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Published: July 16th 2015
We had a worryingly long wait on the border crossing from BiH into Montenegro which consisted of fifteen minutes of guard changes, papers and passports disappearing into the main office and the booth window being shut on us. At one point we wondered if the rest of our holiday may have to be spent in no mans land between the two countries. The fact that none of the staff knew how to smile didn't help much.
Once out we went down a road that was narrow and really poorly made (much like the BiH roads). We eventually came to what looked like a brand new road that had been sliced out of the rock. There were points were you could see tarmac from the old road almost up at eye level, which showed how far they dug out. We repeatedly saw sprayed signs for Auto Slep and it wasn't for quite a few days and many, many miles, hills and bends later that Simon deduced it must be roadside recovery. Turns out he was correct (quite comforting in hindsight).
We dropped down the west side of Kotor Bay and were welcomed by the most stunning view. Little were we
to know that it was nothing in comparison to what we would see later on. The road wound down and down and down, with countless bends. For a lot of the way we were hotly pursued by a blonde woman in a small sliver hatchback, doing her makeup whilst tail-gaiting us and negotiating hairpin bends one handed. Welcome to Montenegro and the local driving style.
NatNat announced that we needed to board the ferry that would take us across the Bay of Kotor. Simon purchased a ticket for the princely sum of 4 Euros 50 and we were instantly ushered aboard. The trip across the bay was fantastic. At 28 kilometers long, with the narrowest point called the Verige Straight being only 340 metres wide, it resembled a fjord. The water was still and calm, protected by the high Dinaric mountains that surrounded us on all sides. In comparison the ferry was loud and absolutely packed full of cars, but is was an experience that added to our journey. Getting off was interesting, as it was a complete free for all.
I'd booked Spa Resort Becici for our two nights in Montenegro. It had had good reviews for
the previous year on trusty TripAdvisor and was in the quieter Becici Beach, but just next door to the Old Budva Town and the New Town, which has a reputation for being clubbing central. On arrival the pool and restaurant areas looked fine and then we were shown our 'luxury' apartment. It looked basic but OK on first glance. It quickly became apparent (at least based on our experience) that it was nowhere near a four star resort. The list of issues was comical. The bedroom was so small you could only just get in the doorway (there was no actual door), there was a kitchen with pots and pans but no cutlery, there was a kettle but no plug sockets except one on the floor in the bedroom, the sheet didn't fit the bed, we were given a folded duvet cover but nothing to put in it, the bathroom handle came off in my hand, there was mould in the shower and nothing was that clean. Tired after a very long day we resigned ourselves to eating in the hotel restaurant, as we were miles up a hill and away from town. On the plus side the view was
good, there was a cool breeze and the waiter was really nice. We ordered food and the starters were nice, but Simon's plate was whisked away before he'd even finished, which was funny to watch. The mains came. We'd both ordered risottos. They were this thick, cheesy gloop, that we managed less than half of, before deciding the risk of heart attack was too great to go on.
I woke up in the morning to a relieved looking Simon telling me he'd booked somewhere else for our second night and we were back off to Kotor Bay - yay! Simon had also been researching and suggested we go to the Lovcen National Park for the day. It was an hour by road and was meant to have good views. Sounded like a plan to me, so after telling Spa Becici we were leaving early due to pants accommodation we departed.
We took the coast road west from Budva to Tivat and from there we started the epic ascent on the Old Kotor to Cetinje Road. At this point neither of us really appreciated quite what was in store. Simon had seen on the NatNat that there was a
series of hairpin bends (25 to be precise) and that there was a fair old climb, but what he didn't know was that most of the road was single track and a lot of it had old rusty barriers and broken stone walls. Now I had no issue with the dizzying heights, the narrowness or even the lack of anything preventing you from plummeting over the edge, but what I did have an issue with were the nutty drivers coming the other way, round a blind bend on the wrong side of the road. I thank my lucky stars we didn't have to backup at any point or meet one of the coaches we later saw parked up. We did get cheerfully shouted at by a local who smiled and insisted there was ample room for both our cars (that is if you class a spare inch as generous).
We eventually got to the Lovcen Park National, went through the barrier and headed on yet further upwards. We eventually hit a plateau, a visitors centre and some kind of holiday park. Weirdly it reminded me of the Kellerman's Hotel in the Dirty Dancing film, complete with people playing games
and music coming out over loud speakers. Thinking there had to be more than this and having seen a viewpoint marked on the map we got back in the car and followed the road out, which had shown as a deadend on NatNat. We turned the only hairpin in this route and were faced with a really steep hill lined in cars. After a very impressive parallel park from Simon we got out and walked to the top. It transpired there was a turnaround point (phew) and an entrance to a restaurant. Beyond that was a set of steps (461 to be precise) and a tunnel leading up to the Mausoleum of Njegoš. After an exhausting few minutes climbing the steps (not bad going in the heat) we reached a path that was actually laid along the spine of the mountain. In true Montenegro style there were no fences, so I wouldn't recommend going up there a) in a monsoon, b) after a bottle of vodka or c) if your day job is a Health and Safety Advisor. You simply wouldn't approve. However, I would recommend going up there if you have a head for heights and can appreciate what
has to be the most jaw-dropping view I have ever had the privilege of seeing. From what I have read you can see 80% of the whole country from up there and the coast of Italy when it is really clear.
On the way back down we stopped of at the restaurant (Ivanova Korita) and were grateful when they told us they would take Visa, as we'd run out of Euros and were pretty thirsty and hungry by this point. The waiter (very cheerful) sat us on a table on the outside terrace. It has to be the best view ever for lunch.
After a short discussion I over-ruled going back down the way we'd come up. This was mainly due to not wanting to completely shred my nerves (at one point on the way Simon had uttered something about not being sure about the width of the car, as I was practically hanging over the edge) and also because the world is just too large to not see as much of it as possible whilst you can. The trip back down went through some lovely plateaus and little villages and ended back in Cetinje. This town used
to be the country's capital and is in a state of crumbling splendour.
We drove onwards back to the Bay of Kotor and to our accommodation in the centre of Old Kotor Town. Mr Parteli met us and showed us to our digs. The room was fantastic with a little kitchenette, exposed stone walls, lovely furniture and a king-sized bed with quality sheets. He'd even left us a bottle of red wine and two glasses. Let that be a lesson to you all at Spa Resort Becici. This is how it is done and for a lot less a night that you were charging!!!!!!
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