7 REASONS TO MOVE TO ICELAND... WITH JONO D

Even though Iceland seems to be now a well-trodden stop on any traveller's tourist trail, there's still something very exotic about it. You still get raised eyebrows and popping eyes when you say "I'm going to Iceland". Amplified even further is the reaction when you change that to "I'm moving to Iceland".

Who moves to Iceland? It's practically another planet, right? Certainly it looks that way with its lava fields, craters and crevasses. It might as well be the moon, or Triton or Europa. By the way, how come all the other planets and moons have cool names but our moon's just called "the Moon"?

Anyway, Jono is one of those guys who must have gotten a lot of interesting reactions when he told people of his intention to leave Melbourne for Reykjavík. You can read about his reasons in the story he wrote for the issue, and also more in the story he wrote for his special Elska Ekstra edition. I guarantee you won't regret taking the time to read it.

But well, aside from the thrill of invoking strong reactions, why would somebody move to Iceland? In the spirit of the interweb's ubiquitous Top Ten Lists, here's seven reasons why you should consider moving to Iceland.

1) It's far from everywhere. If you want to get away and start fresh, don't move to somewhere that you could drive or take a train to in a few hours. Get off the grid!

2) People are happy here. A recent study by University of Leicester ranked Iceland as the fourth happiest place in the world. That's bound to rub off on new residents!

3) They still read books here. NPR reported that Iceland publishes more than any other country per capita. Can you imagine a more perfect Sunday than sitting outside your summerhouse in the country with a book in your hand, occasionally glancing off the page to see mountains and lava fields in the distance?

4) People think that sex is fun. I remember chatting to a girl in an Icelandic pub once. She'd tried to pick me up in a very brazen sort of way. After I told her I was gay we had a nice chat about how her 'brazenness' was nothing to be ashamed of, that sex is fun and so why not have more of it? No shame here then. Sweet!

5) There's no McDonalds. Ok, I'm not trying to be a snob here, but it's just kind of cool that there's somewhere in the world that's escaped Ronald's clutches. If you do fancy some rubbish then there's local chains you can try, including a million hot dog stands. And there's KFC, though unfortunately Popeyes came and went a few years ago, though in reality the Popeyes they had in Iceland was a watered-down version so bad that the locals called it Poopies. They didn't even sell cajun fries - come on!

6) Swimming is cool. There's really nothing like sitting outside in a hot tub as the snow falls around you, or doing a lap with the northern lights illuminating your path. People go to swimming pools here like Brits go to pubs. And it's not just about the Blue Lagoon - there's loads of wonderful pools all around the country to choose from.

7) Society will force you to become a better person. Iceland's first of all a small society so your bad behaviour won't go unnoticed. You'll get a reputation and everybody will know your business, so why not just behave yourself? There's a reason that there's virtually no crime here. Second of all, it's a liberal and ethically minded sort of place where people care about the environment, about the plight of refugees, about each other. Whatever coldness the weather throws at you is more than made up for by the warmth of the people.

Elska Boy: Jono D

Photographer: Liam Campbell

Location: Reykjavík, Iceland

Elska Magazine: Issue (03) Reykjavík + Elska Ekstra (3.4)

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