Montenegro, a first-time visit for us, is home to about 650,000 people. We visited two towns and two cities during our 17 days there. The highlight of our time in Kolasin, a mountain town in the center of the country, was exploring a bit of Biogradska Gora National Park. With 5,650 hectares, it is the smallest of Montenegro’s five national parks. Lake Beograd, a glacial lake with emerald water, is on Bjelasica Mountain.

From the mountains we went to the city. Almost one third of Montenegro’s population lives in the capital of Podgorica. The city sits at the base of Gorica Hill and where the Morača and Ribnica Rivers merge. The Millenium Bridge, our favorite of the nine unique bridges over the Morača River, spans 173 meters and opened in 2005. 

While the majority of the bordering nation of Kosovo is Muslim, 70% of Montenegrins are Orthodox Christian. The Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ, in a newer section of Podgorica and measuring about 1,300 square meters, is one of the largest Orthodox Churches in the world. It took builders 20 years to complete the beautiful structure, which was finished in 2013. 

The rear exterior features intricate carvings on sections of large, rough stone slabs. The large mosaic above the front entrance adds a splash of color to the neutral stone Serbian Orthodox cathedral.

Gold, blue, and red dominate the expansive interior frescoes on the walls and ceilings. The colorful marble floors and very large gilded chandeliers add even more grandeur to the cathedral. 

Born in the country’s former capital city of Cetinje, Jelena Petrović-Njegoš was the daughter of King Nikola I and Queen Malena of Montenegro. She married Prince Victor Emmanuel III of Italy and became Queen Elena of Italy when her father-in-law was assassinated in 1900. During World War I she worked as a nurse. After the war she advocated for increased training of doctors, and promoted research to fight against polio, Parkinson’s disease, and cancer. She was a tall woman, standing 180 cm (5 feet 11 inches). Her husband measured 152 cm (5 feet) in height. A statue in honor of her younger sister, Princess Ksenija, is in the town of Cetinje, the next stop on our journey through Montenegro.

Saint George Church, Podgorica’s oldest church, was originally built between the 9th and 10th centuries. Since then the structure has undergone enlargements and restorations. The city was heavily damaged during World War II and it is amazing that the church survived the intense bombing. We found the fresco of Saint George defeating the dragon above the door between the entry area and the nave.

After three days in Podgorica, we headed 35 kilometers west to the beautiful, small town of Cetinje, with a current population of about 13,000 and Montenegro’s capital city from 1878 to 1946. During the reign of King Nikola I Petrović-Njegoš (1910 to 1918), the country’s first and only king, many embassies, a monastery, and palace were built in Cetinje. Most of those buildings have been restored, though their purposes are now libraries, museums, and government offices. The historic center is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

Ivan Crnojević, a Montenegrin ruler, slowed down the expansion of Ottoman Empire in the current Balkan region and founded Cetinje in 1482. He selected the flat area at the base of Mount Lovćen because it was easily defendable against enemy forces. 

The Blue Palace was built in 1895 for Prince Danilo, oldest son of King Nikola I Petrović-Njegoš and heir to the Montenegrin throne. He lived there until 1916. Now the official residence of the President of Montenegro, the Blue Palace looks more gray than blue.

King Nikola I commissioned the very small Court Church in Ćipur in 1886 on the site of a former 15th century monastery built by Ivan Crnojević. The remains of the king, Queen Milena, their two unmarried daughters, and Ivan Crnojević are buried beneath the church. King Nikola I and Queen Milena had 12 children, and 5 of their 9 daughters married kings or princes. King Nikola I was nicknamed the father-in-law of Europe.

The statue of Princess Ksenija Petrović-Njegoš in Cetinje is quite a bit different than Podgorica’s statue of her older sister, Princess Jelena. Ksenija is the 10th child and 8th daughter of King Nikola I and Queen Malena. The princess focused on charity work and photography, and is reportedly the first woman to drive a car in the Balkan region. It is not surprising that the statue of the well-educated princess includes a book. Cetinje is described as a “town of books” since books have been printed, read, and preserved in the town during the last 600 years. 

The Vlaška Church is the oldest religious building in Cetinje. Also called the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin, this small structure is a restored and enlarged version of the original 15th century church.  We made sure to photograph the fence surrounding the church and cemetery, constructed with rifle barrels captured during the wars between the Montenegrins and the Ottoman Empire from 1858 to 1878. 

Just in front of the Vlaška Church stands Lovćenska vila, a monument honoring 300 Montenegrins who died in a 1916 mine attack during World War I.  The 300 plus 200 more nationals had been living in the US and Canada and wanted to return to Montenegro to help defend their country against Austria-Hungarian forces. They boarded an Italian ship and headed towards home. The steamer was blown up by a German underwater mine just north of what is now Albania.

We spent a day exploring a small part of the 6,000 hectares in Lovćen National Park, just a short drive from Cetinje and in the Dinara Alps. Much of the park consists of beech, oak, and linden forests. We completed the 7 kilometer loop of Wolf Trail with a short detour to the summit of Babina Glava.  

From Cetinje we took the steep and very twisty Highway R1 to Kotor, called one of the most famous hairpinned roads in the world and nicknamed The Serpentine. Thanks to the Austrians, the 36 kilometers and 30 tight turns transitioned from a wagon route carved into the side of the mountain to a real road in 1897. There are very few turnouts along the very curvy highway, and unfortunately the passenger (Susan) in our car was not able to get any usable photos through the front windshield while the car was in motion. 

Kotor’s well-preserved Stari Grad (Old Town) was built when Venetians controlled the city, from 1420 to 1791.  The four to five kilometers of city walls extend from the bay to quite high on the mountain where Saint John Fortress stands. The upper portion of wall has been nicknamed the Ladder of Kotor. Early one morning we climbed the 1350 steps to the fortress, passing towers, bastions, and Our Lady of Remedy Church along the zigzagged pathway.  

The early 17th century clock tower stands in the largest square and main gathering place in Stari Grad, the Square of Arms. Criminals were tied to the pillory in front of the tower and publicly displayed. 

Constructed in 1166 in Old Town, the Cathedral of Saint Tryphon has survived multiple earthquakes and the rule of ten or more different regimes.  The left bell tower displays the 12th century date and the 2016 on the right bell tower signifies when repairs were completed after the strong 1979 quake. This cathedral is one of two Roman Catholic Cathedrals in all of Montenegro. Three percent of the country’s population is Catholic.

Many noble families lived in Old Town in the 15th to 18th centuries and their large homes were called palaces. Pima Palace, pictured below, occupies a prime spot in Flour Square. The 17th century, Baroque-style home is one of the few in Stari Grad that was not destroyed by earthquakes. Although it did undergo reconstruction after the significant tremor in 1979. Kotor blacksmiths created the iron balcony railing, and stone artisans carved the two angels holding the Pima family coat of arms above the main door. We did not go inside Pima Palace, which currently houses an art gallery. 

We had a great time wandering around the narrow, stone streets of Old Town, visiting shops, cafes, and historic buildings.

The Church of Saint Nikolas, a Serbian Orthodox Church in Saint Luke’s Square in Stari Grad, is Kotor’s most important Orthodox Church. Built from 1902 to 1909, the Byzantine and Romanesque structure replaced an older 18th century church that burned. The golden crosses on top of the black-domed bell towers were gifts from Russia in 1998. The interior includes beautiful silver pieces, such as very large chandeliers and candle holders. 

Taking a boat ride to see camouflaged naval tunnels in the Bay of Kotor was our most unusual activity during of our five days in Kotor. The city occupies a strategic location for controlling the Bay of Kotor, which is adjacent to three other bays that lead into the Adriatic Sea. In the 1950s the Yugoslavian Navy carved large tunnels into mountain cliffs to hide their submarines and torpedo boats from enemy spy planes. The tunnels also enabled the navy carry out surprise attacks on enemy ships that were lucky enough to get into the bay. The tunnels, no longer used for military purposes, are a popular tourist destination. 

We love cats, so we were thrilled to see many cats (and actually pet a few) in the old and new parts of Kotor.  In the early 1900s during the revolt from the Austrian-Hungarian Navy, Slav sailors arrived in Kotor Bay on their ships. And the sailors had their cats with them on the boats! In 1918 the cats became a symbol of the city when it became part of the new Yugoslavia. Prior to that, the Venetian lion was Kotor’s symbol. Of course(!) we went to the cat souvenir shop and to the Cats Museum to see many art pieces featuring felines, both in Stari Grad. The museum’s international collection includes books, coins, postcards, medals, advertisements, postage stamps, and more from the 1500s to the 1970s.