Montenegro

As Espen slowly opened the hatch to check the black water tank, we were met with an unpleasant surprise—a burst of waste splattering all over the deck. It's a messy ordeal at the best of times, but it's especially embarrassing when you're docked in Tivat, surrounded by pristine, over-50-foot yachts with crews scurrying around. Yep, we forgot to empty one of the holding tanks before arriving at the harbour. Stinky boat, that’s us.

With the yellow quarantine flag hoisted, we sailed into one of the world’s newest countries, Montenegro, which gained independence in 2006. Initially, we planned to dock in Kotor’s marina, but there was no space available. Given the forecast for thunderstorms, we decided against anchoring and opted for Tivat’s Porto Montenegro instead. We tried contacting the marina on the VHF radio, but they didn’t hear us until we were quite close. It’s just another thing we need to check out; meanwhile, we do hear others clearly.

We wisely decided to book an agency to handle customs since we hadn’t checked out of Croatia. There was a lot of scolding and top-notch assistance before we finally had our paperwork sorted. We were told to rush and buy a guest flag immediately. With that done, we could finally lower the yellow quarantine flag and raise Montenegro's guest flag. Montenegro was not in our original plans before we met Quentin in Rimini and he told us about the cheese.

Planning with Quentin

If you enjoy ogling at large yachts, this is the place to be. The marina features the world’s second-largest sailboat, Black Pearl, and massive motor yachts with helicopters on their decks. It feels like stepping into Monaco. The street along the quay is lined with designer boutiques, and there’s no shortage of botox lips and selfies in every conceivable pose. It’s like an artificial world within the world, and I felt completely lost. But just two minutes away, you find yourself back in the real world, for most of us.

I took a short afternoon walk up one of the trails leading into the mountains behind the town. I only encountered a father with a walking stick and his dark haired daughter heading up to one of the villages. This area looks like a fantastic place for multi-day mountain hikes. Below is a picture of porto de Montenegro from the walk:

Porto Montenegro- you can see black pearl on the picture.

We made a trip to the old town of Kotor and climbed the ladders of Kotor on ancient city walls. Starting early in the evening, having been warned about traffic and cruise tourists. In Montenegro, locals have started protesting against cruise tourism and its detrimental effects on the country, especially in places like Kotor. There have been numerous protests across the Mediterranean this summer from locals fed up with tourists. Perhaps there will be some changes in how tourism is managed in the future. I mentioned this during our time in Croatia, and Kotor felt very similar. It can’t be sustainable for all of us to travel to beautiful historic sites filled with restaurants and shops selling things we don’t need. Yet, its like pot calling the kettle back (kaste stein i glasshus) because I love travelling to new places to experience people, architecture, history, and food. And, often, a little souvenir, like a fridge magnet, finds its way into my bag. And tourism as you will see below increasingly important for the country's economy.

Montenegro has a history deeply rooted in agriculture and it still an important part of their economy. Montenegro saw significant development after World War II when it became part of Yugoslavia and experienced rapid urbanization and industrialization. By the late 1980s, international trade, shipping, and tourism were becoming increasingly important.

However, following the breakup of Yugoslavia in the early 1990s, Montenegro's industrial production effectively collapsed, leading to shortages and soaring prices. Due to its political alliance with Serbia and its advantageous geographic location—providing access to the Adriatic Sea and a shipping route to Albania across Lake Skadar—Montenegro became a hub for smuggling during the 1990s. The smuggling of petrol and cigarettes, in particular, was legalized within the country.

Since the independence referendum, Montenegro has focused on developing its service sector with the goal of becoming an elite tourist destination, while also navigating the process of joining the European Union. Efforts to attract foreign investors for large infrastructure projects continue, as these are integral to its development as a tourist destination. So I guess in many ways they have succeeded, now that parts of Montenegro is packed with cruise tourists.

Back to Kotor. The old Mediterranean port is surrounded by fortifications built during the Venetian period and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Some have called it the southernmost fjord in Europe, but it is actually a ria, a submerged river canyon. Together with the nearly overhanging limestone cliffs of Orjen and Lovćen, Kotor and its surrounding area form an impressive landscape.

Before we started climbing the many steps of the Ladder of Kotor, we dined at one of the oldest restaurants in town—and they sure know how to cook broth! And for a foodie family, this traditional food was insanely good. Once again, we tasted a top-quality olive oil. We asked where we could buy it and what it was called. But it had no name; they bought it from a local farmer. The restaurant is called Konoba Scala Santa, established in 1931, and is based on traditional seafood, and we enjoyed their specialities.

Ladder of Kotor

It was an absolutely fantastic trip. The weather was hot. We climbed through one of the windows in the wall to get onto the trail that leads further up and down the mountain without taking the stairs and also leads to the sweet old lady selling goat cheese, that Quentin told us enthusiastically about her when we planned our route. We had come all this way to buy what was supposed to be the best goat cheese.

Emilie climbing through the window in the wall

We found the house with the cheese but were a bit unlucky as only a very drunk man was on duty. He served us drinks and gave a thumbs-up when we said we wanted goat cheese. When we explained we wanted to buy some to take with us, he was suddenly out of stock. It was probably more than he could handle in his state.

The house with the best goat cheese

Emilie and Espen set their course for the mountain top, while Fredrik and I circled back down toward the old town for a cold beer. Then a new thunderstorm rolled over the city, but only on the horizon this time. Emilie and Espen reported pleasant, non-sticky weather at the top, with beautiful views and a dead snake. On the way down, Fredrik and I, and later Espen and Emilie, met the sweet old lady on her way up to her house and the goat cheese. We tried to chat with her, and she thought we had bought cheese. Fredrik and I followed the lights coming down from the mountain and figured that the two headlamps far back couldn't possibly be Emilie and Espen, who were at the top 45 minutes ago. It was, and they came down happy and tired before we all returned to the boat and Christoffer.

We spent four nights at Porto Montenegro and experienced three rounds of thunderstorms, some lightning, and a lot of rain. But nothing compared to what we had outside Pula and on our way to Split. I collected plenty of rainwater for my microfiber samples. Christoffer and Espen put on our new Vulcan anchor and Emilie placed wooden pegs next to all through hulls.

In Montenegro, everyday life as we know it also started to take shape. Emilie and Fredrik began their school days, and Christoffer decided to take up math and history. It’s unfamiliar and a bit challenging to concentrate, and there’s a lot of self-learning involved. But over the last couple of days, we’ve established a structure that we believe will work.

-Anicke