of Podgorica, off the main road (E-762) to Nikšić. Built during the 17th century, nestled in a spectacular position at the base of a cliff. A taxi from the turn-off to the monastery, plus waiting time and drive on to Nikšić, should cost €20–25. Alternatively, day trips operate from many towns on the coast.
Piva Monastery (Church of Sv. Bogorodica)
On the slopes above the village of Goransko, about 55km north of Nikšić on the main road (E-762) to Srbinje. Founded 1573 by Savatije, Metropolitan of Hercegovina. Impressive gilt iconostasis dating from 1638–39 and rich treasury. Originally stood much lower down slopes, but was moved to present location with building of dam and flooding of gorge.
Monastery, Cetinje
Founded by Ivan Crnojević in 1484 as the residence of the Metropolitan of Zeta, and from 1516 the seat of the Vladika, the Orthodox ruler-bishops of inland Montenegro. The original monastery was destroyed in an explosion in 1692. The present structure dates from the 18th century, and was heavily restored after the First World War.
Gospa od Škrpjela
Near Perast, on Boka Kotorska. Built 1452 on an artificial island. Used as model by Swiss painter Böcklin for his well-known painting The Isle of the Dead (1880, now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York).
Hussein Pasha Mosque, Pljevlja
Founded 1569 by Hussein Pasha Boljanić, this is a good example of a provincial Ottoman mosque.
Mausoleum of Petar II Petrović Njegoš, on Lovćen
Described by J.A. Cuddon (The Companion Guide toJugoslavia) as ‘probably the loneliest and windiest grave in the world’. Contains a statue of Montenegro’s celebrated ruler-poet in black marble by the Croatian sculptor Ivan Mestrović.
Caryatid at the mausoleum of Petar II Petrović Njegoš, on Jezerski vrh (Route 3)
Stari grad, Kotor
Kotor’s old town is a beautiful example of a walled medieval city (and along with a large part of Boka Kotorska a UNESCO World Heritage Site), and should not be missed.
Stari Bar
Beautifully preserved walled medieval town on the lower slopes of Rumija.
Stećci
There are good examples of stećci (a distinctive type of medieval tombstone) at Pljevlja and in the Durmitor region, for example near Vražje jezero, and at Bare Žugića and Šćepan polje.
A SELECTION OF MONTENEGRIN FESTIVALS
| February/early March | Shrovetide Carnival, Kotor |
| 30 May | Vladimir’s Cross – a procession with this relic from Bar to the summit of Rumija |
| 22 July | ‘Fašinda’, Gospa od Škrpjela, offshore fromPerast; commemorates construction of artificialisland upon which this church is built |
| July/August | Summer Theatre Festival, Budva |
| August | Montenegrin Film Festival, Herceg Novi |
| August | Folk Music Festival, Cetinje |
In Montenegro ‘National Day’ is celebrated on the 13th of July. Remember that in the Orthodox Church, Christmas falls on the 7th of January.
Food and drink
Grilled meats feature prominently on the Montenegrin or Serbian menu, most grandly in the combination commonly known as the roštilj (‘grill’), and eating out in Montenegro will be a trying experience for vegetarians. Vegetarians or those fed up with mixed grills should ask: ‘Da li imate nešto bez mesa?’ (‘Do you have something without meat?’). For non-vegetarians, ćevapčići and šopska salata make a delicious and cheap meal which is served throughout the country.
Fish is also generally in good supply. Fresh fruit and vegetables are available on local markets, along with local cheeses and dried meats.
Rakija, a potent local spirit, comes in a number of guises, including travarica (made with herbs) and loza (made from grapes); and sampling a good domaća (‘homemade’) is an integral part of travelling in the region. The best Montenegrin wine comes from Crmnica, the region northwest of Lake Skadar; the best local beer is the eponymous Nikšić Pivo. Fruit juice is widely available.
See Appendix D for useful phrases when ordering food and drink and translating menus.
Be aware that Montenegro is notorious for some appallingly bad service. Even my Montenegrin and Serbian friends agree on this and are used to the same treatment themselves – so don’t take any such experiences to heart or let them ruin your visit!
Language
The official language of Montenegro is Montenegrin (crnogorski). It was given this name in 2007, following independence from Serbia – before this it was called Serbian (srpski), as it is still known by many. Montenegrin/Serbian is a south Slavonic language, very similar to Croatian and Bosnian. (When these countries were all part of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, language was standardized, and given the name Serbo-Croat.) Many Turkish words entered the Serbian language during the region’s centuries of Ottoman rule Serbian is a phonetic language – that is, every letter in a word is pronounced, and the pronunciation of any given letter is always the same. In this respect it is far more consistent than many more familiar European languages, including English and French.
Serbian is written in the Cyrillic script, similar to Russian but with some important exceptions. However, the Latin script (as used for Croatian) is also in common use in Montenegro (there are newspapers and magazines published in both), which generally makes reading menus, signs and timetables much easier. Still, you will almost certainly encounter Cyrillic at some point during your visit, so should ultimately familiarize yourself with both scripts (see Appendix D).
The Bay of Kotor (Boka Kotorska), from Perast
Pronunciation is very important if you are to be understood clearly. Note that a number of letters, though they may appear quite familiar (in both Cyrillic and Latin scripts), are nevertheless pronounced very differently to how they would be in English: the Cyrillic letters X, J, H, P, C, Y and B are actually pronounced ‘h’, y, ‘n’, ‘r’, ‘s’, ‘oo’ and ‘v’ respectively. The Latin letters C and J are pronounced ‘ts’ and y respectively.
English is spoken fairly widely in main tourist centres along the coast, less so inland (with the exception of places which see plenty of overseas visitors such as Žabljak).
See Appendix D for further language notes, basic phrases and vocabulary, and a list of words which you may need to recognise in Cyrillic.
Getting to Montenegro
And now that we are approaching the wilder parts of Jugoslavia a word about roads and maps is timely.
JA Cuddon, The Companion Guide to Jugoslavia (London, 1968)
Visas
