1st - 3rd August - Bar to Tivat, Montenegro

It was now becoming the norm, waking to clear blue skies and warm sunshine.  This morning we were docked in the marina in Bar.  Up on deck early there were some more lovely reflections cast i the still quiet waters of the marina.

The town, or municipality of Bar is the fifth largest area in Montenegro, and the name BAR is a shortened form of Antivari, which is derived from the town's location across the Adriatic Sea from Bari, Italy.  The port of Bar is the most recognised feature of the area, and is the main port of Montenegro.  The town of Bar was constructed after the 1979 earthquake.  Prior to that the main settlement was at Stari Bar, or "Old Bar" situated about five kilometres inland, the earthquake destroying the aqueduct, and forcing the changes.


Before leaving Bar we were to visit Stari Bar and after breakfast we were taken by coach and deposited just outside the town.  Looking up we could see the Old Town at the top of the hill.

The town of Stari Bar (Old Bar) sits high up on Londša hill, at the foot of Mount Rumija. From the car park outside the town we walked up the hill passing many cafes and bars, and endless tourist shops selling amongst everything, Sailing caps!  We entered the old town through the main gate in the old fortifications.  On doing so we entered an area of destroyed buildings and rubble that overlooked to town of Stari Bar, and beyond it the new port town of Bar in the distance

It was very difficult to follow the guide that took us around and eventually the group started to break up, and we set off to explore the ruins by ourselves, from what we could understand it has a tumultuous history of ownership, explosions, and earthquakes, which all but destroyed the town. During the Montenegrin–Ottoman War (1876–78), the old town of Bar was bombarded with heavy artillery, destroying most of the town. The Montenegrin’s then detonated an explosive in the Bar Aqueduct which cut off the town’s water supply, causing the Ottoman’s to finally surrender.

In recent years, restoration work has begun on the old town, although, with more than 240 buildings still in ruins, the city will never be inhabited again. Instead, it will be preserved as an open-air museum for people like us to wander its cobbled lanes, imagining how life played out in these streets hundreds of years ago.

Bougainvillea dominates the walls, adding colour to the drab greys of the limestone walls.

Here the Aqueduct that has had such an important influence on the history of Stari Bar.

Churches and chapels still remain.

With stunning views of the slopes around the area.

And limestone cliffs.

For the first time on the trip I was able to see some wildlife.  There were of course the cats and kittens, but today there were some butterflies.  Several "blue" butterflies whizzed past, While Painted Ladies were also active and busy around the waste ground.  The only butterfly to stop though were this pair of Spotted Fritillaries.

Clearly they were preoccupied which allowed me to get quite close with the new camera, and I was pleased with the result.

I was though more surprised to see a dragonfly.  Not sure the exact species but it looks like some species of Darter.

It was now very hot, and time to head back to the marina in Bar, where we left for the journey north, eventually back to Tivat.  We did though have three full days to go so plenty of time to see more of Montenegro.  As we left Bar there were views back across the marina, and of the Church which dominates the port are with it gold roof.

As was now the way, the gulets left in a procession, all heading north.

We stopped to swim in a couple of bays, but the highlight of the cruise today was the raising of the sails.

From this 

To this

But unfortunately not enough wind to remove the need for the engine, but enough to enjoy the sight of the sails in the wind.

After our last swimming stop we cruised into the village of Begova where we would be spending the night.  From the porthole in our cabin the sea sparkled as the sun dropped lower in the sky.

Bigova is situated just to the south west of the entrance to Kotor Bay, and sits at the head of Bigova Bay.  The main occupation of the inhabitants of the village is fishing, and we were reliably informed of an excellent fish restaurant just on the dock.

It clearly though is a sort after location, with some lovely houses and apartments situated on the side of the bay as we cruised into the port.

With the sinking sun the bay became a different place.

The restaurant had a lovely terrace that overlooked the bay.  With the sun finally set behind the distant hills a golden light took over the sky producing a lovely scene that was as welcome as the food we were eating.

Helen and I shared a Sole which was fresh and amazing, a wonderful end to yet another lovely day.

Once again a beautiful calm morning greeted us as we woke up.  Up on deck the morning light was in strict contrast to the golden colours of yesterday evening.

The purpose for stopping in Bigova aside from the wonderful restaurant was for a visit into the Lovcen National Park, and the Mausoleum of Serbian Cyrillic, Njegos.  However it was described as a one and half hour trip each way, with a view out over Kotor bay.  As a result we opted to stay in Bigova, and to explore the village and do, yet again, more swimming.

So after breakfast when most were climbing into the coaches, we decided to walk around the village.  Needless to say this did not take too long, it was not a very big place, and as we didn't want to walk along the road we followed the shoreline, but were only able to get as far as the head of the bay, but this afforded a lovely view back across the bay

As we walked along the shore we disturbed a Greenshank, which was a surprise, and came across a family party of shrikes, but I could not get close enough to be able to get a definite identification.

It became clear that we could not get any further walking along the shore, so we decided to head back to the boat.  I stopped on the dock to take some photographs of the bay and the gulets at dock in the distance.

Here a view of the dock, the gulets, and the restaurant we ate in the previous evening.  It is situated to the left of the yellow building.

I was also fascinated by this fisherman untangling his nets on his boat.  What you can't see here is his white beard.  The sun is strong here in Montenegro, and it pays to use the appropriate sun block, the fisherman though doesn't seem to have done too badly.

The coaches returned just after one o'clock and we set sail almost immediately.  We had lunch and two further swim stops before we sailed into Herceg Novi, a town at the entrance to Kotor Bay.

Herceg Novi has a lovely green feel to it, with trees seen growing on many of the slopes and between the buildings.   From the dock we were able to walk into the town, although this did involve climbing many flights of steps.  Herceg Novi is not called the city of steps for no reason.

We followed a very nice promenade to a restaurant that had a terrace overlooking the water front.  Once again we enjoyed a lovely meal, made all the better by the company.  As we walked back we also took the opportunity to try the local ice cream.  Tomorrow would be our last day and would be spent sailing around the Bay of Kotor once again.

All of the docks have taken on a different image in the morning after the night before.  We had docked just outside a bar-restaurant, and when I came up on deck this morning I noticed three beer bottles lined up neatly on the dock wall.

These clearly were Corona bottles, and imported beers were available, but the local beer, or piva as it is in Montenegrin, was very good and cheap, €1.50 for a beer is very welcome.  I drank the local beers Nikšićko Gold, a pilsner lager, and Nikšićko Tamno, a dark lager.  The brewery, incidentally, is owned by Coors Molsom.

Looking around the harbour you can see why Herceg Novi has so many steps and the amount of trees, mostly Mimosas.

The surrounding yachts were sending more weird and wonderful reflections into the water.

After another breakfast aboard we set off once again, leaving the interesting town of Herceg Novi behind as all the gulets motored out into the open water of the bay.

It is always the simple things that stick with you, and remind you of the good times, for me on this trip, one image that stands out is the washing line and the pegs, don't ask me why, they just do.

A short way into our cruise and Miljos, came and informed us that the sister ship, the Satri Usta 1 that had left before us had seen dolphins in the bay, so all eyes were focused on the water, and very quickly the dolphins were picked up as they swam through the bay.  They never came close, but I was able to get a record shot of one as its dorsal fin broke the surface of the water.

There were in fact four seen, and one looked a lot smaller so was probably a young dolphin.  They were also more than likely Bottlenose dolphins

We sailed across the bay in a south easterly direction passing more developments of either hotels or apartments in various states of development, and with some interesting water fronts.

We were heading towards Uvala Krtole, a bay formed by two islands, Prevlaka and Stradioti.

Just off Stradioti was another smaller island, Gospo od Milosrda, with a catholic church situated on it, not sure if the name is the island, or the church, or both.  Translated it means Our Lady of Mercy

As we sailed into the bay we had views of Tivat and Port Montenegro the marina we left six days ago.  The airport is also just behind the hill of the bay we were entering, and here you can see one plane having just taken off.

Here one of the gulets sailing into the bay

We anchored in the bay close to the largest island Stardioti.

The water was very still and was lovely to swim in, lacking the swell and current that we had experienced in lots of the swim stops after the first one near Kotor.

With the still water it was ideal for trying out the paddle boards, and where I failed miserably to master this new water sport, Helen succeeded, being able to stand up and paddle,  This was probably the first swim stop I could recall where everyone was in the water, and stayed in for some time.  This was also the longest swim stop we have had combining it with lunch.

Out of the water there were some lovely views across the bay.

A closer view of the catholic church on the island.

The water started to become a little rougher than first thing in the morning as the wind picked up, and this continued through the late morning and into the afternoon.  Consequently after lunch as started to move, we also started to set the sails, impressive to watch as Memet and Miljos scrambled about releasing and raising the sails.

Finally they were up, and with a strong wind it was possible not to use the engine and we were finally sailing!

Our shadows too were under sail.

We were under sail for about 30 minutes and were heading towards the Verige Strait, but suddenly turned to the left, and lowered the sails.  On resuming our journey towards the strait it became clear why, a huge Princess Cruise ship was entering the strait ahead of us.  Quite an impressive sight, but not enough to encourage me to go on one, we have done the cruise holidays back when we lived in the USA and the girls were young, today they have become so big with far too many people.

After passing through the straits we turned left once more into Risan Bay.  We had one more swim stop, our final one of the trip.  The mountains here are very steep and it is possible to frame the yachts with just the limestone rock in the background.

The final swim was a tough one with quite a significant current and swell.  After the swim we were heading to the island of Our Lady on The Rocks, a church and monastery built on man made islands.  Looking across from our anchored position we could see the church and the town of Perast behind it.

The limestone slopes of the mountains continued to frame everything, here the monastery.

Drifting in the bay we were treated to different views, Risan Bay with the town of Risan on the shore.

Another distant view of Perast.

We sailed to the island where there was the opportunity to go ashore and visit the church.  Our sister ship the Satri Usta 1 had just sailed through the Straits and was dropping the sails.

As we sailed towards it the sun picked out the church, while the clouds and shade darkened the mountains beyond it.

It is an artificial island created by bulwark of rocks and by sinking old and seized ships loaded with rocks.  According to legend, the islet was made over the centuries by local seamen who kept an ancient oath after finding the icon of Madonna and Child on the rock in the sea.   Upon returning from each successful voyage, they laid a rock in the Bay. Over time, the islet gradually emerged from the sea. The custom of throwing rocks into the sea is alive even nowadays. Every year on the sunset of July 22, an event called fašinada in the local dialect, when local residents take their boats and throw rocks into the sea, widening the surface of the island, takes place.

The church was renovated in 1722.  The church contains 68 paintings by Tripo Kokolja, a famous 17th-century baroque artist from Perast. His most important painting, ten meters long, is The Death of the Virgin. There are also paintings by Italian artists, and an icon of Our Lady of the Rocks, by Lovro Dobričević of Kotor.  The church also houses a collection of silver tablets and a famous tapestry embroidered by Jacinta Kunić-Mijović from Perast. It took her 25 years to finish it while waiting for her darling to come from a long journey, and eventually, she became blind. She used golden and silver fibres but what makes this tapestry so famous is the fact that she also embroidered her own hair in it

From the island we then headed towards the town of Perast where we were able to spend time ashore.  Originally known as a fishing village with a shipyard it has become an important strategic area in the battles between the Turks and Venetians.

Once again the porthole in the cabin provided the right frame.

Perast had free trade with the Republic of Venice and was granted the forgiveness of the Venetian authorities in the ruthless fight against pirates on the Adriatic. Because of this, the city grew and was enriched: only in the 18th century. For centuries, 20 palaces were built in Baroque style, 17 Catholic and 2 Orthodox churches. And since one of the best maritime schools was housed here, Peter I was sent here from Russia by promising sailors for training with extraordinary captain Marko Martinovic.

When Napoleon defeated the Republic of Venice in 1797, Perast was faithful to Venice for several months, but in the end the city had to lower the flag of St. Mark. From that moment began the decline of Perast: along with the whole area of the Bay of Kotor, it was left to the Austrians and Italians.  In 1941 it became part of the Italian province of Cattaro (Kotor). It was only in 1944 that the city gained independence in Yugoslavia and became one of the administrative areas of the Montenegrin Republic. Since 2006, the city has finally become part of an independent Montenegro.

Once onshore we climbed the steps to gain a view across the bay, looking out at the Verige straits and the Kotor Bay.

Back on the water front it became clear this is a very busy and popular place with cars slowly moving along the front as they make their way to and from Kotor, looking out across the bay the sun was filtering through the clouds sending shards of light across the Lady of the Rocks.

We stopped at a cafe for a drink, the hustle and bustle of the water front clear in this view, with the Gulets moored at dock, and the water taxis all around the dock.

A rare chance to get a full view of our own gulet.

Due to the logistics of moving people to the airport in the morning we had to anchor off Port Montenegro in Tivat.  So it was back on board and we set off back through the straits to Tivat.  As the sun was setting it lit up the distant mountains above Kotor turning the grey rock a lovely pinkish tint.

As we anchored off Tivat the sun had just sunk behind the mountains to the west leaving that lovely pinkish orange glow in the sky.

All that was left tonight was a dinner with the Captain on board, and of course more visits to the most important place on board, the bar.

After dinner we sat talking and drinking, reflecting on the holiday, as the gulet rocked gently the moon became visible in the evening sky.

And as the sky darkened the moon sank lower in the sky turning pink from the sunlight well below the horizon.

After that we were treated to the lights of the Port Montenegro marina

And the waterfront at Tivat.

In the morning we awoke still offshore, but there was no activity on deck, everything was focused on getting ready to leave.  All was quiet where on every morning over the last few days there would be chatter and coffee drinking.

After breakfast we set off to dock in the marina from where we were to be transferred to the airport.  There was an air of quiet on board as we sat watching the water, the bay and the marina.  The crew busied around the deck preparing to dock.

We arrived at the airport and found that there was little in the way of services and amenities.  Once we were able to check in we transferred to another holding area where we sat waiting for the plane.  It arrived a little late but eventually we were off, and as we flew out across the bay there was one more chance to photograph the bay, and it was probably appropriate that it was the bay we had spent the best swimming time yesterday, Uvala Krtole.

We then headed out across the Adriatic and turned right heading along the Croatian coast towards the Alps and ultimately Gatwick

We were extremely apprehensive about this holiday, what would we be doing?  Would the transfers work?  What would the facilities be like?  Would be get on with our fellow passengers?  In the event it all worked out and we had an amazing holiday, completely different from any other holiday we have had for a long time.