Land in the greater Reykjavik area that was once reserved for horses, their stables, training rings and trails has slowly but surely been overtaken by housing developments and businesses. This stable resident is living her final winter at one of the last urban equestrian holdouts, a neighborhood of a hundred or so stalls now located just above the
Smáralind shopping center. Not so long ago this site was on the very outskirts of the populated urban center. Now you can see Iceland's tallest building peeking from between the mare's ears.
The horses seem used to the constant heavy traffic on the highway just next to their paddock, but it's a sure thing that they'll not miss it when relocated to their new homes on the outer fringes of the Capital area. Of course there's always the question of how long it takes the ever-expanding city to encroach on those new lodgings as well.
1 comment:
I'm glad you posted this. It preserves the memory, at least, of how many towns and cities have "stable neighborhoods" close at hand so that in the colder seasons people can come before and after work and on weekends to be with their horses. Gústur and Fákur, right in Reykjavik, honored the role that the horse had in literally pulling Icelanders through some very bleak and dark centuries until quite recently. When non-horse people, and there are a few in your country of 300,000 people and at least 60,000 horses, see these animals take up valuable real estate it calls attention to a set of values which I hope will not be lost as the malls spread.
Thanks for posting this!
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