Kotor, Lovcen and Podgorica

3rd October 2015



The fortified town of Kotor dates back to the Middle Ages, with the narrow streets laid out in confusing Venetian style.  Kotor is now a popular destination for passenger cruise ships.

I realised there was a fairly significant hill behind Kotor called Lovćen, with Štirovnik 1749m being the highest summit.

I took my bumbag with a 500ml bottle and a few bars, and made my way up the hill.

It was pretty scorchio, with white limestone reflecting the sun.

Stirovnik 1749m

Looking across to Jezerski Vrh 1657m from Stirovnik

Looking down on the fortified town of Kotor

Just under 5 hours later, I was back at the Old Town Hostel, sitting in the cool and the dark, and glad to be out of the sun.

Old Town Hostel, Kotor

Entrance to Kotor fortress

I then jumped on a bus to Podgorica, the capital of Montenegro, where I wandered around in the dark for ages trying to find somewhere to stay.  I finally stumbled across the "Explorer Hostel", which you definitely needed to be an explorer to find it, since there was no hint from the outside that it was a hostel.  There were all sorts of complicated instructions on the buzzers for the apartment block, but it transpired that none of the doors were locked, so you could just walk in and up the stairs anyhow.

The "Explorer Hostel" is simply an upstairs apartment in this block

Inside the apartment, the owner insisted on speaking to me in French.  I then spent the evening chatting with a French woman, and a Portuguese guy who was trying to bag every East European country, but was fast running out of time and money, and also didn't seem to have any sort of sensible plan, or the ability to get up in the morning.

Scenic view from "Explorer Hostel" in Podgorica

The following morning I tip-toed out, to go see how Podgorica looks in daylight, on a Sunday morning.  There was almost nobody around, apart from the hundreds of political demonstrators and riot police lined up against each, waiting for kick off.  I didn't bother hanging around to see any action.  I had a flight to catch.

Sunday morning in Podgorica

Podgorica train station