When Valgeir Þór Ólason and his wife Kristný María Hilmarsdóttir decided to purchase an abandoned roadside café Skriðuland by the farm of Saurbær in Dalasýsla county in Western Iceland does they were not only making a dream come true, they were also re-forging ancient links to the land. Kristný María’s family has lived in the area for 1100 years. Her ancestors settled the land Skarð on the Skarðsströnd coast, which is not very far from the café.
The café is located in a building which once housed a coop store which served the nearby farms. It had stood empty and abandoned for several years when Valgeir approached the bank which owned the buildings. “I drove past the house and saw it stood empty, and I was tired of working as an electrician and carpenter in the city and realized this was an opportunity I should jump at,” he tells the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service.
Valgeir bought the property from the bank for what he describes as a reasonable sum, and set about renovating the place. The house was in very bad shape, and he has been renovating it along with his wife for the past two years. In addition to a café the couple now operates a small hotel, called Hótel Ljósaland in the building. The winters are tough, he explains, but he hopes the traffic over the summer ensures the business can survive. “I just spend the money that comes in, and don’t try to do more than I can manage.”
In addition to standard renovation, all of which Valgeir and Kristný María have done themselves, the has tapped into his creative spirit. Turning an abandoned roadside stop and coop into a café and hotel, with only your two hands and a shoestring budget requires hard work and ingenuity. Valgeir has for example designed chandeliers out of oil barrels and constructed a fireplace out of stone found locally as well as decorating the walls with artwork he has created.
According to Valgeir life in the countryside is preferable to life in the city, where he claims time constantly slips away from you. He also has his hands full and gets plenty of exercise, even if he can’t make it to the gym.
When Valgeir Þór Ólason and his wife Kristný María Hilmarsdóttir decided to purchase an abandoned roadside café Skriðuland by the farm of Saurbær in Dalasýsla county in Western Iceland does they were not only making a dream come true, they were also re-forging ancient links to the land. Kristný María’s family has lived in the area for 1100 years. Her ancestors settled the land Skarð on the Skarðsströnd coast, which is not very far from the café.
The café is located in a building which once housed a coop store which served the nearby farms. It had stood empty and abandoned for several years when Valgeir approached the bank which owned the buildings. “I drove past the house and saw it stood empty, and I was tired of working as an electrician and carpenter in the city and realized this was an opportunity I should jump at,” he tells the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service.
Valgeir bought the property from the bank for what he describes as a reasonable sum, and set about renovating the place. The house was in very bad shape, and he has been renovating it along with his wife for the past two years. In addition to a café the couple now operates a small hotel, called Hótel Ljósaland in the building. The winters are tough, he explains, but he hopes the traffic over the summer ensures the business can survive. “I just spend the money that comes in, and don’t try to do more than I can manage.”
In addition to standard renovation, all of which Valgeir and Kristný María have done themselves, the has tapped into his creative spirit. Turning an abandoned roadside stop and coop into a café and hotel, with only your two hands and a shoestring budget requires hard work and ingenuity. Valgeir has for example designed chandeliers out of oil barrels and constructed a fireplace out of stone found locally as well as decorating the walls with artwork he has created.
According to Valgeir life in the countryside is preferable to life in the city, where he claims time constantly slips away from you. He also has his hands full and gets plenty of exercise, even if he can’t make it to the gym.
