Herceg Novi, Montenegro, Day 11

Day 11, May 22, 2014

We had an early start today with Dusanka picking us up at 9:30 to take us to Budva, Sveti Stefen, and Porto Montenegro on the way home.

The trip took us along the shores of the Bay of Kotor to the ferry and then on to Budva, which is on the Adriatic Sea. We toured the Old Town and saw the beaches that get chock-a-block full of tourists during the summer months. 

Budva, Old Town

A small beach in Budva

The water is so clear

Narrow street in Budva, Old Town

A tall house in Old Town

Budva, Old Town

Old Town

A larger beach, Budva

It was then on to Sveti Stefen which has been turned into an exclusive hotel and no longer accessible to tourists. 

Sveti Stefen joined to the mainland by a short isthmus

Sveti Stefen has a lovely beach on either side

Rosemary bush at Sveti Stefen

Rock wall

An olive tree not ready to die

We stopped for lunch and Jill and I had a real tasty goulash, another tick on my culinary wish list.

Tasty bread basket served with two balls of Kajmak and one mixed with sweet paprika

On the way back, we stopped at Porto Montenegro, a luxury yacht marina catering to the needs of super yacht owners.  I have never seen bigger yachts. 

   

Lots of fish in the marina

A monster yacht, registered in Kingstown, St. Vincent

The largest yacht in the marina from Kingstown, St. Vincent

They say in the summer, the minutes away Tivet Airport has dozens of Learjets parked side by side. We got back to our place by 4 and had a short nap and cleanup before we met Dusanka at 7:00pm in Old Town.   

Part of the old fort wall to the left of the Clock Tower Gate, Stari Grad (Old Town)

Tonight we met yet another cousin, Danica, and her husband Ivo. Danica is the daughter of my Dad’s fourth youngest sibling, Maja.

Maja on her wedding day

Views from their balcony

 They have an apartment just steps away from the Clock Tower Gate.

Their balcony

Jill on Danica and Ivo's balcony

My lovely cousins, Dusanka and Danica

Danica's home is in Rose, across the bay but is under renovation.  She is a pharmacist in Herceg Novi and stays at her apartment in Herceg Novi during the week. 

Danica's house in Rose

Rose is a small village of 20 nestled on the side of the mountain, steps from the water’s edge. They access it by boat, a 15 minute ride from Herceg Novi Marina.  When in Rose, Danica and Ivo live in his paternal house, which is in the process of being renovated and will soon be available for tourist rental. Ivo is doing the work of the general contractor.

Ivo and Danica

Dinner was a huge spread that started with appetizers of home made prosciutto, pancetta, a Montenegrin version of Romanian potato salad, aged cow’s cheese, aged cheese preserved in oil for 2 to 6 months (sir iz ulje), a young goats cheese, and pickles. It was all home made and incredibly tasty. We had terrific red and white wine from Croatia to accompany our meal.  Jill and I were satiated and were surprised at the announcement that the meat course was next. Out came a huge platter with cevapcici, local sausages, grilled chicken and hanger pork, fries, ajvar, mustard, and a mound of onions, traditionally eaten with cevapcici.  It was so delicious.  Then came a homemade huge three layer cake which Danica made for the occasion.  It was light and so good.   

Danica prepared a very generous package of cheeses, prosciutto and pancetta for breakfast and for us to take to Barcelona. Thank you. We said our goodbyes and Ivo and Danica drove us back to our apartment.  What incredibly nice people.

I was initially going to name this blog, 3 Counties, 3 Weeks, and if I had, I would have had  to change it to 3 Countries, 3 Weeks, 3 Cousins.  We had no expectation that we were going to be successful at locating even one of my relatives and here we’re swimming in the love these wonderfully warm people have shown us. We are truly blessed. Did I mention that there is a local saint who is a Mandic, Saint Leopold Mandic.