Dear friends,
not long now until we will be meeting on our favourite island of Hydra.
Once again these are strange times and therefore we are even happier so many of you decided to register. To those who haven’t decided yet - no problem. There is still time to do so and join us for the fun. We are very much looking forward to meeting old and new friends.
We think there is something for everyone in the program. And then there are our infamous evenings at the Roloi - and since they are what we make them: Please bring your instruments, voices and good mood. We are sure we will have an amazing time together.
If anyone is interested in performing at an open mic evening please let us know. We have saved a space for our talented musician members on the program on the first evening.
Now on to the program...
- Like every year, especially our first time visitors will be interested in seeing the places that were important to Leonard Cohen. Our dear forum moderator Henning will be guiding a city walk that will cover most of the places and many stories related to Leonard. He has come to Hydra for decades now and will give you a profound insight. And he might even share a very special story with you.
This walk is highly recommended to all first time visitors and Henning will be doing it for just your smiles.
- We would have liked to offer a different kind of city walk again which would have focussed on history. But this year our lovely Hydra based historian will be on maternity leave. So we wish Maria all the best for her and her new family member and hope we will see her back at our event in 2027.
- Our dear friend Lakis has once again put together a very interesting excursion to the mainland. We will start on 9.00 am on Saturday. The tour will take us a to an ancient site on the mainland. There will be lunch at a tavern with traditional local food and on the return a stop in a cafe to have coffee next to the ancient theatre of Epidaurus. The plan is to be back around 19.00.
This tour is limited to 50 participants and likely to sell out quickly. So please let us know as soon as possible if you want to book this. This is the only activity that can’t be cancelled once booked because Lakis needs to make all the arrangements. The price will be about 100 Euros per person. In the unlikely event of this being booked by a lower number of people the price will go up to 110-120 Euros per person. But from all the enquieries we received via emails we expect this to sell out very quickly. Please do not send any money for this yet. You will receive a confirmation email with the details.
- Already a tradition by now are our boat tours:
- There is a day tour around the island which will show you a different perspective of the island with some interesting stories told by the boat captain. The captain is already working on a playlist for us so there will be Leonard's music accompanying us throughout the trip. The tour stops at four spots with swimming opportunities although you can very well enjoy this tour even if you are not planning to get into the water. A buffet lunch is included so please let us know of any diet restrictions and we will try to make arrangements for your needs. Drinks (water/soft drinks/wine/beer/cocktails) are available but not included in the price.
The tour will take 6 hours and we have negotiated a reduced group price of 60 Euros per person. The tour will be available on Saturday and Sunday and start at 11.00 am. This can be paid directly on the boat. Maximum number of participants 30 people.
- Then there is a sunset tour which will take off onto the sea to watch the sunset while listening to Leonard's music and one included drink in your hand. This will start at 20.00 in the evening and take around an hour and a half. This will be available on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. In case of high demand a tour on Thursday can be added. Maximum numer of participants for each trip will be 25.
The sunset tour will be 20 Euros per person to be paid on the boat.
- At the Cinema Club we will be shown one of Leonard Cohen‘s fabulous concerts in full length this year. This concert has not been published elsewhere. Special thanks go out to our dear Jarkko for this one. A significant part of your registration fee will be forwarded to the cinema club as a donation so there won't be any additional entrance fee to be paid. Drinks can be purchased on site. The cinema club has enough capacity to hold our group in one sitting this year so the concert recording will be shown on Friday only. There is no need to sign up for this again either.
All tours will start at the Roloi except for the excursion to the mainland which will start at the ferry harbour. For the concert screening please proceed to the cinema directly. Please be at the starting point of your tour 15 minutes prior to starting time as it won't be possible to wait for you.
This is the schedule in short:
PLEASE SEE THE NEW REVISED PROGRAM IN POST NO 6 BELOW!
THURSDAY MAY 22, 2025
18.00- 19.45 Song Circle at the Cinema Club
(20:00-21:30 Sunset Boat Tour - only if the others sell out)
FRIDAY, MAY 23
10:00-11:30 Leonard Cohen themed City Walk, guided by Henning
20:00-21:30 Sunset Boat Tour
22:00-24:00 Cinema Club presents…
SATURDAY, MAY 24
09:00-19:00 Excursion to the mainland by boat/bus to an ancient site, lunch and a coffee break next to Epidaurus, guided by Lakis Christidis
11:00-17:00 Boat Tour around the Island
20:00-21:30 Sunset Boat Tour
SUNDAY, MAY 25
11:00-17:30 Boat Tour around the Island
20:00-21:30 Sunset Boat Tour
It‘s still possible to sign up for the meetup and all activities still have spaces available.
In addition to our program there will also be a cover band performing at the museum on Hydra on that weekend. We are in close contact with them and will post further information once they have decided on a set time for their performance. More coming on this soon.
Very much looking forward to seeing you all soon
Caren and Hans
