On our second day in the Balkans, we set out on a day-trip via air-conditioned van to its southernly neighbor, Montenegro, whose border is only about 30-40 minutes from Dubrovnik, and ticked another country off our lists (#61 for me, although, as it's also in the EU, I'm don't think our passports were stamped, to Eddie's disappointment)!
We had wonderful views of the picturesque Bay of Kotor, which is part of southern Europe's deepest fjord).
We first stopped in the town of Perast, off whose coast there are two small islets in the Bay.
We took a short boat ride to the artificial islet Gospa od Škrpjela (Our Lady of the Rocks), which is rumored to have been created around 1452 by seamen placing rocks commemorating successful voyages, and which now is the site of a Catholic church.
The other island in the Bay, which you can see from Our Lady, is Sveti Đorđi (St. George), which is privately owned and very scenic.
We then passed a few hours in the old medieval town of Kotor, which was a commercial center under Venetian influence.
We weren't able to hike all of the stairs all the way to the old walls and fortress (built during the Byzantine Empire) for classic views over the bay (even though Iver was raring to go in his flip flops!), but hiked a few.
A giant's clothes! (Iver was initially scared to approach, fearing a Big Man was lurking nearby. I assured him he was just a tourist and had returned home.)
The photographer finally gets in a photo!
Although there was some screaming from Niall in his carseat at the return border crossing, we all rested in the van ride back to Dubrovnik! I'm pretty sure this will be my/our only time in Montenegro, and we enjoyed the quick trip!
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