Guest Post: New Year Sure Sure - Radio for an Iceland Road Trip

Happy Friday everyone! Julie, my super cool friend from San Francisco who traveled with me to Iceland, is taking over today. I thought she could write about the radio stations we listened in Iceland, mainly one that seemed to be called "New Year Sure Sure" but my Icelandic is a little spotty, so take that with a grain of salt. Here's Julie's rundown of Icelandic top 40 and beyond:

Greetings everyone, this is Julie, guest blogging on GGG this week. Adele graciously asked me to write about something “cool” in music and all I could really think of is Kreayshawn’s viral single “Gucci Gucci”. Clearly I should just stick with writing about Iceland.

Besides basking in the magic that is Iceland, we spent a good chunk of our time there driving around in our rental car. Like all our past road trips, we forgot to bring our own music and had to heavily rely on the radio. You can learn a lot about a place from its local radio stations and Iceland’s radio stations were like a breath of fresh hipster air with a hint of Norwegian Death Metal.

Bon Iver, Mumford and Sons, Adele were on heavy rotation, but not much of Katy Perry or Britney and strangely enough, not a single Bieber song on the radio! That makes me wonder where those Icelandic Bieberers get their fix and why is he everywhere but the radio, I just don’t get it!

Over the course of five days of driving, we switched from our favorite station that sounded like “New Year Sure Sure” to their top 40 station with lots of Lil Wayne and Rihanna. Every once awhile we would hear the latest single from Cake. Yes, you heard me, Cake and it has nothing to do with short skirts nor going for the distance. Cake, have no fear, Iceland has not forgotten you yet, while the world has since the 90s.

Another popular band was called Awolnation, which we had never heard of before Iceland. If AFI and Bassnectar had an emo angsy dubstep lovechild, it would be them. I’m assuming they were very popular there since their single came on like a broken record. Somewhere between being wet and cold from our horseback riding and getting lost on our way to the Blue Lagoon, I saw Adele’s angry fingers fumbling to switch stations when that song came on for the fifty-millionth time.

The radio highlight? Going apeshit for Bjork. What would Icelandic roadtrip be without Bjork?! Not gonna lie, it was epic when her songs came on the radio. Something about the combination of the desolated landscape in Snæfellsjökull and her music made us realized, “holy shit, we’re in muthafuckin’ Iceland, AHHHH!” It made me want to just pull over our VW and break out running with the sheep and smallish horses! But instead Adele just filmed us going gaga with her iPhone (a much safer alternative).

Who knows what would’ve happened if Sigur Rós came on, we might have made a beeline straight for the ocean. Too much Iceland to handle!

Editor's note: We never heard Sigur Rós on the radio, so that theory wasn't tested. Instead, they played a lot of Jessie J, who just doesn't inspire the same reaction. And here's that iPhone video with Bjork playing on the radio whilst driving in the Icelandic countryside.

Tunes Tuesday: "We Own The Sky," M83

I'm really excited to see French electro-pop group M83 on Friday at the Black Cat - thanks so much for the tickets, Linda!

Iceland Souvenirs

The customs officer asked me what I purchased in Iceland. "Stuffed animals and a bottle of vodka," I said.

He gave me a look and sent me on my way. Yep, that pretty much sums it up. Except I forgot to mention the bow tie. Sorry, U.S. customs officials!

I bought this as a joke. I really wanted to get the Skipper's Pipe, but I couldn't find it at the airport shop on my way home. So I had to stick with Salty Fish. Sure enough, Salty Fish are salty - it's black licorice encrusted in salt, not sugar. Blech! Most people who've tried it have spit it out.

If you want to try it, I'll mail it to you. Seriously. First person who emails me gets dibs on the already opened box of salty licorice. Don't all volunteer at once.

More Touristy Stuff in Iceland

After a couple days in Reykjavik, we hit the road and headed to the Golden Circle to check out some of Iceland's most popular tourist attractions.

Þingvellir went way over our heads in terms of historical/cultural importance. We got out at a rest stop, went in an uninformative gift shop, snapped a few pictures, used the bathroom and left. Tourism in true American fashion.

Next stop: Geysir. Oh, hello gift shop that I thought would be tacky but turned out to be a hipster, urban-farmer clothing store mecca.

I've never been to a windier place than this.

I wondered, "How do I know that the wind isn't going to change and blow this steam right in my face?"

Gulfoss was our favorite of the three attractions by far. So beautiful! So Lord of the Rings.

I don't think these pictures do it justice.

We randomly pulled over here and happened upon a giant 3,000-year-old crater.  That's just another roadside attraction in Iceland.

I really wanted to go hiking in the steam valley at Hveragerði to a heated spring where you can go swimming, but let's just say I am no Mark Trail. I was confused about where the trail started and ended up leading us on a trail from one parking lot to another parking lot. That took an hour and we didn't have time to go on the actual trail because we had to book it to dogsledding. So a scenic parking lot trail it was. Thank God Julie is a patient person!

This is a neat little stepladder over a barbed wire fence cutting through the trail.

After dogsledding, we stopped for dinner at Fjöruborðið, which is renowned for their amazing lobster. Holy cow, that was the best lobster I've had! They were miniature lobsters swimming in butter, as lobster should be.

I think this picture Julie took is so cool, but it looks like it was taken during the Great Depression. Why do I look so doleful? I'm about to dig into a lobster feast!

We went horseback riding at Hestar on our last full day. It was cold and rainy, the kind of rain that comes at you sideways and stings your face. To say I was miserable would be an understatement. Not only miserable, but really scared of the whole endeavor, which could not end soon enough. I keep forgetting that I hate horseback riding. It always sounds fun, but in practice, I never have fun. As soon as the horse starts galloping or even walking quickly, I'm holding on for dear life and imagining myself just bouncing out of the saddle and into the mud.

My problem is that I know that I am not in control, and that it's the horse whose calling the shots, and that is not a good feeling. I admire those who are good at horseback riding though! Julie was a natural, and at least she had fun. I on the other hand, refused to dismount from the horse during our break because the instructor said, "Be careful, the horse might run back to the paddock with your foot still in the stirrup." I just assumed my horse would do that and refused to take the chance.

Cosmo Couture at the Artisphere

Project Runway might be getting a little long in the tooth in its 9th season (!) but the concept is still so much fun. I was reminded of that on Wednesday at Cosmo Couture, a charity fashion show that challenged interior design firms and architects to create garments out of fabric samples and furnishings. My company had an extra ticket for the runway show at the Artisphere, and I was lucky enough to attend and help support our team.

In 2011, when no one has to make anything by hand and most things we see around us are mass-produced, it's fun to see what talented, creative people can create with the most unlikely materials. Creating something from nothing.

OK, maybe I'm waxing philosophical. The whole event was just plain fun. As the evening's emcee noted, Lady Gaga has nothing on these designs.

It is really hard to take photos at fashion shows. I just got a fancy new camera that I love, but I obviously still have a lot to learn about it, because my photos didn't come out very well. I put it on "Sports" scene mode. There ought to be a "Runway" mode.

Here's the judging panel, taking copious notes.

People using their iPads as cameras at events cracks me up. Maybe this is the new normal, but for now I say it looks silly.

There goes Audrey, wearing our firm's design. It was the prettiest one, in my estimation. The others were aiming for edgy, not pretty.

I didn't know that my former coworker Jenny was going to be in the fashion show. Not only was she in the show, she won the award for best model! She was so fierce! Mohawk, crazy eyeliner, badass attitude. She had a better walk than a lot of America's Next Top Model contestants I've seen, and I've watched at least six cycles, ha.

Luther and I sat near the stage, and Jenny told us after the show that she heard us saying "Jenny? Is that Jenny?" right as she turned the corner. It almost made her break character.

I loved the venue too. The Artisphere is enormous! It's new-ish, modern, with a sweeping staircase and an auditorium. If you get the chance to go to a party here, take it.

Grown-up coloring, cocktail in hand.

Could this turkey sculpture actually be a ride, like outside grocery stores in the '90s? There was a coin box, and I had to try it out. I put in my 50 cents, waited, and nothing! I've been scammed. But then, just as I was about to walk away, the turkey started bucking like a bronco. Everyone in the vicinity turned around to stare at the galloping turkey. It would be worth a trip to the Artisphere, just to see that, right?

Tunes Tuesday: "Benny and the Jets, " TV Girl

Is it humanly possible to not sing along with "Benny and the Jets"? Or at least refrain from saying "B-B-Benny" quietly under your breath? I say it can't be done.

If you like Elton's song, you gotta check out TV Girl's similarly-named track. It's a sunny, little slice of pop. With a chugging beat, doo-wop chorus and So-Cal lyrics, the band captures the fun of the original, without being too derivative. OK, towards the end, there's an echo of "Benny, Benny," but that just feels right.

Click here to listen to more retro-pop from TV Girl. Thanks for sending me this song, Carolyn!