Kotor Montenegro

#KotorMontenegroCattaro

Kotor is located on the Adriatic Sea and was founded in the 5th century BC.
Known for its fortifications, churches, medieval old town plus its narrow cobblestone streets

One of the more interesting stops was the Maritime Museum ($37.00 US) because of its strategic location to the sea, so the city has had a long tradition as a port
 The museum is located inside the palace previously owned by the Grgurina family
 and was founded in 1880

  KeyTip;
Things to do/see for Free

A) Walk around the Old Town and make sure to visit the old palazzos (beautiful buildings / palaces) that were once owned by the Noble Families (for one as mentioned the Grgurina Clan)
As they were turned into museums plus boutique hotels
 and stroll inside the lobbies to see the antiques, stairways plus statuettes 

 B) Wander onto the Kotor Promenade near the Boka Bay and perhaps see when the local fishermen return from a days work plus maybe view the sunset if here during that time

C) St Nichola Orthodox Church in Old Town

 D) Hike the Kotor Serpentines which is an old caravan road that rises 900 meters / 3000 feet

 E) Walk on the walls of Old Town  to see the rooftops and also the views overlooking the bay
 
 F) Church of St Luka which dates back to 1195

G) Kampana Tower located near the mouth of the River Scurda and on the Bay of  Kotor which from the tower you can see all of Kotor.
 Also if here at night they light up the tower plus the walls for a great photo opportunity

Area History
Much of the medieval fortifications of Kotor remain intact even though there was a major earthquake in the year 1979
 The wall around the town runs for 4.5kms ( 3 miles) with some of it that rises 20 meters (65 feet) with the highlight;
The main gate dates back from the 1500s

Churches
Some do require an entrance fee so the currency of Montenegro is the Euro even though officially its not a member yet.

 But Moving Forward;
 Serbia and Montenegro are the most advanced candidates to join the EU sometime
between 2025-2030

Reasons
Some of the Romanesque designed churches.
 As with everything the Romans did, it served a purpose;

 The arched portals (entrances) into the church was built this way to impress or even humble the viewer, as in the Middle Ages most of the people did not read or write
So the portals told a narrative story

For The Foodies
Making my way into an outdoor restaurant and like the rest of the Balkans
 Montenegro like their grilled meat called cevlapi  (kebabs) which is cooked in front of you on hot coals

 Other Options;
  A) Borek; is a pastry with spicy lamb meat, currants plus pine nuts
  B) Black Risotto; a seafood rice dish
C) Bajadera; a dessert with layered nougat, almonds, hazelnuts or walnuts
 D) Silverbeet  (a chard and no, not the same as spinach 😄) with potatoes cooked in a garlic sauce
  E) Calamari; stuffed with prosciutto plus cheese 

  KeyTip;
 When choosing a place to eat;
 The farther it is from the coast and the tourist streets, the lower the price plus the bigger the portions

The Venetian Republic
It was part of this empire (1420-1797) and so you have all of
its architecture

  Other Influences
  In the 1300s Venice became wealthy through its control of trade between Europe and the Levant (Eastern Mediterranean region of Western Asia plus the Middle East)
 because it built a large national shipyard which produced the Venetian Arsenal

Koto
 The port helped to maintain the control of this area with a stopping point for some
 of these ships

Languages
English is certainly spoken here because of the increase of tourism but the official dialect of Montenegro is Montenegrin
 With also Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian plus Albanian widely used and recognized within
the country

Bazaar Retail 
Heading to the most unique shopping area in Kotor; it is located in an abandoned
TwDominican Monastery 
You can actually pay a small fee to dress up like a medieval warrior or become an archer and try to shooting some arrows

20th Century History
During World War Two, Italy (under Benito Mussolini) annexed the area
 of Kotor (1941-1943)

  Then Came Nazi Germany
 Who replaced the defeated Italians, which resulted in a guerrilla war within Montenegro who
 was fighting for democracy.
Finally in 1944 the war of liberation had been won and to acknowledge the contribution from Montenegro, it became of of the six republics of Yugoslavia
 

1350 Steps
To climb to the St. George Fortress (Fortress of San Giovanni)

Which my only complaint was half way up there was a gate and an 8 Euro fee (which is fine but the mobile credit card device signal was not good, so took forever to get
it to work; so bring cash)

Not much of the castle remains plus only a few of the ruins can be visited, but the views are great so well worth the effort

Mortgage Rules
If thinking of buying a house or apartment in Kotor you first you have to register a
company in Montenegro
But before moving forward contact a local law firm to explain all the Laws on Proprietary
 and Ownership Rights

The Weather
 In Kotor is seasonal; with July the hottest month (26C) and January
 being the coldest (5C)
 So with these old structures heating becomes an issue, again if you are thinking
 of ownership

Founded 2000 Years Ago
 Now i am not sure how old these shutters are (showing its age) but i KNOW they are not from
 that time period 😄

Old Town
Walking on the Fortification Walls  to get a peek of some of the 13,000 citizens way of life
in historic Kotor 

Salad Square
 Which was has a palace from the Vrakjen Family and from
 the 14th Century

The Church of Our Lady of Health

 Was built during the Middle Ages
 Which was the time period of the plague that killed many people
 It was then when the citizens and government of Venice asked the Mother of God for help, so miraculously the fatalities stopped
 So because of that, more of these churches were constructed throughout the Venetian Empire

Moving forward as i leave Kotor
I get the feeling she is looking out for all of us, especially after our time in history with the
COVID Pandemic