8 posts tagged “jólasveinn”

So I was really busy these past couple of days and didn't manage to post about the jólasveinn.  So two nights ago Ketkrókur came.  He would be called Meat hook in English.

Ketkrókur, sá tólfti,
kunni á ýmsu lag.
Hann þrammaði í sveitina
á Þorláksmessudag.

Hann krækti sér í tutlu,
þegar kostur var á.
En stundum reyndist stuttur
stauturinn hans þá.

Meat hook, the twelfth,
knew an interesting tune.
He plodded through the country
on St. Þorláks day.

He snuck a bite of meat,
whenever he could.
But sometimes when he tried
his hook was too short.

Þorláks day was yesterday.  We went into Reykjavik for a bit and I ran into some friends of mine, Kok and Mod (both from Thailand). Júlíus sang some Christmas songs at this store.  Then we went to Pabbi´s brother´s house to eat skata.  Skata is sting ray that´s been peed on, left to rot, and then cooked.  It smells quite rank (imagine a toilet in a very sunny and warm spot that has not been cleaned for over a year) but doesn´t taste too terrible, although I didn´t finish my piece.  We got home around midnight and then we got some visitors so I didn´t really get to sleep until around 2.  Then I had to wake up so early this morning to go to the post office in Keflavik.  I am so tired that I think I´ll post about the final jólasveinn later today.  Gleðileg Jól!

Tonight Gáttaþefur, door sniffer, comes to visit.  He is the eleventh jólasveinn which means that Christmas is soon upon us! 

Ellefti var Gáttaþefur
-aldrei fékk sá kvef,
og hafði þó svo hlálegt
og heljarstórt nef.

Hann ilm af laufabrauði
upp á heiðar fann,
og léttur, eins og reykur,
á lyktina rann.

The eleventh was Door sniffer
-who never got a cold,
and he had such a big
and sensitive nose.

He smelled laufabrauð
from very far away,
and light, like smoke,
he ran to the smell.

Laufabrauð is a traditional Icelandic food that is made at Christmas.  It´s very good and crispy.  If you google it you should be able to find some pictures.  Today I spent the day with my amma, or grandma.  We ran some errands around town and then I baked some more Swedish tea rings.  I´m getting quite good at it now.  The next couple of days will be very busy as Christmas is on Monday.  I´m really looking forward to it!

Today I discovered to Christmas mugs on my window sill.  Tonight, with only 4 days until Christmas (!!!), Gluggagægir (Window peeper) comes.

Tíundi var Gluggagægir,
grályndur mann,
sem laumaðist á skjáinn
og leit inn um hann.

Ef eitthvað var þar inni
álitlegt að sjá,
hann oftast nær seinna
í það reyndi að ná.

The tenth was Window peeper,
an odd sort of man,
that peeked through the screens
and looked all around.

If something was inside
that was nice to see,
he often returned later
and tried to make it his.

Tomorrow I´m going to my amma´s house to bake some more.  It´s fun to bake this time of year.  Especially with Christmas literally right around the corner.  It´s gone so fast!

 

Tonight's jólasveinn is called Bjúngnakrækir (sausage swiper).  He fancies meat and his poem goes like this:

Níundi var Bjúngnakrækir,
brögðdóttur og snar.
Hann hentist upp í rjáfrin
og hnuplaði þar.

Á eldhúsbita sat hann
í sóti og reyk
og át þar hangið bjúga,
sem engan sveik.

The ninth was Sausage swiper,
a shady stealer.
He preferred to be in the rafters
and pilfered there.

He sat on the kitchen rafters
in the soot and smoke
and there hung the sausage,
that never failed.

This morning I found another box of mini cereal and a mini purse.  The randomness of these tokens is quite amusing.  I talked to a friend of mine yesterday and she told me that she used to get 100 krónur pieces or mandarins.  While that would be fun I like the surprise of finding what the "jólasveinn" will think of next.

The 8th jólasveinn comes tonight.  His name is Skyrgámur or skyr (a dairy product similar to yogurt) gobbler.  His poem is like this:

Skyrgámur, sá áttundi,
var skelfilegt naut.
Hann hlemminn o´n af sánum
með hnefanum braut.

Svo hámadði hann í sig
og yfir matnum gein,
uns stóð hann á blístri
og stundi og hrein.

Skyr gobbler, the eighth,
was a frightful bull.
He beat the skyr barrel
until the lid broke.

So he gobbled and ate
his greed well known,
until he was stuffed
and then he moaned.

I have to start wrapping presents soon.  I need to bake some as well.  I bought some Christmas clothes today.  It is a dressy holiday here.  It´s only 6 days away.

Tonight the 6th jólasveinn comes, which means that there´s only 8 days until Christmas!!  This Christmas lad is called Askasleikir or bowl licker.  Although it refers to a specific kind of bowl that is made of wood and has a lid.  His poem is this:

Sá sjötti, Askasleikir,
var alveg dæmalaus.
Hann fram undan rúmunum
rak sinn ljóta haus.

Þegar fólkið setti askana
fyrir kött og hund,
hann slunginn var að ná þeim
og sleikja á ýmsa lund.

The sixth, Bowl licker,
was quite ill bred.
He hid under the beds
and stuck out his ugly head.

When people set the wooden bowls
out for the cats and dogs,
he took them for himself
and licked up all he could.

This morning I found a Christmas ornament and a Donald Duck (Andrés Önd in Icelandic) comic book.  I actually really like the comic books because it´s fun to try and read them.  I can understand children´s books pretty well.  Like the simple ones for beginners, but comic books are more challenging and normally more interesting.  Today I went to one of the malls with Mamma, Julius, and Gunnar to see a Christmas show.  Julius really wanted to see it so despite the weather (which has been quite crazy as of late) we went.  It was for kids, so what can I say.  Julius was happy. 

Lately I´ve been getting a little homesick.  It´s hard being on Christmas break when you don´t really have a lot of friends to do things with.  It´s easier when there´s something that takes up your time, such as school.  I´m looking forward to Christmas and our trip to Denmark, but also to the beginning of school.  Before break I had started to form some sort of friendship with some girls at school and I´d like to try and get to know them better.  I wanted to meet up with them over break, but I haven´t been able to get in touch.  So is the life.

Tonight a jólasveinn by the name of pottaskefill comes.  His name would be something like 'pot scraper' in English.  His poem is just as silly as the rest.

Sá fimmti, Pottaskefill,
var skrítið kuldastrá.
-Þegar börnin fengu skófir
hann barði dyrnar á.

Þau ruku´upp, til að gá að
hvort gestur væri á ferð.
Þá flýtti´ ann sér að pottinum
og fékk sér góðan verð.

The fifth, pot scraper,
was a strange little person.
When the children got scraps
he came a´knocking.

They answered the door,
to see who had come.
Then he ran to the pot
and ate a whole lot.

Þvörusleikir left me some mentos (it is nammidagur) and some festive playing cards.  I wonder what pot scraper will leave?

Tonight the second jólasveinn comes.  He´s named Giljagaur.  He supposedly eats the froth off the top of the fresh milk.  He´s got a lovely poem as well:

Giljagaur var annar,
með gráa hausinn sinn.
-Hann skreið ofan úr gili
og skaust í fjósið inn.

Hann faldi sig í básinum
og froðunni stal,
meðan fjósakonan átti
við fjósamanninn tal.

And the translation:
Giljagaur was next,
with his grey head.
-He came from a ravine
and snuck into the cowshed.

He hid himself in the stalls
and stole the milk froth,
while the milkmaid
and stable hand talked.

This morning I woke to find a lovely Christmas stocking nicely placed inside my shoe.  I don´t know what to expect tomorrow...