We spent the day driving through the small, young country of Montenegro. Montenegro became an independent country in 2006 and has only about 620,000 inhabitants. The scenery is dramatic. Montenegro rivals Norway in mountain roads. We were on one today that had 26 switchbacks.
We started our day in Budva - visiting the old town area where we were so savagely attacked by flying chairs last evening. Things were much calmer this morning, although a storm was moving in. Budva was founded in 1492 and has the charm of a medieval city. At the end of the medieval town the streets open onto a very modern marina with some very large yachts - quite a contrast.
We finished our walking tour of the city before it started to rain, and headed up the mountain to the former capital city of Cetinje. There we toured the palace of the last king of Montenegro, King Nikola II, followed by a walk through the old town. Our walk to the palace was done in a downpour, as the storm that was moving into Budva caught up with us at this point. We were prepared with raincoats and umbrellas, so were fine.
From Cetinje we continued on through the mountains to the World Heritage City of Kotar, a city inhabited since Illyrian and Roman times. The drive to Kotar was where we experienced the 26 switchbacks. There was a time when we met a bus and our van driver had to back up several meters to let the larger vehicle pass. Uffda!
We left Montenegro and crossed into Croatia around 6:30. Dubrovnik, where we are staying for the next couple of nights was another hour down the road. It was a beautiful drive, however, with views of the Adriatic Sea all the way to Dubrovnik.
My left calf, which was hit by the chair yesterday, is turning all shades of blue and purple, but is relatively pain-free. Tom's foot got stuck in the electronic door of the van today and no matter how loudly he shouted "open the door," our van driver, who speaks no English didn't understand what the problem was. Oh well......
You may have guessed that last night's blog was written by Tom. I was lying face-down on the bed with my bruised leg elevated to reduce swelling.
This is a view of the city as we drove up the mountain towards our next stop.
The king ( King Nikola II) and queen are entombed in this small church located next to the palace. The "prince" has just been recognized by Montenegro and has been granted some of the "traditional" property of the king. (Montenegro had "bishop-princes" up until their first - and only - king. After he died the royal family was forced into exile)
We stopped for lunch in this small village. It is typical of the many villages in Montenegro.
The medieval walled city of Kotar dates to at least 168 BC when it was an Illyian city. The Roman Emperor Justianian first built the fortifications above the city in 535. Starting in 809 AD the Venetians built the remaining city walls - there are about 3 miles of these still standing. The clock tower shown here is 10th century.
We spent a fair amount of time looking around this World Heritage city - we both wished we would have had more time here!
Here is the outside wall and the fort running up the side of the mountain!
Tonight we are staying in the fortress town of Dubrovnik, Croatia. Our hotel is located just outside of the old gates to the city.
We stopped above the city to watch the sundown. Tomorrow we will take a walk around the town a bit.
We started our day in Budva - visiting the old town area where we were so savagely attacked by flying chairs last evening. Things were much calmer this morning, although a storm was moving in. Budva was founded in 1492 and has the charm of a medieval city. At the end of the medieval town the streets open onto a very modern marina with some very large yachts - quite a contrast.
We finished our walking tour of the city before it started to rain, and headed up the mountain to the former capital city of Cetinje. There we toured the palace of the last king of Montenegro, King Nikola II, followed by a walk through the old town. Our walk to the palace was done in a downpour, as the storm that was moving into Budva caught up with us at this point. We were prepared with raincoats and umbrellas, so were fine.
From Cetinje we continued on through the mountains to the World Heritage City of Kotar, a city inhabited since Illyrian and Roman times. The drive to Kotar was where we experienced the 26 switchbacks. There was a time when we met a bus and our van driver had to back up several meters to let the larger vehicle pass. Uffda!
We left Montenegro and crossed into Croatia around 6:30. Dubrovnik, where we are staying for the next couple of nights was another hour down the road. It was a beautiful drive, however, with views of the Adriatic Sea all the way to Dubrovnik.
My left calf, which was hit by the chair yesterday, is turning all shades of blue and purple, but is relatively pain-free. Tom's foot got stuck in the electronic door of the van today and no matter how loudly he shouted "open the door," our van driver, who speaks no English didn't understand what the problem was. Oh well......
You may have guessed that last night's blog was written by Tom. I was lying face-down on the bed with my bruised leg elevated to reduce swelling.
This is the old walled city of Budva as seen from our room!
Walking around was fun. Many of the buildings date from the 11th century. The first walls were built here in about 325 BC.
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