I picked a bunch of wild berries in Iceland this summer.
I’ve been so busy picking them that I don’t have many photos or videos.
I put them together and made a short video. It is on Youtube.
I hope you get the vibe somehow.
Many people keep whereabout of the berries to themselves.
When berry picking time arrives,
you just need to drive around the area where berries may be growing.
You see people with containers in hand here and there.
While I was picking berries, I forget about time passing.
It feels like I get into a special state of mind like “mu”.
Mu is a Japanese concept of nothingness.
I forget about myself or even the fact I was picking berries.
It is like meditation.
Maybe that’s what meditation is all about?
Pick a nice day to go for picking 🙂
I love to take off my shoes and feel the moss under my barefoot.
Earth is warm and very kind.
By the way, what you see in the video is “bláber” (blueberry) in Icelandic.
But it is bilberry in English.
It is a little confusing.
That is why I used the word “berry” in this video.
There’s a slightly darker and more fragrant variety.
It is called “aðalbláber”.
For your information, it is legal to pick berries on public land in Iceland.
Private land requires the owner’s permission, needless to say.
imported blueberries are larger in size and bland in taste.
Natural wild berries are smaller but taste richer and nourishing.
It is neither sweet nor sour.
It has an earth grounding taste that can only be described as nourishing.
They taste like no other.
It is very special.
Potatoes are just about the only thing that grows here.
So the berries hold especially value.
They are really lovely and taste amazing.
This year seems to be great for berries.
I see them here, there, and everywhere that you can never finish picking.
Two years ago, I recall, we could hardly found any berries.
Wild, wild berries, see you next year.
I hope to see you thrive as much as it did this year.