48 hours in HYDRA
DAY ONE
9AM: Beginning the day watching the theatre of the harbour sets the tone for what magical Hydra is all about. Pull up a water-facing pew at THE PIRATE BAR, a local institution and former haunt of Leonard Cohen. The singer-songwriter lived here in the 1960s as part of a bohemian expat community of artists and writers who left this carfree Saronic island (under two hours’ ferry ride from Athens) with a creative legacy that travellers come in search of today. Linger over strong coffee and homemade muesli with Greek honey and yoghurt as the resident black cats loll at your feet. Then take a promenade along the crescent-shaped quay, lined with more cafes, restaurants, bars and boutiques housed in elegant old mansions.
Mules for hire wait patiently for their next gig – transporting everything from ferry passengers’ luggage to hefty air-conditioning units
