Kotor, Montenegro
The light drizzle and misty skies couldn't detract from the striking beauty of Boka Kotorska (Kotor Bay) surrounded by towering mountains covered with dark pine trees that inspired the Venetians to name this land Montenegro (Black Mountain). As we navigated the 13-mile-long fjord-like channel to the protected city of Kotor, an important trading center in the medieval ages, we passed through the narrow straits in front of the maritime town of Perast and, according to tradition, circled the small island church of Gospa od Skrpjela (Our Lady of the Rocks) before proceeding to the harbor outside the walled Old Town of Kotor.
Once we tied up to the dock, our guides Stefan and Vuk were waiting to take us by bus to the town of Perast, home of the seafaring captains. Perast enjoyed special tax-free status in the Venetian Empire due to its strategic position guarding the straits and its wealth is reflected in the palaces that line the shore. A small boat ferried us out to the man-made island on which the 16th century church of Our Lady of the Rocks was built. The legend is that two brothers discovered an icon of the Madonna and Child on a reef and brought it back to Perast. Then the icon mysteriously reappeared on the reef and the people decided to build a chapel to house it. In order to do so, they sunk several ships and over a period of 200 years dropped stones on the site until there was sufficient foundation to build a church, Gospa od Skrpjela, to house the icon. The interior of the church is striking with its magnificent marble altar as well as oil paintings on the walls and ceiling. Although the church is Roman Catholic it is used by the Orthodox inhabitants as well for weddings. Boats are decorated in flowers and convey the wedding party to the small church where a 17th century organ is still in use. On the walls next to the altar newlyweds will hang their garters and poseys as a votive to Our Lady to guarantee a long and happy marriage. Attached to the chapel is a small museum which contains many votive offerings in gratitude to Our Lady of the Rocks for safe return from sea, recovery from illness as well as archaeological finds from nearby caves attesting to settlement in the area during the Illyrian times.
We passed the neighboring island of St. George, originally the cemetery for Perast and now the site of a Benedictine monastery surrounded by beautiful cypress trees, and returned by boat to Perast for a tour of the local maritime museum housed in one of the old palaces of a rich, seafaring family. The bus then took us back to Kotor for a walking tour of the Old Town. Along the way we could see mussel and fish farms in the Bay, as well as both new and old vacation homes. Our guide Stefan gave us some background information on present-day Montenegro from the perspective of the younger generation. Once inside the gates of the Old Town we stopped in front of the bell tower where, in typical medieval fashion, stood a pillory where citizens who had broken the law were publicly displayed for the humiliation and loss of face which was the greatest punishment in a small town. The old town is a charming maze of winding streets with multi-storied palaces that are still used today as residences, hotels and public offices. A highlight of the walking tour was the Cathedral of St. Trifon, patron saint of Kotor. Like Dubrovnik, Kotor was damaged in the 1667 earthquake but, as a UNESCO site, it has had the resources to reconstruct the more severely damaged buildings, including St. Trifon's Cathedral. We also stopped in front of St. Luke's, originally a Roman Catholic church that was given to the newly settled Orthodox fleeing the Ottomans in the 17th century.
Saturday is Market Day and just outside the city walls were stalls filled with fruits and vegetables, including ripe red tomatoes bigger than a softball, black and green figs, enormous grapes and ripe pomegranates. The villagers from the mountains come down on Market Day with a vast variety of cheeses (cow, sheep and goat), some fresh farmer’s cheese as well as aged and smoked. Most intriguing were the cheeses flavored with basil, blueberries and walnuts. Naturally, there was a display of the smoked meat products for which Montenegro is renowned as well as fresh fish, prawns, octopus and squid. Everyone was offering tastes of their wares in hopes of convincing customers that theirs was the best in the market. Yiannis, our hotel manager, had been there first thing in the morning shopping for the ship's galley and the tomato salad at lunch was superb.
After lunch Stefan and our bus driver Marko drove us up Mt. Lovcen on a road with 25 serpentine switchbacks. The road is barely wide enough for a bus, so there is an elaborate ritual of who has to yield when two vehicles meet. This road connects Kotor with the highway to the capital of Podgorica as well as serving as the only road to the villages up in the mountains. Built during the Austrian occupation in the 19th century it replaced the narrow hiking trail that, until that time, had served as the only connection between the mountains of Montenegro and the shore. At switchback 13 stands the abandoned customs building that connected the Kingdom of Montenegro in the mountains with the Hapsburg Empire that occupied Kotor. We stopped for a photo shoot at a dramatic lookout point and the weather obliged by clearing long enough for us to capture the Panorama docked in the harbor far below.
Our destination was the mountaintop village of Njegusi for a sampling of mountain village life. We then split into several groups. One visited Boshko's smokehouse to learn how the local “prsut” is prepared, first by salting, then drying in the mix of mountain and sea air, and finally smoked with oak wood for 3 months (this longer smoking period is what makes Boshko's ham special from the smoked hams down in the Kotor market). Boshko also gave us samples of his homemade wine, rakija (grappa, or grape brandy), honey wine (a lightly alcoholic and slightly effervescent drink) as well as his cheese. Others braved the rain in search of pink crocuses with Sharon in the meadows of the village. Eventually, we all wound up taking refuge from a sudden rainstorm in one of the local konobas (taverns) for coffee or other, stronger refreshments. Upstairs was a party of locals celebrating the recent birth of a child and we were treated to a serenade of traditional mountain folksongs.
After changing into dry clothing we all gathered up in the Lounge for some cocktails and a recap. Michelle gave us a presentation on our next day's activities in Albania along with a short historical background of this country only newly opened to tourism. Grace Fielder presented a timeline for the breakup of Yugoslavia after Tito's death, and there was a lively question and answer period that followed. One of our passengers, Phyllis, shared cheese and ham she purchased from Boshko so that those who had remained in town could compare it to the ham we had at lunch. Dinner was buffet-style with pork souvlaki, as well as grilled swordfish and calamari. Truly a day of gastronomic pleasures.
