Iceland – island, fishing, volcanoes and more

Thanks to a spewing volcano from Iceland over the past 48 hours, air traffic from several parts of Europe has been halted and dramatic scenes of the Icelandic volcano are leading newscasts.  Before you find yourself involved in a conversation about Iceland, you want to make sure you aren’t just blowing smoke (pun served and pun landed!), so it’s time to learn a little about this European island.

As mentioned, Iceland is an island, located quite a distance away from much of Europe, northwest of the United Kingdom.  According to CIA.gov, Iceland is a little smaller than Kentucky in terms of land area.¹  The recent global economic downturn was a big problem for Iceland, but much of its economy still comes from its robust fishing industry.

Volcanic eruptions are nothing new to Iceland.  Cite this 100-year-old fact and wow the family this weekend: The Askja volcano erupted in 1875, putting the nation in a state of famine and devastating the Icelandic economy for years. ²

Enjoy the AP video below, showing the volcanic ash as it spreads across northern Europe.

 

Read on:

ChicagoTribune.com – Volcanic ash spreading slowly over northern Europe and Russia; no telling how far it will go

If you enjoyed this post, please consider to leave a comment or subscribe to the feed and get future articles delivered to your feed reader.

Powered by Wordpress | WP Premium theme by WP Remix
Copyright 2007. Dinner Topics. All rights reserved

• Home
• The Skinny
• Advertise
• FAQ
• Bio’s

Switch to our mobile site