My morning started around 7am as I made my way to the nearest bus station to meet my shuttle bus for Montenegro. The tour was scheduled to be a 14-15 hour day trip. On the way to Montenegro (about 1 1/2 drive from Dubrovnik) I began getting to know the woman sitting beside. Her name was Linette, a retired teacher from St. Louis. Not only did we share a similar education background but she has a son who lives in Syracuse and visits the upstate area often. Small world isn't it? Linette was on week 2 of a 6 week solo tour through Europe. She shared with me that this trip was to celebrate her 70th birthday by challenging herself physically while she's still "young". I admired her determination. Linette made my time in Montenegro that much more enjoyable.

While in Montenegro we were expected to cover 1 city and 2 small towns; Budva, Kotor and Perast. First stop, The city of Budva. Budva was a seaside town with s mix of old world and plenty of shops. Linette and I made our way to seaside restaurant recommended by our tour guide Marienela. I had grilled octopus with leeks and potatoes. It was delicious. We only had about an hour in Budva so after lunch we headed straight back to the bus. This wasn't disappointing to me at all as I wasn't really impressed with this area of Budva. If Eastern Europe had a love child with the Jersey shore, that would be center Budva.

Next stop, Kotor. Kotor was nothing like Budva; Not even close. It had an authentic, historic, medieval presence about it. Just pulling up to the gates of the fort, surrounded by mountains, was enough to take my breath away. I went on walking tour where I learned all about Montenegro and it's fight for independence. Fun fact: Montenegro translates to "black mountains" which can be seen all throughout the country. That is how it got its name, thanks to its beautiful rugged mountains. Following my tour I spent some time slowly walking around town taking everything in. I felt like I had gone back in time. I stopped inside a quaint antique shop and enjoyed looking at the hundreds of items this woman had collected over her lifetime. It was impressive! However, It wasn't until I saw a traditional Nazi chess board on one of her tables that I thought, yeah thanks but no thanks ma'am I'm going to get going. (I've got the picture to prove it!)

Third and final stop, Perast. Perast was a small village just along the bay of Kotor. The bay was gorgeous! While in Perast, I was able to take a small speed boat tour out to the islet of "Our lady of the rocks". This was about a 10 minute boat ride and was worth every second. On the island was a beautiful 17th century church and a small museum; That's it! It was such a peaceful place. All you could hear were waves crashing alongside the rocks, footsteps of people walking up the stone stairs and church bells ringing intermittently. I sat down by the edge of the water, put my feet in the bay and just took it all in. I was surrounded my mountains and water. I was happy.

My day in Montenegro came to an end as we headed back to Dubrovnik and I said my final goodbyes to my new friend Linette, exchanged numbers and promised to keep in touch. Maybe we can tour Europe together for her 80th ;-)

Tomorrow, the island of Korcula!