When Leonard Cohen first set foot on the island of Hydra in April 1960, he was simply looking for a sunny place away from the rain and damp of London where he had been living after winning an arts grant from the Canada Council. But a chance visit to a bank branch in London where he met a teller sporting a glorious suntan after returning from a trip to Greece convinced Cohen to board a flight to Athens. He then took a five-hour ferry to Hydra, an island that had earned a reputation as a bohemian haven to a colony of expat artists.

Hydra would serve as his home for next seven years, during which time he met a newly divorced Norwegian woman named Marianne Ihlen who lived there with her young son Axel – and began his slow transition from poet and novelist to singer-songwriter. He bought a hillside house on Hydra that had no running water or electricity. For water, he would have to carry it in bottles from a well in the center of town or buy it from locals.

Life on Hydra, and especially his breakup with Marianne (when he moved to New York and work a a musician), inspired many of his songs, including “Hey, That’s No Way to Say Goodbye,” and, most famously, “So Long, Marianne.”

My relationship with Cohen also brought me to Greece. I spent several months on Hydra for the purposes of a film about Cohen’s life there. We were both born in Montreal and we were neighbors (completely by chance). I interviewed him twice, and this is the first time I’m publishing his deepest thoughts on his life on Hydra with Marianne. In the meantime, I’m still trying to find the necessary financial resources to complete that film.

What was it about Hydra that you loved so much?

It gave me a deep feeling of tranquility and comfort that I had never felt before and have maybe never felt since. I liked the simplicity of the life there, I liked the life I shared with Marianne, and I enjoyed the feeling of being part of this writer’s colony. I’ve never been able to recapture that sensation or those impressions again no matter how many times I’ve tried. It was a unique time.

Did your house also give you the feeling of security and sanctuary?

Buying the house was one of the best decisions I ever made in my life because it became my home. It was the place where I was able to write and think, and not be distracted by the outside world. It had enough space for Marianne and Axel and me even though Axel often spent hours just sitting or lying on the floor next to me while I was typing. Those memories, even though I’ve forgotten so much of that time, are still present with me.

What were your emotions or impressions of Hydra when you first set foot on the island?

It was as pleasant as I had hoped. After months of rain and cold in London, I was so glad to be in the sun and warmth. I was struck by the architecture and the beauty of the waterfront, the houses, and how friendly and generous the people behaved towards me. It was very welcoming and I couldn’t have asked for anything better. It was a free and happy time. In the first few days I met people from all over Europe and America and I remember having so many wonderful conversations in these small restaurants and even in the backroom of a grocery store where I was able to practice singing and playing the guitar when everybody, including me, was very drunk. That’s one of my most vivid memories of those early days.

You went to Hydra also wanting to find a place where you could devote yourself to writing. Did you feel immediately comfortable there?

I could not have imagined how quickly I would be made to feel part of this community of foreigners, many of whom were writers and artists. An Australian couple, the Johnstons, would hold court every day by the port and they took me in when I had no place to stay. They introduced me to many of their friends on Hydra and I quickly fell into this rhythm of writing during the day and partying and drinking at night. I didn’t have any real expectations of what my life would be like on the island, but as a young writer this was an ideal setting and it was very stimulating on every level.

Did the local Greek residents on Hydra make you feel welcome, too?

‘I didn’t have any real expectations of what my life would be like on the island, but as a young writer this was an ideal setting and it was very stimulating on every level’

The locals seemed to enjoy having so many foreigners around. I would be offered bottles of wine when I couldn’t afford to pay for it and for some reason I was accepted by the people who ran the tavernas and cafes. This is probably what made Hydra so attractive for people who came from all over Europe, you were made to feel at home from the beginning. I think the locals were curious about us and we provided them with amusement.

Was this one of the great journeys of your life?

It happened so quickly, being embraced by the island and the people, and embracing the spirit of being there, but this was exactly the kind of life I was looking for even though I never had any clear idea of what that would be. Although I don’t remember that much of those days, but I still have the impression of the many discussions I had with the Johnstons, with Marianne, and the people we would meet at these long tables with food and wine and cigarette packs spread out across them. I’ve never really experienced that same feeling again, and so many other things about that time.

You’ve described your time with Marianne Ihlen on Hydra as one of the most gratifying chapters in your life. What did she mean to you?

We shared a level of courtesy and kindness that was part of the bond between us. She cared about me and she cared for me in ways that are difficult to explain and which I often didn’t deserve. Marianne was also very beautiful in a classic Nordic sense that drew me and everyone else to her, even though she never saw herself as particularly attractive and never tried to use that to her advantage in any way.

Is it true that the first time you saw her walking along the waterfront on Hydra you told George Johnston, “One day I’m going to be with that woman…”?

I don’t remember anymore exactly what I said or thought, but I had this naive expectation that there was something about her that I wanted to be able to get to know. When the opportunity came to meet her, I didn’t hesitate, though.

How would you describe your daily life with Marianne?

I would spend the mornings writing while she would often take Axel for a walk or read downstairs. When we had more money, which was not often, we would go for lunch by the port or go drinking at night. She also helped us get through those months where money was very tight and she even paid a large bill at Katsikas’ that we had run up with some money she received from Norway.

Was there also something romantic about your lifestyle with Marianne and not having much money and living very simply?

I always enjoyed these long walks we would take with Axel on the beach and listen to the waves, sit together and look out to sea. This was also a chaotic time and that’s why my memory of those days is such a blur… Many social changes were taking place and Hydra was caught up in that period of ferment and sexual revolution thanks to all the foreigners who were visiting or would stay there for extended periods. That’s one of the great qualities that Marianne brought to my life, it was her selflessness at times and how she gave me this great gift of her support and spirit. We had a natural way of being together although I admit that she was far more generous to me than I was to her. But for the most part we were enjoying our life and we didn’t spend much time talking or analyzing it. That kind of experience has a beauty to it even if it’s difficult to hang on to that over time.

Marianne is often described as your muse, as a source of inspiration to you?

It’s too simplistic a description… Marianne and I both shared something special and even though we may have gone our separate ways, what we had together will always remain with us and it always has. That love and those feelings are indestructible.

You’ve said in other interviews how you’ve tried to recreate the feeling you had on Hydra and with Marianne but never managed to find that again?

So much of our lives are beyond our control. We may like to think we have some control and that we make our choices freely, but I believe that that’s an illusion. Our choices are pre-determined for us and we’re limited to that, so it’s difficult to pick a path we would like to follow and let it take us to where we want to go. With Marianne, although I orchestrated our meeting, everything else that happened between us followed its own logic and I didn’t think too much or too deeply about that process, that even though that would have made things much easier. Even the moment when we stopped seeing each other, it didn’t happen at once. I found myself pursuing a new life and I didn’t find time or a place for her and Axel. It wasn’t a conscious choice, it was lack of attention on my part. You say you won’t let it happen next time, but then you learn that there is “no next time.”

Harold von Kursk is a journalist, screenwriter and filmmaker whose work has been published in most of Europe’s leading magazines and newspapers.