In today’s world, the concept of a society without vehicles seems surreal. Yet, that is what the citizens of Hydra have chosen. Transportation on the island is by foot, donkey or boat. The only motorized vehicles are sanitation and fire trucks. This was something that I, an American woman wedded to her car, had to experience. The boat ride from Piraeus was about two hours, with a quick stop at the island of Poros where people crowded on the decks to take photos. A few minutes later, the harbor of Hydra came into view.

It is a u-shaped cove, protected by mountains which block the trade winds and keep the harbor waters fairly calm. Whitewashed buildings cling to the hills, providing sharp contrast to the rocks, vegetation, sea and sky. It is quaint and picturesque.

Immediately upon disembarking, I saw donkeys waiting in a queue, similar to cabs in the city. Some are fitted with saddles, waiting for hardy tourists to mount with luggage strapped to the sides.

All have faded, woven blankets to protect their backs from the parcels and equipment they will carry. Some are decorated with colorful beads, bells or a combination. These docile animals are the lifeblood of the island, bringing items from the harbor to the hinterlands.

It’s hard to fathom that every item consumed must be ferried onto the island and hauled to homes and stores—appliances, clothing, souvenirs, pallets of bottled water, food—everything. And, in turn, every piece of trash must be ferried out. The sheer volume of commerce required by today’s society is handled the same as it has been for hundreds of years.

Men work hard, too. They load goods on these handcarts and I saw as many as three men push and pull a full cart up a steep path. This one sits empty, waiting on the dock for a load of cargo.

Except for Mandraki Bay, Hydra does not have sandy beaches but it does have cats. Lots of them! The owner of the guest house where I stayed warned me to keep any outside doors closed, or I may have purring roommates.

Because there is only one sandy beach on the island, natives have used domestic materials to create unique swimming habitats. This one is formed by laying large, flat rocks into the side of a cliff to shape a platform, complete with a ladder to climb out of the water (the ladder is on the lower left side of the photo).

Winding streets and intriguing nooks provide many places to explore outside the harbor: shops, markets, courtyards, and shady bistros. The words painted on the steps of this cafe capture the essence of Hydra.

Hydra’s Historical Archives Museum is filled with artifacts, maps and documents detailing the evolution of the island. Sponge diving and its maritime forces were historically the pride of the island. Walls are lined with portraits of “firebrands”—sailors who used fire to destroy Ottoman fleets during the Revolution of 1821. Their methodology was daring: they filled “fireships” with gunpowder and strung fuses with hooks to the end of the boat. The firebrands would ram an enemy ship, drop hooks onto its deck, light the fuse, and escape in small dinghies while the gunpowder exploded the enemy ships. These men were the heart of the Greek navy during the Revolution.

There are displays of costumes, weapons of Hydriot independence fighters, woodcarvings and maps. Although photos are not permitted, I had to take this one.

This family tree is of one of Hydra’s most renown families. Its oldest member, Chatzi Georgios Kountouriotis, died in 1769. I studied the chart and two things caught my attention:  specific dates of the earliest generations are missing, and Chatzi’s date was one of death, not birth. I felt a mixture of satisfaction and disappointment in seeing that even Greek families of prominence face the same obstacle–Ottoman rule. We are all stuck in the late 1700’s-mid 1800’s!

My final stop before returning to Athens was the the former Monastery of the Dormition. Today, it serves as the ecclesiastical Mitropolis of Hydra. Its church interior is magnificent; its bell tower chimes the hour, and its museum gives a glimpse of Orthodox treasures of the island. Some of its artifacts date to the late 1700’s.

My stay on Hydra was exactly 24 hours. If I had one more day, I would take a boat ride around the island and explore areas outside the harbor town. But that will have to wait for another trip.