http://nordictravelguides.com Just another WordPress weblog Thu, 12 Jun 2008 14:45:08 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en IVANAhelsinki is an exclusive art fashion brand. It brings delicately together Slavic rough melancholity and pure Scandinavian moods. Paola Ivana Suhonen is the artist behind the fashion pieces, starting from her dark naive mind-landscapes, northern legends and western romantics, doing prints, graphics, shortmovies and well, everything that is involved ... http://nordictravelguides.com/ivanahelsinki/ The annual Viking festival in Hafnafjordur kicks off today with the opening of the Viking craft market at 5pm. The festival has been held since 1995 and is the oldest, largest and most important event of its kind in Iceland. Activities include battle demonstrations, storytelling, wrestling, archery, music, dancing and plenty ... http://nordictravelguides.com/iceland%e2%80%99s-viking-festival-starts-today/ According to a recent forecast from the International Monetary Fund, Iceland’s economic growth in 2008 will be higher than the IMF had predicted in its previous forecast from last year, reports Iceland Review. Despite the severe economic slowdown currently facing world markets, the Icelandic economy is predicted to grow 0.4 percent ... http://nordictravelguides.com/icelandic-economy-will-avoid-recession-says-imf/ Northern Europe’s favourite summer crop may be under threat from the excellent weather – at least in Scandinavia, according to reports on SikuNews. Strawberries are grown enthusiastically all over the continent, and especially enjoyed outside by those relaxing in the warm summer sunshine; sometimes even with a glass of chilled Champagne. In ... http://nordictravelguides.com/summer-sun-spurs-scarce-scandinavian-strawberries/ In a recent interview with Itar-Tass News Agency, Iceland’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ingibjorg Solrun Gisladottir, spoke about the possibilities for increased cooperation between the Nordic nation and Russia, particularly in the field of geothermal energy. During the interview, Gisladottir said: “The issue of cooperation between the two countries in the ... http://nordictravelguides.com/russia-and-iceland-cooperate-on-geothermal-projects/ According to reports in Aftenposten, a man who is wanted in conjunction with the Rwandan genocide may be in hiding in Oslo. Felicien Kabuga, is accused of helping to finance the genocide in Rwanda and has been on the run for the last 14 years. The wealthy businessman is rumoured to ... http://nordictravelguides.com/war-criminal-reportedly-surfaces-in-oslo/ Next month’s equality bill has a stronger chance of being passed after it was backed recently by two opposition parties in Norway. The parties supported the right of gay couples to marry in church as well as to adopt children and have assisted pregnancies, according to reports in the Associated ... http://nordictravelguides.com/historic-day-for-norway%e2%80%99s-gay-community/ Ground was broken at a ceremony marking the beginning of construction for a new aluminium smelter at Helguvik cove in southwest Iceland on Saturday. Ten dignitaries and special guests armed with spades took part in the ground breaking ceremony, marking the beginning of Iceland’s fourth aluminium smelter. The smelter will be ... http://nordictravelguides.com/special-feature-another-new-aluminium-smelter-for-iceland/ Generic drug company Actavis in Serbia has been awarded a number of certificates for product quality, the environment and occupational health and safety. The Iceland-based generic drug company received the ISO and OHSAS awards at a recent presentation ceremony in Belgrade. The certificates were issued by SGS, an international inspection, testing ... http://nordictravelguides.com/actavis-picks-up-quality-awards-in-serbia/ Icelandic President Olafur Ragnar Grimsson recently participated in a debate in Doha entitled the “Economics of Energy.” According to reports by CNN, the President started things off strong, stating that energy was the most crucial question of today’s age. CNN anchor Michael Holmes began the debate with a few questions. President ... http://nordictravelguides.com/grimsson-speaks-at-debate-in-doha/ Ovre Pasvik National Park in Norway, Vatsari Wilderness Area in Finland and Pasvik Zapovednik Nature Reserve in Russia are all part of the same wilderness region – an oasis of rivers, plants and animals far north of the Arctic Circle. Now the three parks are working on conservation cooperation and even ... http://nordictravelguides.com/nordic-neighbours-to-protect-precious-parkland/ Sven Goral Eriksson was named the new national coach of the Mexican football (soccer) team on Tuesday. The 60-year-old Swede has landed a two year contract with the Central American giant and will be looking forward to a fresh start on a new continent. Eriksson was hailed as the saviour of the ... http://nordictravelguides.com/mexico-welcomes-eriksson/ Nordic bank Glitnir won second prize for ‘Sustainable Deal of the Year‘ at the Financial Times Sustainable Banking awards in London last week. Glitnir was presented with the award by the CEO of FT, John Ridding, for a deal brokered with US geothermal energy company Hudson Ranch. In it the Nordic ... http://nordictravelguides.com/ft-awards-glitnir-bank-for-geothermal-energy-loan/ Sweden’s interesting naming laws have come into the spotlight again, as the country’s tax bureau has decreed that a five-month-old Stockholm girl is not allowed to retain her name: Elvis. The Metro newspaper states that Elvis’s parents wanted a name for their daughter that was both pleasant sounding and gender-neutral. Neither ... http://nordictravelguides.com/elvis-is-a-little-girl-from-sweden/ Iceland has been attracting tourists to its vast, untamed countryside for decades, but the popularity of organised adventure activity tours is a far more recent development. A company called Arctic Adventures is now offering over 20 adrenaline-pumping outdoor adventure tours in Iceland with an environmentally friendly slant. Arctic Adventures is a ... http://nordictravelguides.com/iceland-an-adrenaline-seeker%e2%80%99s-paradise/