Kotor: "Am I on paradise or on the moon?"

That’s a quote from George Bernard Shaw upon seeing Kotor, Montenegro. Kotor is a fortress-port between the Montenegrin mountains and an inlet of the Adriatic Sea. It was first settled by the ancient Romans as early as the fifth century BC, then fortified by Byzantine Emperor Justinian in 535. It survived through a long line of conquests by various Mediterranean kingdoms. In modern times (1918) it became a part of Yugoslavia, and in 2006 declared its independence. Normally Kotor is a sun-drenched paradise. Except for the day we were in port.

If you look closely, from the bottom left are the city walls, and then they zig-zag

 all the way up the mountain on the upper right.

Fresh produce at the open (cold) air market

In the morning I bundled up and got on a water shuttle to the port. It was COLD. I heard later from some folks who went to the mountains' top that they had snow up there. About 20 of us walked in the freezing wind around the port to the home of a local woman who hosted our lunch. When we entered her home, we sat in the living area and she offered us Rakija, a double-distilled fruit brandy of the region. She made it herself and it was 40-50% alcohol, so the small sip that I had burned from my tongue to my toes. She also offered homemade walnut and cherry cordials; I passed on the walnut, and the cherry was too sweet to tolerate more than a sip.

Everyone gathered in the living room

Super-sweet homemade cherry cordial

gathered around the piano for some traditional music

Our host then treated us to some local traditional songs and played the piano. From there we moved to the dining room where she demonstrated how to make gnocchi. We then enjoyed a delicious lunch made of all the local favorites.

First course - cheese and meats, marinated asparagus and gherkin pickles

Our host demonstrated how she makes gnocchi

Three types of gnocchi served with a meat stew

Not sure what this was called, but it was like a Napoleon

On our way into and out of the Bay of Kotor, we passed Our Lady of the Rocks, one of two islets in the Bay. According to the legend, local seamen made the islet over centuries. An icon of the Madonna and Child was found on the rocks in 1452. They believed that the icon had healing properties and that it protected them at sea. After each successful sea voyage, the sailors laid a rock in the bay. Over time, the islet was formed, and a church was built.

Our Lady of the Rocks

A side note about Olive Trees: Montenegrins are very proud of their olives, and claim the oldest olive tree in the world, over two thousand years old from the time of Jesus. And olive trees once planted, belong to the planter forever. They have a saying that you can sell the land but the tree goes with you. So even if you sell your home, the new owner must let you back on the property to harvest and care for the tree.

Valletta from the sea

An old farmstead up in the mountains

Having achieved its independence only seventeen years ago, Montenegro is having some growing pains as their society changes. The country has some very antiquated views on women’s role in society; only in the last 10-20 years have they started working outside the home. Women would stay home and raise large families. The women feel a great deal of pride that they provide homecooked meals for their families. Even if they do work outside the home, they make sure they cook the family’s meals before leaving. Women traditionally do not inherit from their parents. The custom is for the women of the family to turn down their portion of the inheritance, so it goes to the men of the family. Our guide shared with us a few stories of friends that took care of their fathers when they were sick but were left out of the inheritance because they were women, or as an only child the property passed out of the family to distant cousins. Only very recently have things begun to change, but society is struggling with the changes to traditional roles. One result is they now have a very high divorce rate; men have traditionally been favored and treated well and little expected of them at home, but women’s attitudes are changing, and they expect more from their partners, especially when they also work outside the home.

One of the entrances to Old Town

Walking along the harbor

On our way back to the ship, our guide pointed out the entrance to Old Kotor and I wandered through there instead of going back to the ship. By this time the wind had died down, so once I bought a scarf, I was toasty warm for my meandering.

One of the town squares

This buddy was just chilling, watching the crowds go by

I played fetch with these two mini-poodles for a bit. I didn't know how to say "Drop the ball" in Maltese, and they didn't understand English so it was a short game.

Cathedral of Christ the Savior

Old Kotor had narrow cobblestone streets to admire the well-preserved medieval architecture and I explored the Romanesque churches. The old town walls were built during the Venetian occupation and are 65 feet high and 49 feet wide and go all the way up the mountainside.

Narrow lanes and baroque architecture

This is Reiko. (Roll the r) He was hanging outside the T-Mobile store.

Another beautiful moonrise