From Berlin we flew 'Jat Airlines'. From there we go to 'Kotor' Montenegro which is a beautiful old small town on Kotor bay, surrounded by high rocky mountains.
We are staying at a small recently renovated hotel in the old city 'Hippocampus" meaning seahorse.
The owner is an architect and has done a superb job in rebuilding and decorating this very old building. There are no cars in the old town as the streets are too narrow. You can walk the entire old city centre in about half an hour, It has such a great atmosphere.
Black Pearl is in the harbour so MB visits them and on his return he runs into the Garnauts and the Woodlands, our friends for the next trip in Croatia.
All of these towns are recovering from the civil war in the 1990's.
We have dinner at the recommended restaurant 'Galion', which overlooks Kotor bay. It has both good food and wine and we enjoy our evening.
Tuesday, we are up early and walk to the fort behind the town. It is a very steep climb that takes about 40 minuets, and the heart rate is really increased. What great views of the town and bay surrounded by the mountains. We board BP after breakfast and cruise to 'Cavtat' in Croatia where we need to go to passport control and quarantine etc. We are surprised what a nice harbour town it really is, as lonely planet didn't give it a great rap. A lot of the buildings were built in the 13th and 14th Century A.D. There are the ubiquitous small forts, churches and city walls which are evidence of the great sea trade they must have enjoyed.
However, we are off to Dubrovnik. We anchor in site of the town at the island of 'Lokrum'. This is a beautiful forested place known for its nudist beach popular with the gay crowd. We have a swim in the stunning clear water. When we arrived we were anchored alone. However, the next morning there are cruise ships and lots of other motor yachts surrounding us.
Our first impression of the Croatian Dalmatian coast is a place of great natural beauty.
JB and Mick