Amy Darvill

My finished results I will say the nature of Iceland is fantastic!

I would most definitely be in the capital of Reykjavik. I'll be honest, I don't have a major desire to travel to Iceland in the first place. So I would rather stay in a city where there would be still a lot of familiar elements to me, than go for ultimate culture shock in a smaller town or even the country. However, being someone who loves books and stories, I would love to see the Safnahúsið (Cultural House), as they have a permanent exhibit of the Poetic Edda and other Sagas, like the original manuscripts. It would be amazing to go and see them, even if I couldn't read them. I'm also fascinated by a current exhibit they have going on now, called Glerregn (Rain of Glass), which is legitimately a display of sharp glass shards hanging on clear threads, and to fully experience it, one is supposed to walk through the glass pieces and risk injury. It is supposed to serve as a sort of metaphor for how humans themselves could destroy themselves in an instant. So a very heavy-hitting topic but very intriguing.

Final puzzle result

1. Iceland is located at least 846 miles (1,362 kilometers) northeast of the British Isles. So a direct flight from London to Iceland is roughly 3 hours and 15 minutes, and that's without transfers. But if you want a more scenic approach, you could come by ferry from Denmark, which is a country a bit more west of England. The usual ferry route takes a few days, but allows you to A. Feel like a Viking returning home, and B. Allows you to see the Faroe Islands, which is a small island country famous for a selkie statue. 2. Iceland, ironically, is not that icy. (Especially fun fact, nearby Greenland is an icy paradise.) Iceland is actually considered a fairly temperate place. But when some of the first Norseman were settling there, it was snowing on the day they landed. So Naddador named it Snæland (Snowland). And there is quite a bit of Ice, so thus why it's a land of ice. On the flip side, the whole island is built off of the Iceland Plateau, which is literally formed out of all the volcanic activity. So thus..the fire aspect.

As by the time I was aware of this, pretty much everyone had seen the responses, I will award diamonds to those who did it and anyone who didn't do it but also let me know. (Apologies, I had some real-life things and it was very hard for me to come and check on things as often as I needed to and I hurried to get things posted.) Diamonds go to... Anne-Marie Gagne Harry Walles Louis Walles Emily Spencer Rory Devaney Lex Green Prof. Felicia Hartwick Prof. Tarma Amelia Black

Due to the mishap with the puzzle link, we are extending the deadline for this one to March 3rd, 11:59 pm HOL time. Thank you guys for participating, and scores and such will be tallied up by the 5th!

Thank you Prof. Felicia! I've been busy, so didn't realize the link didn't post right away. Here is also the original puzzle that I meant to post up. https://www.jigsawplanet.com/?rc=play&pid=2ad2efa127e2

Another famous story from Ireland is the Blarney Stone, in which the Lord of Blarney was going to speak with Queen Elizabeth I, who was planning to take not only his but other lords' lands. He was extremely nervous about the meeting. An old woman, whom he helped, told him to kiss the first stone he saw in the morning. He did so, and when he met with the Queen, he talked to her with so much flattery, that she left without even attempting to take the lands. Solve the puzzle below to see the famous Castle (the stone you need is at the very top!). Once you've solved it, either post the image below or a link to your image, and you'll be able to earn 20 diamonds for your effort! Make sure to follow image posting rules (600x600 max size) and make sure the amount of pieces are visible in your image as well. (99 pieces) You have until February 28th, at 11:59 pm HOL time to submit your post.

(First of all, sorry for this being so late. I'm dealing with some real life stuff.) Irish folklore and mythology are truly the stuff of legends and some of it has spread far from the Emerald Coast. I think one of the first things that any of us can think of is Leprechauns, which have been in horror movies, Disney movies, video games, and even cereal. Ate any Lucky Charms recently? However, they are greatly changed from some of their original tales. For starters, they wore red jackets typically, very sharp suits, and would actually be seen as cobblers, though why depends. Some tales claim they just liked to work on shoes, others say they often wore out their shoes and had to fix them constantly. And they're not even a super common creature of Ireland, only coming around in later myths. They would promise you wealth if you managed to catch one, but this is one time silver is better, at least according to one myth I found. If you took the silver shilling, it was enchanted to always return to your pouch. But if you took the gold, beware, the gold would turn to ashes or leaves. Now it's your turn to share a story or a folktale from Ireland that you enjoy. Reply in 100 or more words for a chance to earn 15 diamonds. You can earn a second set of diamonds for a second post, as long as it's another 100 words, either in reply to another post or reviewing another story or folktale. Make sure to post by February 28th by 11:59 pm HOL time.

As I mentioned briefly in the discussion, there's alot of artists and groups that hail from Ireland. Some focus on Irish traditional music, others broke barriers in other genres, and some toed the line of both. Please send a link to your solved puzzle to me in PM (titled "Week 3 - Cross Word) by February 28th, 11:59 HOL time for you to earn 20 diamonds. Link to puzzle here, it was a touch big to post here in full.

Irish folk music is defined as much by the instruments, particularly the fiddle and harp. But there are other instruments, some very traditional, and some just made to play that way. Here is a lovely grouping of such instruments. Just click on the puzzle link here and post your finished result below, with your time and pieces showing in the image as well. Once you've solved it, either post the image below or a link to your image, and you'll be able to earn 20 diamonds for your effort! Make sure to follow image posting rules (600x600 max size) and make sure the amount of pieces are visible in your image as well. (99 pieces) You have until February 28th, at 11:59 pm HOL time to submit your post.

Hand in hand with the literature that we talked about in week one, music and songs are a huge part of Irish culture. Much of the original poetry would have been oral tales and many of those tales ended up being songs, in a very self-feeding cycle of the arts. Beyond stories being put to music, instruments were part of the fundamental culture. Harps have been around for centuries and is the official symbol of Ireland. In fact, chieftains used to have their own personal harpist to entertain for them. When the time of chieftains faded away, the harpists took to traveling and performing on the road. Another fundamental instrument is the drum, with one of the most common ones being known as a bodhrán (pronounced as bow-rawn), which are these small handheld drums that are typically struck by a small stick or even the hand. They are still common place and will often show up at sporting events being carried by fans. In fact, that's one thing that makes Irish music a part of the culture is still embued in their culture. It's not that uncommon for a singalong to start off in a pub and it's a common tool used to help spread the Irish language. TG Lurgan is one of the most wellknown of these schools, who take popular music and rewrite the lyrics into Irish to both teach and also just spread the beauty of the language with the wilder world. Now as far as I could tell, Hozier is the only Irish artist who's songs they have retranslated, but he's far from the only Irish artist. If you only think of Irish Trad artists, you might be very surprised of what artists actually hail from the Green Island. The Cranberries, who are famous for their rock song "Zombie" are from Ireland, as are The Script (who are one of my favorites actually). And now I open the floor for you to talk about favorite Irish music, song or artist or both! Or you can ramble on about instruments. The floor is yours. Reply in 100 or more words for a chance to earn 15 diamonds. You can earn a second set of diamonds for a second post, as long as it's another 100 words, either in reply to another post or reviewing another song or artist or instrument or musical history. Make sure to post by February 28th by 11:59 pm HOL time.

(Waves from real life) Week 3 will be delayed to be posted either Thursday or Friday due to real life. Thanks for your patience.