Pálína & María and the infamous photo.

Queer Life in the Icelandic Countryside

For one couple it’s a celebration of support and love, despite any haters online

At the end of August social media changed for Pálína Axelsdóttir Njarðvík. Without much explanation, she lost a few hundred followers at once. Her page, @FarmLifeIceland on Instagram, had over 40.000 followers until she posted an anniversary photo with her girlfriend María (shown above). The photo, which features the two girls in a beautiful countryside bedroom, had the caption “Today is our two year anniversary. So glad we realized we had a crush on each other because María is the best.” The lost followers led to the news being picked up by Visir and Reykjavík Grapevine.

Pálína and lamb Lilli.

Sitting in a cafe downtown while rain poured outside, GayIceland caught up with Pálína to get to know her better, find out more about life in the countryside, and investigate which hole under a rock these internet trolls crawled out of.

Did your following grow along with the increase in tourism to Iceland, with many influencers and photographers capturing the Icelandic countryside?
“I started the @FarmLifeIceland page on Instagram in 2015 just because I had so many photos of sheep that I didn’t want my personal page to become just about sheep. I thought my friends wouldn’t want to see that. So I thought I’ll just make a separate one. It sort of grew from there. I didn’t think anyone would actually follow but many people were interested in Icelandic sheep and life on the farm.”

Did you change anything about your profile after this loss in followers? Did you post more about María publicly?
“Well I had already had photos of María on my profile and mentioned she was my girlfriend in like Q&A stories, but I guess people didn’t really notice. I was asked once in a story Q&A if I had a boyfriend and I simply said I have a girlfriend. I did actually add a little rainbow flag to my bio on my profile since all this, just to make it obvious so that if anyone looking at it is also gay they can see it and identify with it.”

The only negative comment Pálína got from posting about her anniversary with her girlfriend was one profile who commented with a green puking face emoji, which she deleted. Otherwise, she actually saw an outpouring of supportive comments from Icelanders and other LGBT+ supporters following her page. Even in Skeiða og Gnúpverjahreppur, where the farm is east of the golden circle area, the residents and neighbors are supportive.

On the Visir article, comments are all encouraging with one person comparing the loss of her followers to Icelandi footballplayer Rúrik Gíslason’s loss of followers after posting a photo with his girlfriend. Pálína says that it may be a bit like that. She doesn’t want to generalize about who was following her and why they unfollowed, but it may be because they were dreaming of a “wild love in the Icelandic countryside” and thought Maria was maybe just her sister.

How did you and María meet and what was your journey coming out like?
“I didn’t really realize I had feelings for women until a few years ago. I knew it in the back of my mind but I didn’t really think of it much. I was like yeah if I find a girl I fall in love with I’ll just do that. It wasn’t really a big deal to me and I was never really in a closet. I just had this idea that I would just find a man eventually. I barely hit any walls coming out and I haven’t had to fight for anything. But I’m aware of the fight that other people had to fight so I could live like this, and I’m so grateful for that. And of course, there will be more fights, we’re always just pushing the issues forward.”

“I didn’t really realize I had feelings for women until a few years ago.

Did you face any prejudice coming out in the countryside?
“It was never really a struggle for me to come out, which I am fortunate for. I was just very open to the idea and eventually, I knew I wouldn’t find a man, I’d find a girlfriend. It just made sense when María and I realized we both had a crush on each other. When I first introduced my girlfriend to people it made no difference, everyone was just like ok. Very accepting, no big deal.

I only had internal stigma about my own feelings. I was always thinking that I would never tell anyone I had these feelings, but that was just my own prejudice. Not that I had a prejudice against anyone who was LGBT+, but I just thought I wouldn’t fit in. I didn’t think I would be one of them.”

What can we do to help LGBT+ kids growing up in the Icelandic countryside away from a lot of LGBT+ culture?
“Pride has to be like in your face. It really helps. Kids need role models and need to see people like them. I can relate to that in a way. I think the best role models I see in the community right now are María Rut and Ingileif with @hinseginleikinn. I really like what they’re doing.”

Did you hear much about LGBT+ culture growing up in such a rural area?
“There was no education in school about queer culture, no programming on TV to see myself represented. There were just so few women out and public that we could have as role models. One of the only Icelandic women I knew of at the time was maybe Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir (former Prime Minister of Iceland).”

Pálína and María.

You first attended Reykjavik Pride as a child? With your father who’s a pastor?
“So before 2019 I had only been to one pride parade in my life, when I was 14 actually. I was in one short clip in Svona Folk (gay film series “Those People” or “People Like That”) going to pride. My father is a pastor in the Church of Iceland and was going to Hinsegin Dagar (Reykjavík Pride) and just took me along with him. So, I was never nervous to tell my dad I was seeing María because he’s a priest or anything like that. It’s good to know that I didn’t change his opinion on LGBT issues, he was already an ally.”

“When I first introduced my girlfriend to people it made no difference, everyone was just like ok. Very accepting, no big deal.”

After the Visir article was published Pálína actually saw a big bump in followers, about 3.000 new accounts began following her, most of which were Icelandic. So in a way, the loss of followers who didn’t want to see anything about her girlfriend was made up by local allies. “It’s not like I lose sleep over who is following me and if I have 2.000 followers or 40.000 followers. I have no problem with people who don’t want to support María and I unfollowing. They can go.”

Á. Óskarsson
Á. Óskarsson

Á. Óskarsson offers a variety of products and services to sports centers, swimming pools, schools, kindergartens, and the general public. The company specializes in sport-related products, activity-focused games, and a wide range of solutions for sports facilities.

Á. Óskarsson has been involved in numerous big projects related to building sports facilities and has made it their benchmark to offer good quality products and equipment since the company was founded.

See links to social media in the upper left-hand corner

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Á. Óskarsson selur fjölbreytt vöruúrval fyrir íþróttahús, sundlaugar, skóla og leikskóla og einnig ýmsar vörur til einkaafnota. Fyrirtækið selur vörur til íþróttaiðkunnar og leikja ásamt því að bjóða upp á ýmsar lausnir fyrir íþróttamannvirki.

Á. Óskarsson hefur komið að fjölda stórra verkefna við byggingu íþróttamannvirkja og hefur frá stofnun kappkostað að bjóða vandaðar og endingargóðar vörur.

Tenglar á samfélagsmiðla eru í efra horninu vinstra megin.

Webpage/vefsetur

Blush

    Blush was founded in 2011 when it started selling high quality sex products. The goal from the beginning was to change the market and take the discussion about sex products to a higher level. Today Blush provides professional services in a pleasant environment that fulfills different needs, both for individuals and couples. Blush respects diversity and wants to set a good example in all of its messaging to target audiences. Sexual health and equality in sex is important and Blush wants to focus on those issues through education and open discussion. Blush works in a socially responsible manner for society, their customers and the environment.

    Check out Blush’s website: https://blush.is/

    Omnom Chocolate
    - award-winning chocolate maker

      Omnom Chocolate is an Icelandic craft chocolate company based in Reykjavík. We produce handcrafted chocolate from organic cacao beans sourced ethically and sustainably. We’ve developed direct relationships to create premium chocolate with fine flavor cacao beans.

      Our creative flavors are carefully crafted by meticulous chocolate makers. The cacao beans are roasted, winnowed, ground, and refined into melty-smooth chocolate.

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      In only a few short years, we’ve grown from our 50 sq. m. petrol station space and become an award-winning chocolate maker. Now, with our headquarters in 101 Reykjavík, our chocolate is sent out around Iceland and all over the world.

      At the end of the day, our goal is to make chocolate.

       

      Nasdaq

         

        Nasdaq (Nasdaq: NDAQ) is a global technology company serving the capital markets and other industries. Our diverse offering of data, analytics, software and services enables clients to optimize and execute their business vision with confidence.

        With over 4,300 employees in 39 offices around the world, at Nasdaq we all contribute to the success of the company and its culture, and each one of us has the ability to make a difference. When it comes to our core mission and values, we embrace the role of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIB) as a fundamental driver of our corporate growth, workplace culture and market development. We strive to create a culture that embraces the power of different perspectives—a culture where people’s unique backgrounds and different experiences helps us fuel innovation and support our clients around the world.

        Our unique position at the center of the capital markets allows us to see firsthand how these values have redefined corporate culture and success, deepening and accelerating our own commitment to champion inclusive growth and prosperity, as we strive to create more equitable opportunities to help people of all backgrounds reach their full potential. Most notably, we published our diversity statistics for the first time in 2020. These metrics serve as a quantitative assessment of where we are today and help determine what strategies we need to adopt to enhance diversity in the workplace. We recognize that we have much work to do, but we are steadfast in our commitment to creating a diverse and inclusive culture—one that reflects the communities in which we live, allows all employees to be their true, authentic selves and fosters individual growth and achievement.

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        Blue Lagoon
        - One of the 25 Wonders of the World

        Named by National Geographic as one of the 25 Wonders of the World, the Blue Lagoon is a shimmering expanse of warmth, relaxation, and rejuvenation. Its unique geothermal seawater
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        From its humble beginnings in the shadows of a geothermal power plant, Blue Lagoon has evolved into a world of wonder, now encompassing two hotels, three restaurants, three
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        Achieving harmony with the volcanic landscape, the lagoon and its surrounding architecture embody the unification of the man-made and the natural, and adhere to the highest principles of sustainability.

        The Blue Lagoon. A wonder of the world. A world of wonder.

        Landsbankinn
        - leading financial institution
        Landsbankinn

        Landsbankinn is a leading Icelandic financial institution. It offers a full range of financial services and is the market leader in the Icelandic financial service sector with the largest branch network.

        The present bank was established on 7 October 2008 but the history of its predecessor dates back to 1886. The bank is owned by the National Treasury of Iceland, which holds 98.2% of its share capital, and other shareholders who own 1.8%.

        Landsbankinn’s strategy is to provide comprehensive financial services that meet customer’s needs. It emphasizes providing exemplary service to customers, developing e-banking for their convenience, increasing the efficiency of support functions, modernizing its technology and ensuring effective utilization of its balance sheet.

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        Special emphasis is placed on promoting a performance-oriented culture in the bank. To follow up on the implementation of this strategy, the bank has defined key goals which are measured regularly to determine progress. These goals include, for example, customer satisfaction and loyalty, profitability, cost efficiency and the correlation between risk appetite and employee satisfaction.

        Landsbankinn wishes to lead the development of a sustainable society in Iceland by integrating economic, social and environmental concerns in its operations. The Bank aims to ensure that both its owners and society at large benefit from its activities.

        It intends to achieve this aim by building solid infrastructure and a strong team of 1.100 employees, by listening to its customers and by respecting and encouraging its employees to actively participate in their community. Landsbankinn was a founding member of Festa, a Centre for Corporate Social Responsibility, and is a member of the UN Global Compact.

        Landsbankinn has been a proud sponsor of the Reykjavik Pride since it was first celebrated in Iceland.

        Dohop
        - get inspired
        Dohop

        Dohop allows people to find the cheapest flights available with just one click. Founded in Reykjavik in 2004, it is the only Icelandic company of its kind and quickly became the go-to tool for finding cheap flights among the locals. Dohop finds the best deals among hundreds of different airlines and online travel agencies, to make sure that the user is getting the cheapest price. Dohop also offers hotel and car rental search engines, so users can make all of their travel bookings from a single website.

        Dohop‘s specialty is finding so-called “self-connect” flight options, which can save travelers money by booking a ticket through two or more different airlines. The ability to look for these self-connect option is what sets Dohop apart from its competition, as it can save people hundreds of dollars on certain routes.

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        VSÓ Ráðgjöf

           

          VSÓ Ráðgjöf er alhliða ráðgjafar- og verkfræðifyrirtæki sem leggur áherslu á trausta og faglega þjónustu sem tryggir viðskiptavinum hagkvæmustu lausnir hverju sinni, skilar raunverulegum árangri og stuðlar að samkeppnisforskoti.  Á skrifstofum VSÓ í Reykjavík og í Noregi starfar yfir 80 manna samhentur hópur verkfræðinga og annarra tæknimenntaðra starfsmanna.

          Macland
          - for all your Apple needs
          Macland

          From starting out as a proper startup with only a good idea and the need to change things, to becoming an established company with 6 employees. Starting from scratch and expanding organically has allowed us to love our expansion and take our customers on the ride with us.

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          Ísey skyr
          - once tasted never forgotten

          Our Story
          Once upon a time, 1,100 years ago in fact, Nordic settlers began arriving in Iceland. They brought with them the skills and knowledge for producing skyr. As time passed, the know-how and recipe for this nutritious food slowly faded out elsewhere in the Nordic region. Luckily, the Icelandic skyr-making tradition continued.

          For centuries, Icelandic skyr formed a cornerstone of the national diet, helping to keep people strong in living conditions that were often harsh. On family farms countrywide, it was the women who nurtured this dairy and passing on both the recipe and the original Icelandic skyr cultures from mother to daughter.

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          This is our secret and you are in on it

          You can read more about Ísey skyr on our website.

          Contact Us


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