Monday, May 13, 2013
Black Mountain, or Crna Gora in Serbian, is what Montenegro means. It's a tiny, more recently independent nation that actually manage to end up with some coast line in the Adriatic, otherwise Croatia would have it all. It got it's name from the Venetians, who sailed into the Bay of Kotor at night time, looked around, and said, "Oooh, Black Mountains." Then the sun came out and they turned out to be grey, but the name stuck!
Today, we tendered into Kotor, and I took my guests on a guided tour of the neighboring city of Budva.
But first, we drove straight through Budva, and directly up a hill for a spectacular shot of Sveti Stefan (St. Stephen).
We're not going there though. It's a private place that regularly switches owners. I think some billionaire Russians are in a bidding war with a Saudi prince right now. When is that not the case?
Instead we looked immediately to our right across the bay to the city of Budva where we will be spending our afternoon.
Budva is both and ancient preserved Medieval village, as well as an up and coming city. Our tour would walk through the Medieval section, but the drive would take us through the city. The billionaire Russians are indeed buying up everything they can get and transforming this place. They envision Budva to be a popular Russian vacation spot in the future, and they are making it so. The locals aren't too happy about it, but they take the money nonetheless.
Oh, and about the money! The go off Euro here. They're only European Union applicants, but they still use the Euro. What happened was their own money was so bad, that one day the whole country decided to buy Deutchmarks! So, when Germany switched to the Euro, Montenegro followed suit.
Now that's all well and good, but let me show you my favorite thing about Budva.
Yes, there is that, but just outside the bakery is a little walk up window with this sign above it.
What is Palačinke? In a word, pancakes. In another word, crepes. But this is how we do them here.
My grandma and my dad have been making palačinke for me my whole life. I know it looks the same everywhere you get it in the world, but believe me, we each have our own recipe, and of course mine is the best.
It would have been nice if Palačinke was the only thing we did in Budva, but unfortunately for us, our tour included admission to the most boring museum in the world.
The only thing the museum had going for it is that every potion in every video game I've ever played came from a bottle that looked like the ones above.
The tour also came with a snack in a restaurant (which I think is just cruel, but it happens all the time! You all go and sit down in a nice restaurant, but you're not getting a meal! Oh no! You're going to get one little drink, and maybe something else).
The something else today was ham on top of lettuce on top of white bread. Apparently, this ham is like prosciutto, and is really special. I thought it was special alright. But it was lost on me.
Nevertheless, food is food, and although it seems like I'm complaining now, I can tell you that at the time I was very appreciative. You don't always get food on a tour, so when you do, it's like Christmas. (Really sad Christmas, but still).
Okay, tour's over. Let me post the notes from the shore excursions office.
OMG, it was called Pearls of the Adriatic Coast. How...cute.
Description:
Embrace the breathtaking beauty of the Adriatic Coast during this half-day, sightseeing tour of Montenegro and its environs. (Points for using the word "environs.")
Depart the pier for the scenic, approximate one-hour drive to St. Stefan.
Sveti Stefan Viewpoint
En route, a photo stop is made at the Sveti Stefan Viewpoint for panoramic views over the Budvanska Riviera and St. Stefan. This seafront hamlet, a fortified fishing village originally built to deter pirates, is today a charming resort town. Leaving the Sveti Stefan Viewpoint, continue on to Budva.
Budva
Budva is considered one of the oldest settlements in the Balkans, and the most popular seaside destination in Montenegro (if you're rich and Russian). The Old Town of Budva was founded in the 9th century, and lies on a tiny island that was once linked to land by a sandbar. Over time this area has silted up to become an attractive peninsula. The town is surrounded by 15th-century fortifications that include a Medieval rampart system with city gates, defensive walls, and towers. Inside the walls, the town is a combination of narrow streets, tiny squares, and monuments honouring (the person who writes all the descriptions is clearly English) the diverse Mediterranean cultures that marked its development. A guided walking tour within the ramparts brings you to the City Museum (of boring).
Budva City Museum
The City Museum of Budva is located in the heart of the Old Town. Althought the history of Budva dates back hundreds of years, it has only had a museum for the past two decades. The museum traces the evolution of Budva through displays of various artifacts with Hellenic marks, vases, jewellery, decorations, tools, and silver, along with artifacts made of glass and clay featuring unusual shapes and designs. The museum offers a unique insight into the Illyrians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Slavs, and other Budvan rules through the years. (It also has a display of old bottles)
Following your museum visit, refreshments and a snack will be served at a local restaurant before some free time is made available to browse the shops or explore the area. Re-board the coach for the return drive to Kotor. Upon arrival, you may opt to return directly to the pier or remain in the Old Town for shopping or further exploration and return to the pier at your leisure.
...which is exactly what we did. Once we arrived in Kotor, we stayed for a while because Kotor is awesome. In fact, we rarely escorted any more tours in Kotor because it is a place you just want to be to hang out and chill. Every restaurant is CHEAP and amazing, and has fast wifi. Need I say more? Well, later I will because there are some more things I want to show you in depth later on. In the mean time, look! I ran into Jennifer!
She took a picture of me too.
We had a long way to sail after today (we had to get to Greece) so back on board time was pretty early. Normally, this sucks, but today it meant that we would get to see the amazing sail out of the Bay of Kotor. More on that, after a drink with Soraia.
The sail out of Kotor is pretty incredible. So much so that I really didn't want to edit my video. Yeah, it's about five minutes of the same thing, but that's what's nice about being on a ship. You're not in a hurry. You're not going anywhere. The ship's taking you. So, you can slow down your pacing and just enjoy things at the speed they come.
Like Norway, no picture will ever do it justice. Kotor is a place you have to be there to feel.
This was the last thing we saw before we went below decks. Imagine if this was your church. Try not to get your Bible wet on the way there every Sunday.
Next time: Corfu, Greece. Paleokastritsa, and a cat video, because some people like cats.
Kotor, Montenegro
Black Mountain, or Crna Gora in Serbian, is what Montenegro means. It's a tiny, more recently independent nation that actually manage to end up with some coast line in the Adriatic, otherwise Croatia would have it all. It got it's name from the Venetians, who sailed into the Bay of Kotor at night time, looked around, and said, "Oooh, Black Mountains." Then the sun came out and they turned out to be grey, but the name stuck!
Today, we tendered into Kotor, and I took my guests on a guided tour of the neighboring city of Budva.
But first, we drove straight through Budva, and directly up a hill for a spectacular shot of Sveti Stefan (St. Stephen).
We're not going there though. It's a private place that regularly switches owners. I think some billionaire Russians are in a bidding war with a Saudi prince right now. When is that not the case?
Instead we looked immediately to our right across the bay to the city of Budva where we will be spending our afternoon.
Budva is both and ancient preserved Medieval village, as well as an up and coming city. Our tour would walk through the Medieval section, but the drive would take us through the city. The billionaire Russians are indeed buying up everything they can get and transforming this place. They envision Budva to be a popular Russian vacation spot in the future, and they are making it so. The locals aren't too happy about it, but they take the money nonetheless.
Oh, and about the money! The go off Euro here. They're only European Union applicants, but they still use the Euro. What happened was their own money was so bad, that one day the whole country decided to buy Deutchmarks! So, when Germany switched to the Euro, Montenegro followed suit.
Now that's all well and good, but let me show you my favorite thing about Budva.
 |
| Yum. |
 |
| No, not Pizza. Palačinka! |
 |
| Oh yeah! |
It would have been nice if Palačinke was the only thing we did in Budva, but unfortunately for us, our tour included admission to the most boring museum in the world.
 |
| Really? |
The tour also came with a snack in a restaurant (which I think is just cruel, but it happens all the time! You all go and sit down in a nice restaurant, but you're not getting a meal! Oh no! You're going to get one little drink, and maybe something else).
 |
| At least it's pretty. |
Nevertheless, food is food, and although it seems like I'm complaining now, I can tell you that at the time I was very appreciative. You don't always get food on a tour, so when you do, it's like Christmas. (Really sad Christmas, but still).
Okay, tour's over. Let me post the notes from the shore excursions office.
OMG, it was called Pearls of the Adriatic Coast. How...cute.
Description:
Embrace the breathtaking beauty of the Adriatic Coast during this half-day, sightseeing tour of Montenegro and its environs. (Points for using the word "environs.")
Depart the pier for the scenic, approximate one-hour drive to St. Stefan.
Sveti Stefan Viewpoint
En route, a photo stop is made at the Sveti Stefan Viewpoint for panoramic views over the Budvanska Riviera and St. Stefan. This seafront hamlet, a fortified fishing village originally built to deter pirates, is today a charming resort town. Leaving the Sveti Stefan Viewpoint, continue on to Budva.
Budva
Budva is considered one of the oldest settlements in the Balkans, and the most popular seaside destination in Montenegro (if you're rich and Russian). The Old Town of Budva was founded in the 9th century, and lies on a tiny island that was once linked to land by a sandbar. Over time this area has silted up to become an attractive peninsula. The town is surrounded by 15th-century fortifications that include a Medieval rampart system with city gates, defensive walls, and towers. Inside the walls, the town is a combination of narrow streets, tiny squares, and monuments honouring (the person who writes all the descriptions is clearly English) the diverse Mediterranean cultures that marked its development. A guided walking tour within the ramparts brings you to the City Museum (of boring).
Budva City Museum
The City Museum of Budva is located in the heart of the Old Town. Althought the history of Budva dates back hundreds of years, it has only had a museum for the past two decades. The museum traces the evolution of Budva through displays of various artifacts with Hellenic marks, vases, jewellery, decorations, tools, and silver, along with artifacts made of glass and clay featuring unusual shapes and designs. The museum offers a unique insight into the Illyrians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Slavs, and other Budvan rules through the years. (It also has a display of old bottles)
Following your museum visit, refreshments and a snack will be served at a local restaurant before some free time is made available to browse the shops or explore the area. Re-board the coach for the return drive to Kotor. Upon arrival, you may opt to return directly to the pier or remain in the Old Town for shopping or further exploration and return to the pier at your leisure.
...which is exactly what we did. Once we arrived in Kotor, we stayed for a while because Kotor is awesome. In fact, we rarely escorted any more tours in Kotor because it is a place you just want to be to hang out and chill. Every restaurant is CHEAP and amazing, and has fast wifi. Need I say more? Well, later I will because there are some more things I want to show you in depth later on. In the mean time, look! I ran into Jennifer!
She took a picture of me too.
We had a long way to sail after today (we had to get to Greece) so back on board time was pretty early. Normally, this sucks, but today it meant that we would get to see the amazing sail out of the Bay of Kotor. More on that, after a drink with Soraia.
 |
| Živjeli! - Живели! |
Video - Sailing Out of Kotor - Unedited
Like Norway, no picture will ever do it justice. Kotor is a place you have to be there to feel.
 |
| Enjoying the sun and the sail out of Kotor up on crew deck 11. |
This was the last thing we saw before we went below decks. Imagine if this was your church. Try not to get your Bible wet on the way there every Sunday.
Next time: Corfu, Greece. Paleokastritsa, and a cat video, because some people like cats.
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