Day 59 : Podgorica - Ostrog - Kotor Bay

Last day of driving around Montenegro. I've covered off most of the key sites which I wanted to go, and was originally wanting to also visit Herceg Novi, but it was too far out to be included within the time I had, before the car needs to be returned.

So today's route was with very little stops but covering lots of distance : Podgorica - Ostrog - Bay. 

I started the drive at 8am and the first key spot for today was Podgorica to buy my bus ticket to Shkodër. I tried to get mine from Budva yesterday, but I was told they don't run daily, not even from Podgorica. However the bus schedule found online states otherwise. 

I did want to be certain, so since Podgorica was enroute, it worked out well to make a quick stop and secure a ticket in hand.

Now I am at ease, as I have a definite seat on the bus, and my trip plans aren't screwed up. 

The next stop was Niagara Falls which was located about 10 mins drive from the bus station. The name is deceiving - although I have not been to the one in Canada, I am sure the Canada version is way more impressive. 

The drive to Ostrog was about another 1+ hour away, and approaching the monastery were more windy roads, and I had to take more vigilant care as there were occasional oncoming traffic. 

Established in the 17th century in the honor of Saint Basil of Ostrog who was buried inside and is believed to have miraculous powers for many pilgrims who come to visit Ostrog.    

It was built in the 1600s by literally carving into the face of a cliff. The work was overseen by the Bishop of Herzegovina at the time, who would go on to be known as St Basil of Ostrog.

In the first cave, he built a church. The second cave he made a bedroom for guests. And the third cave was where the religious artefacts would be held.  

His decision to build this monastery in Montenegro into a cliff was probably in a large part for protection, because this was the time when the Ottoman Empire was causing havoc in the area.

The Upper Monastery consists of the Church of the Presentation of the Holy Mother of God, where the relics of Saint Basil of Ostrog are being kept, and the Church of the Holy Cross. 

One of the most interesting appeals in that area is the vine which grows out of the rock.

There's also a Lower Monastery which I did not visit. 

Entering the Upper Monastery, there is another smaller entrance at the end of the steps, which was one of the smallest door in a church I had seen!

Going through this entrance leads to the 1st chamber, and then going through another small door led to another chamber. Both chambers were completely painted with frescoes in a bluish base.

In the 2nd chamber was a coffin with "someone" lying in it (I presume St. Basil of Ostrog), with a priest standing beside the coffin giving blessings to each person that one-by-one queued to "interact" with the coffin

I stood back and admired the frescoes and then slowly retreated my way out. 

And then starting driving back down again with more windy road. 

It was time for lunch and having tried a couple restaurants on the way (which weren't open), I went into a random spot found on the highway. 

I was hoping to order fish / seafood, but they specialised in meat, and suggested this Veal dish.

The Veal was really good, very tender and even the fats are melt-in-your-mouth type of texture. 

It was then a drive towards the Bay area, which took over an hour. It was drizzling on the way down, and then suddenly cleared, just as I was to get to a panoramic view spot. What perfect timing. 

I later landed up at a spot that is outside the Vertige 65 restaurant, famed for its views and it didn't disappoint. It's just directly opposite Perast, but because of timing, I couldn't really stay to order a dessert. 

Also did a brief stop in Kotor to pick up a postcard, and found some spots which I had missed on my 1st trip to Kotor.

And then the final drive back home, which I reached at 5.15pm, with 15 mins to spare before the car gets picked up from my place. 

I would had thought there would be 2 people driving a car up and then 1 of them will drive this car back, but no! The poor guy had to walk all the way up the slopes just to collect the car. He was panting as he walked up, and I felt bad, but also relief I didn't have to do the climb. 100 points for customer service. 

I clocked over 750km (started counter about 10km in trip) over the 4 days of drive, using almost a full tank of petrol.

It's been great seeing the diversity the country has to offer.