A story on how horses enable encounters that might sometimes grow to lifelong friendships.
Heidi Schwörer is a real veteran in the Icelandic horse community. She spent more than half of her life with the horses and we were convinced that during this time she must have experienced a lot that is worth writing down.
When asked whether she would like to tell us something we could use for our new blog, she spontaneoulsy and happily answers “Yes”- and so we meet up for our first conversation.
It quickly becomes clear that Heide has so many stories in her mind that she does not even know where to begin. After some considerations, she finally bubbles out laughing:
“I want to start with the following story because, really, it is the most important one of all of them, even though, strictly speaking, there is not even a horse in the center of attention.”
And without any further hesitations, she begins her lively report and takes us back forty years: in 1978, she visited her first Landsmót together with Walter Feldmann sen. “Everything was so exciting”, she enthuses and even after so many years, her excitement is unmistakable.
And also back then, it could not be dampened by the fact that she did not know the Icelandic language and did not understand one single word. “The next time, however, I did not just want to be a spectator but I also wanted to understand everything.”, she explains to us.
She was aware that she would not learn Icelandic this fast. Therefore, a different solution needed to be found.
Back in Germany, she decided to place an advertisement in order to find an Icelandic student who could join her on her next trip to Iceland and translate for her. In return, the student would get free flights as well as board and lodging.
Many might already guess what comes next: Kristín who studied agriculture in Stuttgart for some time now replied to Heidi’s ad. A free flight home and going to Landsmót on top of that was a tempting offer.
So, the next time, they went together to the Landsmót. It quickly turned out: Not only the offer, but also the vibe between the two was perfect.
They shared their love for the horses and their excitement was not to be outdone! Kistín translated and explained tirelessly, even though she spent a lot of the bright Icelandic nights with her friends.
This is why, as she admitted laughing, Heidi was sceptical in the beginning. But her young, blond translator was on time every morning, standing next to the oval track at 9 a.m. patiently answering every question.
Heidi enjoyed the time a lot. Everything was new to her and she absorbed all the infos like a sponge.
After so many years, Heidi still likes to think back to this first trip they made together. And the best part of it is, she completes her report:
It was the start of a wonderful friendship that lasts until today.
