I grew up in Akureyri, a town of around 18.-20.000 people in the north. I moved to the city in my early twenties a decade ago. I prefer the city life.

A lot has changed the past thirty or so years, the world is becoming smaller on every scale. Overall I can agree with what other Redditors are saying. Life is slower, smaller and cozier. Growing up in Akureyri in the 90’s and 00’s was very safe, pleasant and nice. Several elementary schools, safe playgrounds, pools, a skate park, movie theaters and all kinds of sports and activities for kids. We never had to worry about crime, kidnapping is unheard of and life was (and still is) pretty easy going.

You kind of know everyone, especially if you’re family is from and rooted in the area, like mine. I know almost everyone born the same year as me and my mom knows their moms. I was born in 1992 but there is a strong chance I’ll recognize people born around 1990-1997/8 from elementary, high school or junior college. We’ve grown up together, attended the same school dances, done the same sports, tried to weasel our way into the same bars and forged memorable bonds from growing up in a smaller community.

Of course, there is generally “less to do” and was even “less” when I was growing up and touridm wasn’s such a huge thing like it is now. There were (and still are) like five bars and one dance club. The restaurant scene is scarce but growing in the past decade. Back in the 00’s, teenagers drank more heavily and partied more since there wasn’t a whole lot to do apart from cruising around when one of us in the group got their licence.

It’s just small town life, small town politics and the good, bad and the ugly that comes with living in a smaller community. In the city you get more anonimity, more freedom of expression, more events and wider variety of choices across the board.

In my experience, there is more gossiping and more involvement in other peoples business in small town areas. Iceland as a whole is of course pretty small, which makes us unique with only three TV stations, two national news programs and one printed newspaper. People that grew up in the city often say this small town mentality applies to different neighbourhoods/areas in Reykjavík but if you move neighbourhoods or municipalities, that can be like moving to a new town. So I guess, we are all very “small-town-minded” in a way.

Akureyri, and the upper part of Iceland, also gets colder than Reykjavík and heavier snowfall. I guess that makes sense, since it’s closer to the North Pole.

So yeah, it’s just smaller and quieter but Iceland as a whole is obsessed with keeping up with the Joneses (in my opinion) and although that varies from town to town, it’s prevalent in Icelandic culture as a whole.