Now we are travelling again… we are back on the buses. In this part of the world the buses are so cheap and regular, and with a few quiet prayers and a leap of faith you can get to anywhere you want to be in the neighbouring countries. Getting on the roads here is seriously putting your life in a strangers hands….
Montenegro is directly south of Croatia and continues the coastline on the Adriatic Sea. Our first stop was Kotor, the UNESCO protected medieval city on the Bay of Kotor. Its popular with cruise ships not only for the lovely preserved city and its fortress but for the views as the ships make their way in from the sea into this tiny corner of the bay. Unfortunately many cruise ships mean inflated prices and with Montenegro using the euro we were surprised by the prices and quality of food on offer here.
Kotor has been established for over 2000 years and the building of its famous fortress above the old town commenced in the 6th century with many additions and changes to it over the next 1000 years depending on who was in charge. The walk to the top is steep and sweaty but the views along the way provide the necessary compensation.
A few hours on another bus and we were in Budva, a beach resort area filled with high rise apartments, restaurants and nightclubs and half the population of Russia. As Bali is to Australians, Budva is to the Russians. The town of Budva was established 2500 years ago and today thrives on tourism and cultural events; unfortunately the beaches were filthy and could not entice us into the water given where we had just come from.
The old town is well preserved within its walls while the newer part of town was full of new shopping centres, cafes and boutiques selling high end fashion. The amount of construction taking place is a little frightening given our perception that sustainability and environmental management practices do not appear to be driving factors in the development of the area so it will be interesting to see how this place looks and feels in a decade or so.
Making our way toward the Albanian border we spent 24 hours in the town of Ulcinj where our guesthouse hosts could not have been more generous and thrilled to have Australians staying with them. Invited to join them for coffee we talked politics, education and travel and gained a personal insight into the challenges facing a ‘new’ country like Montenegro as they move further away from their socialist past and establish themselves on the tourist trail.
Its conversations like this that make us realise how blessed we are to have been born in Australia. Life in Montenegro is tough for locals and we were happy to contribute to the economy with our tourist dollars wherever we could.
Another day, another bus and we were headed for possibly our most obscure stop for the year – one for the true country collectors! Crossing two Albanian borders we arrived in Pristina the capital of Kosovo, and although our arrival was after dark we could see from the bus that this was a country embracing all things western. Bright lights, modern shopping centres and architecture could be seen in amongst broken and unfinished buildings, and in the light of day the city was full of young, well dressed people lunching and shopping.
We had no real expectations of what we would find here and were pleasantly surprised, although there are still the tell tale signs of a country that is emerging from the aftermath of a tragic war. There is a lot to do on the road ahead but the vibe we picked up was positive. We will probably never get back here but will watch with interest from afar as this small but determined country carves out its future under the watchful eyes of the Bill Clinton statue in the middle of the city!
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