We have a riddle to solve for you: What do French Champagne & Cognac, Greek Feta Cheese and the Icelandic knitted sweater have in common?
Yes, you are right! Well done! Answer: They are legally protected product names. Since March 2020 a knitted Icelandic sweater may only be called lopapeysa if it fullfill certain criteria: 

1.      The sweater must be handknitted in Iceland.
2.   The wool used to make handcrafted Icelandic sweaters shall be cut from Icelandic sheep.
3.      Only virgin wool shall be used as material for the sweater (wool that has not been recycled).

Newsflash: “Tourist leaving Iceland heavily traumatized….”

Going to the swimming pool in Iceland is a true Icelandic National sport, we go there to exercise, to relax and to chat with friends and strangers in the hot tub. Icelanders start going to the pool from a very early age. There are baby swimming classes, swimming lessons in school are mandatory and even the smallest village or community has a pool where people meet. The British have their pub, the French their café, we have our local pools. With rising numbers in tourism and rising entrance fees in popular touristic “hot springs” like the Blue Lagoon, more and more tourists are looking with eager eyes into the option of visiting the public local pools. They are clean, lovely and cheap, most 

The beautiful Icelandic goat, also commonly known as the “settlement goat” is an ancient domestic breed believed to be of Norwegian origin. Most likely it arrived in Iceland with the first settlers from the Scandinavian countries over 1100 years ago. ​The Icelandic goat was on the verge of extinction during the late 19th century, but its population recovered recently mainly thanks to a few dedicated goat lovers such as Jóhanna Bergmann Þorvaldsdóttir, a devoted goat farmer in West Iceland.​

​Skata: Fermented skate, traditional dish on the 23rd of December.  In Iceland it is customary to eat buried and fermented skate along with potatoes on Þorláksmessa. The ammonia-infused odor of fermented skate is quite strong and long lasting so a lot of housewifes send their husbands to an official Skata dinner at a restaurant or hotel! Bad breath guaranteed!
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Þorláksmessa: „Mass of St. Thorlac“ is an Icelandic holiday celebrated on December 23. It is a celebration in 

Hangikjöt: ​ Smoked lamb translated into „hung meat“ because it used to be hung in the smoke house. This dish is a typical Icelandic Christmas  treat and usually served either hot or cold in slices, traditionally with potatoes and a white sauce called „uppstúfur“ (Béchamel sauce), green peas and red cabbage. 

Laufabrauð – „The Leaf Bread“ A very thin and flaky slightly sweet pan fried bread. It comes originally from North Iceland, where the families would come together as an essential part of the Christmas preparations and cut out the patterns by hand or by a special iron „laufabrauðsjárn“.
Basic Recipe:
Ingredients:
8 c flour
¼ c sugar
 1½ tsp baking powder
 2 c milk
 1/3 c butter

​Jólaköttur – The christmas cat: If you thought of a sweet little kitten – you are wrong!
This cat is a monster, easily 10 times the size of a regular cat, black and -  boy, is she mean!
She takes the children that didn´t get new clothes for Christmas and eats them. So that is the reason that even today children in Iceland always get something new to wear. There is a saying „að fara í jólaköttinn“ meaning that somebody will be taken by the christmas cat for not wearing new or tidy clothes. Not a cat you would like to meet – believe us! 

​Coca Cola may have Santa Claus with his red coat and white beard, other may have Nikolaus, Ruprecht and Sinterklaas! We have our beloved Icelandic Yulelads - our „Jólasveinar“!
They are definitely not the the typical fatherly Christmas figure – quite the opposite!
The Icelandic „jólasveinar“ live in a cave up in the highland and are a group of 13 brothers. Frankly, their parents wouldn´d win a parenting award, both are certainly of troll origin: Grýla, the mother,  harsh punishing and Leppalúði, the lazy good – for – nothing father.