To start my day off I walked down to the ferry ticket office to figure out how to spend my day. I decided that I would go to Hydra for the day. The ferry left earlier than I was expecting so I didn't get to see the temple again. Not a big deal though, it's just a base and it would cost me over €20 euro.
Once I arrived on the new island I unfortunately realized it was ugly and immediately regretted coming.
Just kidding.
It's so beautiful here.
The town is nestled comfortably in between mountains and forms a perfect little crescent with the port in the middle. Like most other towns here its built amphitheatrically and on the other hand, it is unlike other island towns because of the architecture. The buildings here are quite different from the whitewashed homes of other islands in that they are mostly built of stone and are therefore darker in color. But best of all and the thing that sets this island apart from all others is that there are no vehicles, with the exception of 1 very small garbage truck. I didn't even see any bicycles. What I did see were donkeys and horses, which are essentially the taxis here.
Because I got here so early in the day (9:45am) it was very quiet and empty, most shops and tavernas where still closed, but this didn't last long. I let myself just wander and see where I could get and what I could see instead of heading for a set place. It's nice to take the time to do nothing. After 2 hours of wandering and browsing the shops that had opened I found myself back in the port where a very large ferry had just dropped off a ton of people. A perfect time to leave town. I walked around one side of the crescent and outside the main area. There I found a nice beach. The perfect place for me.
Honestly though, I'm using the term 'beach' pretty loosely. It's actually concrete platforms and a small rocky area below, there is no sand to speak of. Beach aside, the water is phenomenal. Crystal clear, perfectly blue and cool enough to make the heat from the day more bearable without being cold. I also noticed that within meters of the shore line you aren't unable to touch the bottom, but can still see it clearly.
A major downside is that the sea is busy with ferries, fishing boats and sailboats. This makes for very rough water.
After 3 hours of swimming and laying and generally relaxing I decided to head back to town to wander around a bit more.
By 4pm I was hot and exhausted and had nothing left to do. This was an issue since I wasn't leaving until 7:20.
What's a girl to do?!! My life is so hard..
Oh wait. Nope. I'm lying.
I decided to have a waffle. Just because. And after my delicious just because waffle I put on more SPF and sat in the shade for a bit before heading over to another beach. There was no one at this beach now because the sun had moved away, so I had it all to myself! With 2 hours left before leaving and another 3 hours of traveling after that, I was feeling to tired to do anymore than just sit around. And what better place than a private beach?
After sitting for a while and then a bit more walking I ended up at the ferry waiting area where I people watched until I was on board half hour later.
It was a different ferry to any I have been on previously and not enjoyable at all. It was very rocky and left me feeling pretty terrible even with my motion sickness aids. Luckily it's only about 2 hours from Hydra to Piraeus.
Once off the ferry it was a short walk to the metro. I was quite surprised to see that it was completely full, but I'm starting to really grasp just how much Greeks really are night time people. After the hour long metro ride it was a 20 minute bus, a ten minute walk and then right to bed.
It's been another awesome weekend away and I'm glad I decided to see both islands. Unfortunately I think I will be sticking around Athens for the next few weekends because I haven't yet found myself a money tree.
I hope you weekend was great wherever you are!
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