At the time the children created this page, Keiko was still alive. They wrote:
Keiko lives in a bay on Heimaey in the Westman Islands. They flew Keiko on an airplane. Keiko will stay in his pen until he can know how to hunt and eat live fish. Keiko is doing fine. Click to visit Ocean Futures for more recent info on Keiko.
What whales can you see in Iceland? What kind of whale is the biggest?
There are nine different kinds of whales in Iceland. The most common in Iceland is the pilot whale. One kind you can see is the famous killer whale like Keiko. The blue whale is the biggest whale in Iceland you can see. The male blue can grow to be 22-33 meters long.
What waterfalls are there?
There are many beautiful waterfalls in Iceland. Gullfoss is in the south and Dettifoss is in the north. A picture of Gullfoss is on our main page.
How cold is it in the winter and summer?
The average temperature in summer is 50 degrees F. The average temperature in winter is 32 F.
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How hard does the wind blow?
The average wind is 14.4 mph. The worst wind was in 1991. It was 137mph.
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How much snow does Iceland get?
In glacial regions there are 180 inches of snow per year. But nobody lives there. Where we live, by the ocean, the average snowfall per year is 80 inches.
How many volcanoes does Iceland have?
Iceland has 30 major active volcanoes. There is an eruption somewhere in Iceland about every 5 years. One of the most famous volcanoes is Hekla.
Which volcano is the most active?
Two of the most active are Grimsvotn and Hekla. Grimsvotn usually erupts about every 10-15 years. But it erupted twice in the last few years: on December 18, 1998 and in October of 1996. Grimsvotn is under Vatnajokull, the biggest ice cap in Iceland.
Are there any stories about volcanoes?
When the volcano in Heimaey, in the Westman Islands (south coast of Iceland) was erupting in 1973, some people were waiting for a delivery of soda. In Icelandic, the word for soda is "gos", which also means "eruption". When the people heard knocking at the door and shouts of "gos, gos!", they called back, "Put it on the doorstep."
How many people live in Iceland?
There are about 271,000 people. Most of them live in Reykjavik.
What sports do Icelanders like?
Icelanders' favorite sports are basketball and soccer.
What kind of money do they have?
The money is called Icelandic Kronur. Click
here to see what the money looks like. 
What language do people speak?
Icelandic. Here is what it looks like. We scanned a picture of a milk carton to show you the writing.
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What special holidays are there?
Sprengidagur (Poping Day); Oskudagur (Ash Wednesday); Bolludagur (Bread bun day); Easter; Good Friday (but the Icelanders call it Long Friday) and Skirdagu (Baptize Day); First Day of Summer; and a long weekend called Hvite Sunna (White Sun) National Day is on June 17th.
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Are there museums?
There is a National Museum in Reykjavik, and a Nature Center in Sandgerdi. There are many more too.
What kinds of plants grow in Iceland?
Some of the plants that grow wild are daffodils, dandelions, lupines, crowberry, heather, blueberries and marsh horsetails.
Do people have gardens?
Many people have gardens in the front and back of their houses. Some people have greenhouses. They grow flowers and vegetables in them.
What mammals live in Iceland?
The mammals that live in Iceland are rats, sheep, seals, mice, Icelandic horses, minks, reindeer and Arctic foxes.
How do puffins live, and where?
There are about 10 million puffins in Iceland. The puffins live in holes on the edge of the cliffs. There is only one puffling in a nest. After six weeks a puffling is ready to leave its parents. In the fall, the puffins leave Iceland and fly to Newfoundland and come back to Iceland in the spring.
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