On Wednesday of last week, I got to participate in one of the most Faroese things I have done since I arrived. At about nine in the morning - yes, I got to miss school for this! - a member of the Rotary club, Jógvan, took the exchange student from Indiana and I to harvest potatoes on an island called Sandoy. You can see the island on the map on the side of my blog.
We took a ferry that reminded me very much of the ferry to Washington Island - a trip my family and family friends took last summer on Lake Michigan. It was a good familiar feeling. We had coffee in the seating area inside, and then I went outside to take some pictures. I have never seen the ocean as calm as it was that morning. There aren't many huge waves in the Faroe Islands. The ocean surrounding is the peaceful kind of ocean that puts the mind at ease. I really believe that's why the Faroese people and culture is so relaxed.
We then arrived to Sandoy, one of the flattest islands in the country - but it is absolutely beautiful. We drove to a VERY old house were Jógvan and his parents all grew up. No one lives there now, but they still use the house for Christmas and events like harvesting potatoes - kind of like a cabin! The house was very old, but charming and cozy. The perfect place to go warm up after a day of harvesting potatoes.
They planted the potatoes around April 25th, and now it was time for us to peel back the sod and harvest them. What I just explained is exactly how it is done. There is no science to harvesting potatoes - simply pick it up from the dirt and put it in a big, green, plastic basket. The air was quiet and calm the whole time, and strangely enough, the job was very relaxing. We enjoyed great conversation as we worked, and something that Jógvan said really stuck with me.
"You might think to yourself, 'what the f*** am I doing out here? I could buy these potatoes for nothing at the supermarket.' But then, we would never know each other, and you would never know this place or this land. Or how to harvest potatoes."
It's crazy how a man talking about potatoes can be a reflection of my year. We ended up harvesting about twenty-six green baskets of the potatoes, and both Isabelle and I got to take a basket home. We have a LOT of potatoes now! After we were finished, we warmed up in the house with coffee, tea, dried fish, whale and pizza - thank goodness for the pizza, although dried fish is actually very delicious. Needless to say, I felt very Faroese that day. It was a fantastic experience that I will never forget.
The extremely old, extremely cozy Faroese home we spent our day in.
Eg taka epli upp! I harvest potatoes!
So many potatoes!
The beautiful village we were in on Sandoy called Skálavík.
I am so thankful to Jógvan for taking us with him to Sandoy to harvest potatoes. It was a day with great weather, Faroese culture, and great conversations, as well as 10 kilos of potatoes that I got to take home to my family! It's funny - I didn't like potatoes before I came to the Faroe Islands. Now, I just love them. Eg elski epli!
That's all for now, but expect a new post very soon.
Farvæl,
Katie
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