MONTENEGRO IN PICTURES
FOR MORE ABOUT MY ADVENTURES IN MONTENEGRO, SEE THE BLOG ARCHIVES.
PODGORICA, THE CAPITAL CITY 

We took a stroll around the modest neighborhood (above and below), which held a few tree-lined streets, a desultory collection of shops and cafés, and a plaza with a fountain. The next morning I asked the desk clerk for a map so we could explore the city. “There is no map,” she said. “OK,” I replied. “Can you direct us to the center of town?” She looked at me strangely and said, “This is the center of town.” 

Checking in to our clean, modern hotel was a great relief, especially after the gruesome toilets on the train. I was a bit startled to find seat covers in our private bathroom (the only ones I recall from our entire journey), but I guess it's better to have too much hygiene than too little ... 

As I was lining up a shot of our hotel's street, these two kids appeared out of nowhere, and one shouted, "Photo me!" So I did.

KOTOR, MEDIEVAL CITY BY THE SEA

Ancient stone walls enclose the city and zig zag up the cliffs for 4.5 km (3 miles), making a stunning backdrop for the old town.

Votives at the Greek Orthodox Church.

"Smells wonderful, I'll have that," Rich said to the cook. Wasn't he aghast to discover it was tripe soup, a dish he loathes.

Sometimes there are as many as four large cruise ships and a few small ones, bringing 10,000 people into Kotor. Since there are only 13,510 in the town, that's almost a one-to-one tourist-to-resident ratio.

And there's a Target in Kotor!

PERAST, A VILLAGE ON THE GULF OF KOTOR

Just off Perast sits the tiny island with the Church of Our Lady of the Rocks. Legend has it that the local fishermen found a small reef and would drop rocks there as they went by. Over the years an island was built up, and this church was constructed on it. Below, a visiting nun prays at the altar there.

200 years ago, the wife of an absent sea captain embroidered this piece, using her own hair for the hair of the cherubs. You can see how the hair color gradually changed from dark brown to white over the years, letting her do highlights and shadows on the angel's hair. At her death, it was donated to Our Lady of the Rocks.

HERCEG NOVI, WHERE THE GULF OF KOTOR MEETS THE ADRIATIC SEA 

The bus station lacking such frivolous luxuries as benches or rest rooms, we waited for our bus at the Orange caffe-bar next door. Within two minutes, party animals bought us a round, and it seemed only courteous to buy them a round and join them in singing and pounding out the songs’ rhythm on the bar. “Hoopa! Hoopa!” shouted the impromptu DJ, and somebody jumped on the bar and started dancing.