Rick Steve's says “a vacation in Hydra (EE-drah) is a vacation from Greece”. This seems true. Athens is crowded; traffic is terrible. Our taxi driver yesterday said “Athens is chaos”. And the islands of Santorini and Mykonos are crowded, even though the season hasn’t begun. So Hydra, a sleepy fishing village with no cars or motor scooters is more relaxing than the rest. There are shops along the port and most of them seem to be local, not shops from London, Paris and New York. One exception is Brooks Brothers. We has another great dinner last night from the patio shown below on the right. Photo on the left is of the Hydra taxi stand (donkeys).
Left, below: Hydra from across the bay. Although tiny, Hydra played a part in the Napoleonic Wars and enjoyed glory in the 18th and 19th centuries when it was known as “Little England”. Center photo is typical for the waterfront and the other photo is typical of the small lanes in town.
Brenda and I were talking about Greece last night and we both agreed it was one of our best vacations. What’s not to like?
- Experience the cradle of civilization. From monuments to ruins you get a good sense of ancient history. Who realized that 5,000 years ago some people lived in stone houses with indoor plumbing? Even more amazing when you think of the millions of impoverished people today living, at best, in tents.
- Blue, blue water and a lot of steep hills. White-washed buildings, constantly refreshed, made everything seem clean. Spoiled only by excessive graffiti in the larger cities.
- Extremely friendly people who speak English. Even if you tell a vendor you’re not eating at his café, he’ll thank you anyway. One of the vendors told me “You come as a customer; you leave as a friend.” I believe him.
- Really nice hotels and great food. We’re in tiny Hydra staying at the Leto hotel. It must be 5-star because they do everything for you. After 3 weeks here, we haven’t had a bad meal. And the white wines from Santorini are among the best white wines anywhere. We also like the outdoor cafes and bars which are everywhere in Greece.
- I guess the only negative is the high unemployment, but we don’t see it. And the people we do run across seem very happy.
John, amazing pictures from Greece! Having been there, I know exactly what you mean about Athens! We thought the food was too Europeanized, but the island food was amazing! Looks like you guys had a wonderful time there. My best memory? While running the 2010, 2,500th anniversary of Phidippides historic run from Marathon to Athens, there were TONS of spectators! And they all clapped and yelled "Bravo!" to us. That was so cool! Yes, the people there are very happy. How could they not be? Such a beautiful place!
ReplyDeleteLove the taxi stand! Don't think my knees would take the walking you two did. Good for you.
ReplyDeleteDid you visit a vineyard in Santorini and see how they grow the vines?
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