling Group Pool on Flickr and upload some sentimental magic. If we like what see we might just choose your melancholic image as a future Photo of the Day.
P.S. And if you do upload an image, be sure not to disable downloading on it. If we can’t download your image and resize it we certainly won’t be able to feature it.
I wish I were in Iceland right now. I’m not. Instead, I’m sitting at home writing in Austin where, as far as I can tell, the only ice is in the freezer. (Ouch. Bad pun?) But my friend Sarah Landau just wrapped up an honestly epic journey in Iceland. Traveling hundreds and hundreds of miles by car, she recently road-tripped around Iceland.
Iceland’s Ring Road, also known as Route 1, is a main road in the country and it connects the habitable areas of Iceland (Iceland’s inland is mostly uninhabited). The road stretches around for 832 miles and, if you read any reviews of the drive, you’ll find that a lot of people refer to Iceland’s Ring Road as the drive of their lifetime. And man, I want to do it! But until I get to do it myself, I’ll marvel at the photos Sarah has shared with me. This shot above was taken on the Southern coast of Iceland.
Want your photos featured with us for Photo of The Day? Just add them to the Gadling Flickr Pool and we’ll sort through them.
Before watching this video, I was unaware that it’s possible to intentionally be inverted or airborne in a kayak, let alone both at once.
If you love river sports and/or beautiful cinematography, then settle in for three and half pulse-raising minutes and check out this trailer for River Root’s kayaking film dubbed Frontier.
Featuring scenes from Mexico, China, Iceland, Norway, the U.S., and Canada, Frontier follows a group of kayakers as they explore some of the world’s most powerful rivers and seemingly impassable whitewater. The full length film is due out on DVD this month and is available for pre-order on the River Roots website. Needless to say, if the full film features more scenes like the final clip of the video, then I’ll definitely be ordering a copy.
Have you uploaded any footage or photos of your favorite adventure sport? Share it with us by leaving a comment below or adding it to the Gadling Flickr Group and it could be our next Photo/Video of the Day.
“Old people” – we all hope to live long enough to earn this distinction. In some countries, the probability of living well into your eighties is much better than in others. The worldwide average for life expectancy is just a smidge over 67, with the highest and lowest countries fluctuating by over 20 years in each direction. 39 of the bottom 40 countries are located on the African continent, and 3 of the top 5 are European micro-states. The United States ranks in at number 50, boasting a life expectancy of 78 years old.
At the bottom of the list is Angola, a country in southwestern Africa with a machete on its flag. The average life expectancy in Angola is almost 39 years old. At the other end of the spectrum is Monaco (pictured above). Monaco is a micro-state in Europe with an extremely high standard of living. The average person there lives to be 89 years old. The 50 year gap between these two countries represents the difference between yacht ownership and subsistence farming, and every other country falls somewhere in between. For the full list, check out the world fact book at cia.gov.
20. Bermuda – 80.71
19. Anguilla – 80.87 (at right)
18. Iceland – 80.90
17. Israel – 80.96
16. Switzerland – 81.07
15. Sweden – 81.07
14. Spain – 81.17
13. France – 81.19
12. Jersey – 81.38
11. Canada – 81.38
10. Italy – 81.779. Australia – 81.81
8. Hong Kong – 82.04
7. Singapore – 82.14
6. Guernsey – 82.16
5. Japan – 82.25
4. Andorra – 82.43
3. San Marino – 83.01
2. Macau – 84.41
1. Monaco – 89.73 (at top)
What constitutes “food” is relative, depending upon what part of the world you call home. In Asia, pretty much anything on no (snakes), two, four, six, or eight legs is up for grabs. Europe, however, has its own culinary oddities, as detailed below. Got maggots?
Iceland Hákarl: Fermented, dried Greenland or basking shark. This tasty treat is prepared by burying the beheaded and gutted shark in a shallow hole in the ground for six to 12 weeks. Unsurprisingly, the end result is considered noxious to pretty much everyone on the planet aside from Icelanders.
Norway Smalahove: Boiled lamb’s head, traditionally served at Christmas. The brain is removed, and the head salted and dried before boiling. Because they’re the fattiest bits, the ear and eye are eaten first. More fun than a wishbone.
Sardinia (yes, it’s in Italy, but this one deserved its own listing) Casu marzu: This sheep’s milk cheese has maggots added to it during ripening, because their digestive action creates an “advanced level” of fermentation (also known as “decomposition”). Some people prefer to eat the soupy results sans critters, while the stout of heart go for the whole package. Be forewarned: according to Wikipedia, irate maggots can propel themselves for distances up to six inches. Here’s fly in your eye.
Northern Sweden or Finland Lappkok: Thischarmingly-named concoction consists of blodpalt–a dumpling made with reindeer blood and wheat or rye flour–served with reindeer bone marrow. Well, Santa’s herd had to retire sometime.
Sweden Lutefisk: This dried whitefish treated with lye is beloved by Scandinavians and their American Midwestern ancestors (let’s just say it’s an acquired taste). It’s traditionally served with potatoes or other root vegetables, gravy or white sauce, and akvavit.
Scotland Haggis: Who doesn’t love a cooked sheep’s stomach stuffed with its lungs, heart, and liver, combined with oatmeal?
Poland Nozki: Literally “cold feet,” this dish of jellied pig’s trotters isn’t as repulsive as it sounds. The meat is simmered with herbs and spices until falling off the bone, and set in gelatin. Think of how much fun this would be as a Jello shooter.
Ukraine Salo: The cured fatback of pork is actually quite delicious, and similar to Italian lardo when seasoned. It’s chopped and used as a condiment, or eaten straight-up on bread. Plan your angioplasty accordingly. England/Ireland Black (or blood) pudding: Technically a sausage, this mixture of animal blood (usually pork), spices, fat, and oatmeal or other grains is surprisingly good. It’s served uncooked, fried, grilled, or boiled. Sound bad? At least it’s not called Spotted Dick.
Italy Stracotto d’asino: A northern Italian donkey stew, often served as a pasta sauce. Donkey and horse are eaten throughout Italy, but this particular dish is a specialty of Veneto, and Mantua, in Lombardy.
France Tête de veau: You have to love that the venerable French culinary bible, Larousse Gastronomique, describes this dish of boiled calf’s head as, “a gelatinous variety of white offal.” Mmm. While there are many different preparations for the classical dish, it was traditionally served with cocks’ combs and kidneys, calves sweetbreads, and mushrooms.
Eastern Europe P’tcha: A calves’ foot jelly enjoyed by Ashkenazi Jews throughout this part of Europe. It’s uh, high in protein.
Germany Zungenwurst: This sausage is made of pork blood and rind; pickled ox tongue, and a grain filler, such as barley. It’s available dried, or can be browned in butter or bacon fat before eating. And bacon makes everything better.
Netherlands Paardenrookvlees: Culinarily-speaking, the Dutch usually cop grief for their proclivity for pickled herring and eating mayonnaise on their french fries. That’s because most Americans don’t know this smoked horse meat is a popular sandwich filling. Trust me: Seabiscuit tastes pretty good.
Greece Kokoretsi: Lamb or goat intestines wrapped around seasoned offal (lungs, hearts, sweetbreads, kidneys), threaded onto a skewer, and cooked on a spit. You know what’s good with grilled meat? Meat.
[Photo credits: black pudding, Flickr user quimby;lutefisk, Flickr user adam_d_; kokoretsi, Flickr user Georgio Karamanis]