On our second day based out of Dubrovnik we headed out for another day trip to visit the newest country in Europe, an exotic side trip to the lovely Kotor, Montenegro. The drive should have only been an hour and a half but our GPS took us on a wild trip high up into the mountains that had us arriving after a nerve racking four hours into Kotor. When we hit a rural Bosnian border crossing we knew something was up, we should have only had one crossing into Montenegro but instead we were on a GPS gone amuck adventure. Here is a video of some of the amazing scenery we got to see by mistake as I previously posted on FB.
The trip home was just as eventful as Garmin Electra (the name of my GPS) continued to send us on some questionable routes (driving a single-track sea-side boardwalk around the Bay) but the shortest route did get us home in an hour and a half with only one border crossing.
Kotor is a very atmospheric city nestled on one side by limestone mountains with a fortress high above looking down upon the city, the other side facing out to the beautiful bay of Kotor on the Adriatic Sea. Its old city is characterized by a labyrinth of streets, squares and churches surrounded by a large Romanesque wall and architecture with a Venetian influence. Montenegro is strongly Orthodox, culturally influenced by Serbia and its neighboring Croatia with a Mediterranean vibe and easy sea side ambiance. It’s a little rougher than Croatia but this gives it a more exotic and edgier feel to this mini Dubrovnik like city. It is a popular stop on the cruise ship circuits that travel through Dubrovnik and a large ship was in town when we arrived bringing throngs of tourists.
We enjoyed the day wandering the old town and had some excellent seafood at one of the many restaurants, mussels and large scampi that went well with the local white wine. It was an enjoyable visit despite the stressful drive there and back home but don’t worry, if you go the right way its no problem at all.
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