I admit I only know Iceland from Bjork, James Bond, Idris Elba. What can I say? I’m a cold weather snob; years in beautiful London ensured I never again wanted to freeze, despite sporting a beard and a hairy chest for insulation.

Last year I travelled through Latina America, bumped into a Greek man at the pool/gym in Panama. What was I doing in a gym? I thought the receptionist said go and see “Jim” at the rooftop pool. Once there I was spotted, but not by a Jim, it was a Christos. How did he identify me? I was wearing an “I’m Greek” shirt. Christos and I hit it off. I met his friend Sara, whom I bumped into again with her Iceland based friend Irina in Rio weeks later. Sara, one of the nicest people you will meet is originally from Slovenia, living in Iceland.

Sara, and Christos Iliadis invited me to visit Iceland. Being polite, I nodded, knowing I would never visit…. Until Christos explained, “I coach football and there are GREEKS in Iceland!” I booked my flight on the spot.

Christos explained, “there are 800 Greeks registered in Iceland,” usually from northern Greece. They mostly work for short stints and take advantage of the “heat” of summer; it peaked at 14 degrees in June. A football player named Leonidas, told me he believes there could be up to 2000 Hellenes.

Having playfully dubbed Christos the “Mayor of Greektown,” there is some half-truth to the observation. Every bar, venue, alleyway and outing seemed to be bookended by Greeks. At the bread shop for the most expensive coffee I ever sipped, it was operated by Greek women. At the cool Lebowski Bar which opens the patio when a “balmy five degrees”, security is managed by Odysseas. It didn’t matter where we went, we found Greeks, or rather the “Mayor” did.

Greeks seem to know him. I stayed at his place where even his Icelandic flatmate is…. Greek.

Let’s eat

Twice, we visited the Oriento Middle East Grill to meet Mohamed who makes Greek food. He and his wife spoke to us in Greek as we sat down for an interview; he explained that his children were born in Athens, they speak six languages including Greek, and he himself has lived half his life in Greece. The family returned to Syria, unbeknown to him, just as the Syrian Civil War commenced. Losing everything within a year, they fled to Turkey before returning to Greece. Like many others who reside in Greece, they took the chance by trying Iceland thanks to a friend living there. Working hard to save money, they opened Oriento last decade, working seven days a week.

While Oriento may be the only place to have an authentic Greek dish, Christos took me to eateries where Greek chefs cooked for us. We visited, arguably, the premier “donuts/sweet” shop in the Nordic region, Look Koo Mas, owned by Vasilis and Mixalis. The first time I visited with Christos, I thought it was early afternoon. It was 11 pm and the sun was of course still shining as it does for about 23 hours during “summer.” I will circle back to Vasilis shortly.

On another day, Christos took me to the Multicultural Festival, where food was served from a range of cultures, including Greek. It was at the festival where I had the pleasure of meeting the talented Nina Basdras.

Local Greeks

Via Eleni, President of the Greek Community of Iceland, I was able to connect with the acclaimed lyric Soprano and Vocal Coach Nina Basdras; she made her way to Iceland via Antwerp where she was studying for her Masters (classical singing performance) meeting her now husband who is from Iceland. Nina is someone who immediately makes you feel at ease. She has an adorable toddler son who has become her motivation and inspiration to release her forthcoming album, Νάνι/Nani.

Νάνι was recorded with an Icelandic musician who plays bouzouki. “The album is my comeback as an artist, as a singer. In Athens I was mainly a theatre actress.” The talented Nina spoke with me just as she had just finished mesmerising an appreciative audience; they listened intently to her Greek acapella. It was easy to spot her husband as he proudly waved the Greek flag.

Thanks to Nina I gained more of an insight into life in Reykjavik. Everything she needs is here. Her home, family, studies, music and friends. When we next meet for coffee, Nina rode one of the small scooters to go from the university to the coffee shop. An easy city to traverse.

Nina is also working on a YouTube show for children to promote the Greek language to younger Greeks abroad and those parents interested in the language. As Eleni from the Greek Community had explained, she is an incredible talent.

One night, well daylight, at 2am, I begged Christos to let me call an uber/taxi as I froze on the walk around. My olive skin had faded to Michael Jackson white. In his raspy voice due to a cold he picked up watching Leonidas at the football, he explained that taxis/uber options don’t really exist in the city. Admittedly, walking briskly and the lure of meeting more Greeks made the “pain/cold” easier to accept. The stunning architecture and the ocean which straddles the outskirts of Reykjavik, also made it worth the walk around in the “Siberia-like conditions!”

Greek born Panayiotis Papadopoulos is a senior hotel manager we met on one walk, a friend of Christos’s from Greece. He is one of many we met across accommodation services. Panayiotis arrived in 2022 from England where he was unhappy. He tells me, “Iceland is stress free, there is an eventfulness. A safe place where life just flows. I am happy here.” Iceland was a big shift from survival mode to having a “good quality of life. I found a job on my fifth day here…. a beautiful landscape, unique terrain, compared to the rest of the planet. Even driving feels like you are on vacation!”

As we spoke at the bar deep into the “night” with the waterfront and daylight in the background, Panayiotis explains how Iceland has only had human life for about 500 years. “It has been free from wars and occupation,” contributing to the sense of tranquillity from the madness of the world. We were interrupted as we talked by other Greeks who came in to say kalispera.

Rising football star Leonidas

Playing football can warm anyone, except of course two Greeks sitting on the sideline on a windy day. Playing at a small stadium, we scouted locals, one Trinidad & Tobago international and the youthful Leonidas Baskas. The youngster impressed enough as a player, and as a person over coffee the next day in Reykjavik, where we were joined by Christos and Odysseas.

Leonidas spoke to people in Icelandic. He is one of the few Greeks who has mastered the language, as English is widely spoken, and Greeks naturally speak to each other in Greek, or GrEnglish to me. Leonidas followed his sister to Iceland in 2022, working in hospitality and playing football in division two. “I love the quality of local football,” he enthuses. I ask him if he wants to return to Greece. “Eventually, for now I enjoy life here; I work in the morning and play football in the afternoon.”

Vasilis and Loo.kou.mas

Not far from where I interviewed Leonidas, is Loo.koo.mas on arguably the most picturesque “road” in Reykjavik. The sweet aroma, presentation of the store and the customer service, adequately reflects the top level 4.9 rating on Google. Vasilis Panteloglou arrived in 2016 to work for a company. In partnership with his friend and long-time housemate, Mixalis, they eventually created their version of a taste of Greece. Their store is one of the most highly recommended sweet shops in the Nordic world. So much so that they’re likely to expand to Stockholm next year as the Swedes want to taste these delicious loukoumades/Greek donuts. What I loved about their offerings is that the honey is personally sourced from Italy, to go along with Greek and Icelandic ingredients.

Loo.koo.mas opened during COVID and was an instant hit for the city. “Covid was an opportunity for Mixalis and I, prices were down, we took a chance.” Vasilis confided that it would have been harder to open a Greek restaurant, especially as produce is more difficult to come by.

What is unique about Vasilis is that he is a critically acclaimed designer, and has been successful in his own right as a career back in Greece.

The guys are rightly proud of Lou.kou.mas. “In four years, we have sold four tonnes of chocolate and 3.5 tonnes of honey!” They love their work, working 364 days of the year, for the last four years. They would not have it any other way!

Movie director

On a night out, or rather daylight into the early hours out, we bumped into Canadian-Greek movie director/writer Constantine Paraskevopoulos, owner of AMMNI Studios. Constantine directed music videos for MTV, shot covers for international magazines, spent time with Quentin Tarantino on Kill Bill (not me) and collaborated with Alfonso Cuaron. The 39-year-old is set to release his new cinematic movie BFFS, having previously written/directed Second City Toronto, and collaborated on studio screenplays including My Big Fat Greek Wedding. His Reykjavik residency is allowing him to use Greek language skills to navigate the bars and connect with other Greeks.

Adventures

Thanks to Christos I was able to visit glaziers and several waterfalls. The glaziers were like being on the moon, except there are no Greeks on the moon! Holiday Tours Iceland took me on a breathtaking tour, where I met Czech and now Iceland citizen friend Mixael, Christos’s colleague. The countryside is Bond-esque at times, which mesmerises you, despite the rain and cool air. Walking on a glazier, is indescribable and reinforces the need to protect our environment. If our climate does heat up more, these stunning places will melt. My day finished lunching with Mixael as some of the biggest waves crashed against the beach just metres away. The Aussie in me wanted to find a surfboard, yet the Londoner in me was content to have a green tea, keep warm and moan about the weather, which I’m good at.

Someone who won’t keep warm? A Greek fisherman lives on the northern tip of Iceland; a sailor during the 60s, enchanted by Iceland, he relocated, flying the flag for the most northern Greek on the planet.

I flew the flag for Greece, Australia and those who whinge about weather in a nation that has a cold climate yet has embraced the warmth of Hellenes.

Iceland Greeks documentary

*Billy Cotsis is the author of Aristotle Roberto Carlos Smithopolous