Who would accept imagined, when I started to write most my travels that I would be telling you about a small-scale town in Montenegro called Kotor? Before starting to read go blogs, I didn't fifty-fifty know it existed.  |
| View of Kotor from the Church of Our Lady of Health |
When I arrived at Kotor double-decker station, uided past times extant reviews of this fjord-like bay inwards Montenegro, I simply followed my map to the quondam town and I entered through an quondam gate. The town was exclusively made of stone, in addition to I felt similar I was inwards the past, inwards a mysterious in addition to old-fashioned province where quondam laws all the same ruled with the household unit of measurement clans. Kotor is famous for its stunning natural setting betwixt the bay in addition to the mountains, but also for its monuments in addition to fortifications dating from dissimilar periods in addition to dominations.
To survive completely honest with you, at kickoff I was a flake disappointed with Kotor. I had come upwards necessitate from Dubrvnik, which I loved, in addition to Kotor seemed actually small. After less than a twosome of hours of going dorsum in addition to forth the same small-scale streets I thought at that topographic point was cypher to a greater extent than to see apart from a twosome of cute squares. How incorrect I was! Determined to overcome my feeling of disappointment, I began to explore the dorsum streets, finding beautiful hidden corners where the charm of Kotor actually lies. It took me a while, for instance, to discover St. Luke's Square, which I forthwith consider the most beautiful inwards Kotor. The small-scale church building that y'all reckon inwards the picture, with the mountains inwards the background, has both Catholic in addition to Orthodox altars, which is quite unique.  |
| St. Luke's Square in addition to Church |
Kotor is the variety of town where details are worth noticing: a balcony with some flowers in addition to some overgrown plants, or a statue hidden behind a gate, for example. The Orthodox faith of most Montenegrins agency that you'll discovery candles inwards the sand within the churches, in addition to golden iconostases. For me, they brand churches expect to a greater extent than exotic. Venturing behind a church I industrial plant life a outflow with running H2O and, precisely above, an icon, which is an paradigm of Jesus in addition to the Virgin Mary painted on woods in addition to venerated generally inwards Orthodox countries.  |
| Fountain with icon |
Of course of written report at that topographic point is also the principal square, with the Cathedral of Saint Tryphon in addition to the ancient clock tower. The most stylish restaurants in addition to cafés are located here, but the tour groups were sometimes every bit good annoying to fully taste the square. Better to come upwards afterward v for a piece of cake; past times that fourth dimension the tourists accept gone dorsum to their cruise ships docked precisely a few hundred metres away inwards the harbour.  |
| Cathedral of Saint Tryphon |
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| The clock tower inwards the principal foursquare of Kotor |
Wondering through the town I industrial plant life a strange-looking rock arch. The inscription in Latin says "Regia Munitae Rupis Via", in addition to it marks the way to the fortifications upwards the hill. The winged lion and the appointment inwards Roman numbers (1760) tell you that this is from the catamenia of the Venetian domination.
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| Detail of the architecture of Kotor |
The climb to the Venetian fortification upwards St. John's mount starts from the quondam town. The route goes steeply up, but as a vantage halfway through the climb y'all volition come across the votive Church of Our Lady of Health in addition to the most famous persuasion inwards all Kotor. From hither y'all tin reckon how beautiful the bay is.
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| Church of Our Lady of Health |
It's non the easiest hike: if the Sun is shining, produce yourself for a really hot climb without much shade. The stone wall looks like a Montenegrin version of the Great Wall, zigzagging through the landscape out of sight.
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| The Venetian fortifications inwards the mount of St. John |
And what most the food? I had peachy meals here, for instance the typically-Balkanian ćevapčići, served with onion in addition to kajmak, a sort of sour cream. I had such a plate at Kotor's principal square, with a total persuasion of Tryphon's cathedral for €8,60. I tin also recommend the konoba (restaurant) "Scala Santa", where I had mussels in addition to fish soup. The lift of the restaurant means "holy staircase" inwards Italian in addition to non without reason, since it is located precisely inwards front end of the stairs that atomic number 82 y'all upwards to St. John's Mountain in addition to to the church building of Our Lady of Health.
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| Eating ćevapčići inwards Kotor |
There are cruise ships stopping inwards Kotor, but it's non every bit crowded every bit other places, such every bit Dubrovnik or Split. I industrial plant life people actually friendly here. I stayed at Old Town Kotor, in all probability the best hostel inwards town. The pub crawl I joined on my kickoff black gave me an thought of the black life inwards this purpose of the world. Kotor, in addition to Montenegro inwards general, is quickly finding its way in addition to its identity after the black catamenia of communism in addition to the Balkan wars of the 1990s.
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| A pub inwards Kotor |
I promise that Kotor volition non larn precisely some other tourist town without a heart. As the publish of tourists visiting Kotor in addition to Montenegro rises, the challenge will be to discovery a residue betwixt taking attention of them in addition to maintaining one's identity in addition to authenticity.
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