Roll That Tongue, Baby!

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August 23rd 2010

Published: September 21st 2017

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vagabondvoyager

Lovely view from La Pasteria.

Geo: 42.6537, 18.0948

So sad to be leaving Kotor ... I've fallen in love with Montenegro. As much as I enjoyed Budva's tackiness, it was really it's proximity to more beautiful sights that made it such a great experience. And the Bay of Kotor is the most majestic sight in all of Montenegro, at least from what I have seen of it - and for all my travels, Kotor is one of the most beautiful places I have seen anywhere.

It's tough to describe, and the photos simply don't do it any justice; the beauty of this region is a confluence of many beautiful things, culminating in something that takes away your breath and leaves you speechless. I don't use such words lightly - in the past, that's how I've described Spanish women, so if I make any comparison to the senoritas, you know that I'm describing something phenomenal!

Said goodbye to Anna before heading out - we joked that we might run into each other in Kotor at the same time next year, since she's already come for Boka night two years in a row, and I definitely have seen more than enough to make a return trip here. And

This outlet kept sparking every time I plugged in something to charge. Not a good feeling to know this is barely a foot from your head while you sleep!

if not, maybe she can come stay at the hotel in Spain I always talk about buying.

A lot of time to kill before the afternoon bus to Dubrovnik, today was all about chilling out and lingering over a cappuccino, and then lunch. This wasn't a bad thing, as it gave me time to catch up on my blogging, and Kotor's Stari Grad is as beautiful as a place you can find for lingering and slowing the pace down. I've also been enjoying one of my favourite past times here in Montenegro, one that's usually reserved for Spain - that would be observing the lovely Spanish ladies!

Unfortunately, it's mostly families and older couples coming from the Spanish cruise ships, so it's not as rewarding an activity as it normally is. It really is quite pathetic how in tune I am to all things Spanish - just sitting there today, typing away on my netbook, I heard the lovely Spanish double 'R' being rolled from afar. Like a canine hearing a dog whistle, my ears perked up, my tongue started wagging, and I sat up straight while rapidly looking side to side to find the source of such lovely

Need some nutrients! Banana and fruit yogurt for breakfast.

symphonic sounds. Yes, I have a problem, and it's been well documented over the past five years. Maybe a cure exists for the Spanish Flu, but if it does, I don't want it!

Met a super-nice couple from the UK while waiting for the Dubrovnik bus - started describing Budva to them, using Nik's analogy of Blackpool - they sort of went "Ohhhh ...", since it's not the most flattering comparison. I tried to convince them that it was worthwhile in many ways, but in doing so I realized that Budva didn't have much that was better than Kotor. Budva's Stari Grad was nice and though it was much livelier, Kotor's is better because of its charm and coziness. Take away the experiences at the Saki guest house and its ideal location as a base for day tours, and Budva is nothing special. As a solo traveler, staying in Budva was a necessity, as it's the only way to be able to see the rest of Montenegro without renting a car.

Dubrovnik - the three of us headed into the old town together, and they rushed off to a travel agency to find a private accommodation for the evening, before

Cappuccino at Evergreen - it wasn't over-foamed like recent cappuccinos, but was a tad bitter.

the agency closed, and I was off to the Fresh Sheets hostel. Something I've found so far in the Balkans is that the ratings on the hostel websites are quite misleading - generally rated at the high 80 and low 90 percent marks, the hostels aren't as good as the ratings indicate. In general, the Balkan hostels seem to be a cut below others in Western Europe, and what's considered excellent here really isn't what is considered excellent over elsewhere.

Fresh Sheets is a decent place - cozy and friendly, but nothing special. But having said that, I did see one overwhelming reason why it could have been rated so highly - her name was Marija, and was one of the receptionists on shift when I arrived. Every guy has a certain type of girl he finds especially attractive, and could probably write up a list of what makes a girl that attractive. Other than her super-sweet and super-kind personality, she wasn't that for me. But sometimes a woman is so pretty and has such an undefinable attractiveness, that you don't care. You'd take that list you have, crumple it up, then put it through the paper shredder, pour gasoline

La Pasteria for lunch - pasticada, a traditional Montenegrin dish. Braised and super tender fillets of what I think was pork, served with surprisingly-decent gnocchi (not doughy, like it tends to be), all smothered in a chunky tomato-based sauce. Good, but WAY too much food. My only complaint is that the gnocchi wasn't drained all that well, so it left the sauce a bit runny. I still chuckle at the Balkan concept of a side of vegetables - bits of shredded lettuce encircled the plate and in most other countries, it would only be considered garnish.

on the shredded remains and light them on fire, then toss a grenade into the mix for good measure - she was THAT attractive.

But not all was good about my arrival at Fresh Sheets - all guests are given a shot of Rakija upon check-in. The English translation of Rakija must be "ulcer", because having a shot of that on an empty stomach, I felt a warm sensation in the pit of my belly at first, which slowly turned into a mild burning, as I was certain that it must be slowly dissolving my stomach lining.

Plans for a nice sit-down meal tonight were foiled - there's a vegetarian place in town called Nishta, something extremely odd in a meat-obsessed region like the Balkans. The word nishta actually translates to "nothing" - the story is that when the place first opened, the locals asked what was served. When told "Everything except meat", the locals supposedly responded "Well, then you serve nothing!", and the name was born.

I couldn't find Nishta, and everything else in the old town looked super-touristy, to no surprise, so dinner ended up being bakery food, on a relatively quiet (Dubrovnik is super-loaded with tourists)

The "Spanish Steps" in Dubrovnik - they truly were tonight, as some beautiful Spanish senoritas were posing at the top for some photos. Spanish tourists ... sigh ...

little perch overlooking the harbour. As I finished up, the couple from earlier happened to walk by and asked if I wanted to join them for dinner - the nice thing about solo travel is that it's quite often easier to strike up conversations with strangers since you don't have the crutch of a travel partner to lean upon, and you end up getting a random invite to dinner. I told them I'd already eaten, but would be happy to sit down for a drink.

It's funny - all three of us had chatted for a good half hour at the bus station waiting for our ride to Dubrovnik, and on the local bus from Dubrovnik's station to the old town, but it wasn't until we actually sat down to dinner that we found out each others' names. Quite often, the first question out of a backpacker's mouth upon first meeting another backpacker is "Where are you from?", rather than "What's your name?" It's a bit strange, but that piece of information, as well as "Where are you coming from?" and "Where are you going to next?" are the most relevant questions for that moment, and they often lead into quite

Rector's Palace.

detailed conversations very quickly, complete bypassing the usual step of a formal introduction.

Jamie and Rachel from London (for the time being), freshly-graduated lawyers ready to make their mark on the world - a super nice, and super interesting pair of dinner companions tonight. In their mid-20s, they're finishing up a few weeks in the Balkans, a bit of a last hurrah before starting "real life". Returning to a new apartment in London together, they're both about to start with a law firm upon returning to the UK, and essentially start a new life together. It's always a bit of a trip to meet people like this, so much younger than I, who seemingly have everything so much more together than I do. So much aimless wandering the past five years ... I don't regret any of it, and enjoyed every moment I've had on the road. But I just can't help wonder what I am doing sometimes ... when will it all end? I often ask myself that, thinking that the expiry date is near, but yet another year passes, and I'm once again strapping on the trusty ol' backpack.

We talked about the changes to Dubrovnik in the four

Serbian Orthodox Church.

years since I last visited - it's still a gorgeous place, perhaps the most beautiful city I have ever had the pleasure of seeing in person, but it's become even more expensive, and while it was full of tourists before, it's now exploding at the seams with them. Dubrovnik always had its share of cruise ship day trippers, but there seems to be double the number from before, and it seems nearly as busy at night as it is during the day. Four years ago, a slight degree of tranquility enveloped the old town as all the cruisers left - it was still busy enough to emanate a nice little buzz, but not enough to be overwhelming. As a result, Dubrovnik has slightly lost some of it's charm - quite unfortunate but as always, any place worth visiting eventually succumbs to mass tourism. Is it still worth visiting? Most definitely. I just liked it a bit better four years ago.

Off to Buza for a drink - dramatically-located on a cliff overlooking the Adriatic, even with just a hint of moonlight illuminating the night, it was a beautiful spot. It wasn't so much the type of beauty you could see,

Gotta love a restaurant named T-Bone!

but the type that you could feel, if that makes any sense at all. The moonlight gave just enough to show you a bit of the cliffs, a hint of the coastline, the vaguest silhouette of the nearby island of Lokrum, and brief bursts of shimmering light dancing off the waves of the Adriatic ... there was just enough of an outline for your mind to fill in the rest of the picture, and paint the most incredible canvas. Croatia ... what can I say? It's the stuff of dreams ...

Again, being a solo traveler can be a beautiful thing, as it draws you into experiences you shouldn't normally be a part of - case in point was tonight, which actually was Jamie's 25th birthday. How else do you get invited to a complete stranger's birthday dinner, and for a drink after? Somewhat jokingly, I apologized to them both, saying "Sorry for intruding on this incredibly romantic moment ..."

Jamie and Rachel had an early kayaking trip planned for tomorrow, so they were off after a quick drink, but I remained for a while after, continuing to bask in the glorious moment. Brush stroke by brush stroke, the

Dubrovnik's old port.

canvas in my mind was finished - and since I was the painter, I took some artistic liberties and painted a beautiful Spanish senorita next to me. It's my vacation, and my moment to enjoy - what's wrong with tacking on an additional bit of fantasy? 😊

I absolutely LOVE Croatia ... I squeal with delight any time I am here, like a piglet, all greased up in sweat. Four years ago in Dubrovnik, I came across this restaurant with a great location atop the city walls. A bit of a story behind it - a few of us hung out for an afternoon on the island of Korcula four years ago, just before I arrived in Dubrovnik for the first time. At the hostel in Dubrovnik, I randomly ran into one of the girls, Jenny, who had an extremely rough day - up all night partying the night before, a long bus ride from Korcula, and wandering around lost for an hour trying to find the hostel. To cheer her up, we headed to the old town for a drink.

So we came across this restaurant, but were told that we could only stay if we had a full meal.

Phyllo pastry with potato, tomato, and meat. Greasy, and bit soggy, but super filling.

We were crushed, but asked if we could hang out there for a few minutes and take some pictures. It was a stunning location, perched up high and overlooking the harbour. Last time in Dubrovnik, I didn't have the budget for any nice meals, but this time I do so I could've eaten dinner at this restaurant but decided not to, because I've never forgotten that spot, and filed it away as the place to one day return to propose to the girl of my dreams. It just seems like the perfect place for something like that, so I'd rather wait for that moment to dine here.

Of course, if she happens to be out there reading this blog, I will have spoiled the surprise. But ... in all likelihood, the girl of my dreams and future Mrs. Wong will be Spanish, so if for some reason she was reading this, she wouldn't understand a word of it because she probably won't speak a word of English!

Balkan Chino Count: 23. There was an Asian population explosion before leaving Montenegro today. Arriving in Dubrovnik, the Balkan Chino Count will temporarily be suspended, since us Asian tourists are far more