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Monday, July 9, 2018

Must See In Kotor, Montenegro - Preparing For Our Mediterranean Cruise


Kotor, Montenegro is the last port and the last country we will visit on our amazing Mediterranean cruise.  It will be a perfect ending to a perfect cruise as it will be a little easier to explore this very small city than the larger cities we will visit earlier in our trip.  We will be able to walk directly from our ship (or tender, if we are one of the last ships to arrive) into the town.  But before we even dock here, we will be treated to a spectacular one hour cruise through a magnificent fjord on our way to the port.  We will be arriving at the port at 8:30 am so we will be sure to set our alarm clock for way before that.  We will leave this port at 6:00 pm so that gives us plenty of time to enjoy our visit here.

I had to look up what a fjord was and found out that it is "a long, narrow, deep inlet of the sea between high cliffs, typically formed by submergence of a glaciated valley."  Nature has a way of creating the most beautiful sights we will ever see.  We cannot wait to have the experience of cruising through this fjord.  And this is only the start of all the raw, natural beauty Kotor has to offer.  The Balkan Mountains and the waters of Boka Kotorska are a big part of making this area a picturesque wonderland.

We won't be booking an excursion to do here.  We have decided that we would like to take it slow and enjoy this gorgeous country at our own pace.   I hope we get a chance to see everything on our Must-See List but if not, we will leave here feeling like we ended our Dream Vacation on a very wonderfully relaxing, enjoyable note!

St. John's Fortress is on a hilltop and can be reached by climbing 1,350 steps.  This hike sounds more strenuous than relaxing, but we think it will be fun and we will try to take it slow.  It's supposed to take 45 minutes to reach the top but I am sure we will not be moving at a 45 minute pace.  We think the climb will be worth it to be able to see a stunning view of Kotor once we reach the top.  There are different sites to see along the way, with places to rest, like the Church Of Our Lady Of Health.  We will probably need to say a prayer here for help to get us the rest of the way up.

The Old Town of Kotor.  We will want to stroll the narrow streets of the city that Lonely Planet named #1 city to visit in the world in 2016.  We will be people watching as this ancient city is home to many.  Clothes will be hung between stone buildings and friends will be meeting for coffee.  We will be looking forward to standing in line with them at Salvatore's while we are waiting for our wild strawberry gelato to be made.

Saint Tryphon's Cathedral is one of two Roman Catholic Cathedrals in Montenegro and it's namesake is the protector of Kotor.  We can pay a couple of euros here if we want to take a look inside.  On the upper floor we can view a collection of local dress, weapons and artifacts.  There is also a balcony that gives us a view of the town and photo ops.

St. Nicholas' Church is the city's Serbian Orthodox church.  We will definitely want to visit this church to buy candles for the living and deceased members of our families.  The tradition is to kiss each candle and then place them in either the top row of candle holders for our living relatives and on the bottom shelf for the deceased.

Cat Museum of Kotor is a treat for cat lovers like myself.  It's just all about cats here and sometimes there are live exhibits!  I hear that there are cats all over this town and that many of them congregate at the Church of Saint Mary Collegiata in Wood Square.  I am sure we will not leave this town before heading over there to see them.

Our Lady of the Rocks is a Catholic church that is on a small, artificial island which can be reached by a 15 minute boat ride.   We will be able to enjoy the views of the Bay of Kotor coastline on our way over to the church.  For 1 euro we will get a 30 minute tour of this church.  Our tour guide will tell us about the history of the church and artifacts.   I'm looking forward to see the huge, ornate altar here that I saw a picture of.  Once outside the church, we will be looking for the delicious ice cream we heard is on this island.

We will have two days of cruising back to Barcelona after our stop in Kotor.  This will give us a chance to relax before we get back to reality!

The next time I blog about our Mediterranean cruise, it will be about the wonderful time we had on our first trip ever to Europe.  I can't believe that this is happening in only about two months from now.  We will need to make our Vatican, and other, reservations soon.   We also need to start thinking about what we need to bring with us and what we want to bring back!  We will need to learn a few important words and phrases in Italian like "Dov'e il bagno" (Where's the bathroom?!)  The preparing is all part of the fun of vacationing isn't it?

I can't wait to tell you all about our adventure!  Ciao for now!!



4 comments:

  1. Sounds like you are going to have a wonderful cruise! I have been to Europe but have never been to the Mediterranean. I look forward to doing the same someday!

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    1. I hope you get a chance to go! Thanks for hosting every week!

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  2. Have a wonderful time! Thanks for sharing at #Homemattersparty

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    1. Thank you and thank you for hosting your wonderful party every week!

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