Finally we fixed an appointment with our vet to let him check the teeth and more. It ended with all of them getting a toothtreatment, 1 wolftooth removed from Sæla and sheath beans removed from both Sigtýr and Magnús. They didn't like it, but it was necessary and they'll have it nicer after that. 

It was time to move Fönix and Svipur to the big meadow. No problem to get Fönix, he just comes and you put the halter on. On the other hand it wasn't possible to catch Svipur, svo he's gonna stay where he is at the moment. Me and Fönix took a walk down to the big field, where the other horses were already waiting for him. He was happy to have a bigger area now and after saying "Hello" and running a bit everybody went back to grazing. 
On the way back we stopped at Einar's stable and had a look at his surprise foal. As it was born on the Icelandic Ladies' day, which is the first day of the old month named Góa, and is a mare it was named Góa. Looks like she got all the fur she needs in this cold weather. Now she has to wait for some time to taste the first green grass.

 

 

 

 

As the weather was great and we were asked to take pics of a young mare, we drove to visit Kiddi and his herd. As he was very busy, we got a description of the mare we were looking for and went off to the herd, trying to figure out, which one it was. It was supposed to be a black, shy mare with good mane and tail. Well, we didn't find any matching that description, no shy mare... So I just took some group pics and enjoyed being around the horses. We'll try again later and take Kiddi with us.

 

 

 

Sounds strange? You should try it! Siginn fiskur is a kind of halfdried and fermented fish, which is cut in pieces and cooked. Kæst skata is fermented stingray, usually eaten the day before Christmas. Not going to tell you how it smells ;)
Anyway Grani, the local ridingclub, offers once in a while siginn fiskur og kæst skata as especially older people like it a lot, but nobody wants to have the smell in the house for a long time. Younger people are often not used to this stuff. In fact I like siginn fiskur quite a lot, especially with boiled potatoes, turnips, hot sheepfat with greaves and Icelandic ryebread.
This time the former headmaster gave us potatoes he grew last summer and as I was very busy getting him a few different kinds and colours of potatoes, the bunch we got was in a lot of different shades, from violett to red and yellow/white. It was fun watching people denying to eat those in unusual colours, eventhough they taste great! As usual this event was a success and we were able to raise a bit of money for our ridinghall.
In the afternoon we met on the ice at Kaldbak and had fun on good horses on great ice. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finally back home again after a 1 week worktrip to Sweden, where my colleagues from the CRISTAL Project and me checked out a few very interesting educational places and kept working on the toolbox, which is one of the outcomes of this project and is supposed to help teachers in rural areas to get to know and use open source software, encouraging technical education, boosting and training engineering habits of mind.  
CRISTAL is short for Creative Regions for Innovation, Skills, Technology, Accessibility and Learning. 
I was very impressed by the ABB Industriegymnasium and the way young people are taught and encouraged to work in teams. Each and every student has his own desk in what looks like an open space office, which is their homebase before going to classes. They have their own computer there with all the necessary software and work a full workday til 4 o'clock. There are a lot of projects and students in 2^nd grade have to found a company, develop a product and sell it. 2 groups made a presentation for us, which was very interesting and good to witness so much passion in young people. I'd love to have the same possibilities, but that school definitely has no trouble getting money to stay up to date.
Another impressive visit was at Tom Tits Experiment, an experimental museum, where you are encouraged to touch and try. Only thing forbidden is to have your hands in your pockets. I'd like to see more exhibits like that as they offer you a very different approach to things.
We stopped at Expectrum and got a guided tour there, too. There are many different kinds of offices and facilities there, which you can rent for shorter or longer periods. The building itself is very open, a lot of glass walls and open offices. And there is a big makerspace, where they offer schools to come, try out, build and create. We'd loved to try out everything there, but unfortunately there wasn't enough time to do so.
Last but not least we went to the Retuna mall where old stuff is recycled, changed, repaired and sold again. There is an educational centre, too, where locals learn what to do with stuff others don't want anymore. Very inspiring visit!
Like last year we got stuck on our way home and had to spend an extra night at the airporthotel.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Whilst I was on a worktrip to Sweden with a few colleagues from school, Ingólfur and other members from our local ridingclub Grani offered families to come and experience the horses. They came with a few horses to our ridinghall and younger and older kids were offered a ride. I think it is very important for us, to show people, what we are doing and what kind of animals our horses are. 
I attach a few pics Ingólfur took and a pic of his Christmaspresent. He got personalized stirrups last year. They were manufactured in Germany by Motivsteigbügel, who offered a very good and personal service.