John Edward Cooper’s Notes

DAY 3 - NJEGUŠI & CETINJE


Cetinje

This morning we travel through the mountains to Njeguši, and make a short stop here, before continuing to an authentic restaurant for a tasting of traditional smoked meats and cheeses with delicious priganice — doughnuts served with honey, which locals traditionally offer to house guests.

In the afternoon, we head to Cetinje, the former capital of Montenegro. On arrival, we have a guided tour of King Nikola’s Museum. In the museum you will learn the incredible story of this tiny kingdom, followed by free time in Cetinje itself.[i]

[i] This was the itinerary that tour manager Andrew had posted:

Day 3 - 09.00 Depart for Cetinje
Today we will visit a restaurant near to Cetinje to sample some local typical foods. After, we will visit the historical and cultural capital of Montenegro. We will have a guided tour of King Nikola’s Palace and Museum in Cetinje. Then free time for further exploration. Return to hotel at 5pm approx. Dinner is at your own arrangements this evening.

“Spasmodic sleep,” Janet reported: “not enough, but I’ve survived. Up 6.12am.” She vacated the bathroom just after 6.30am. I still had diarrhoea. Shaved. Showered… Logged on to …Bank… (06:21–06:25, BST), before we went down for breakfast. Back in the room, I saw hundreds of house martins flying around outside.
 “At 8.50am we left the hotel to join our coach, which was parked at the front of the hotel,” Janet wrote. “Front”, I think, meant the side facing the sea; so the coach was parked on the road we’d first reached by taking a shortcut through the hotel dining room (but would do so no longer: today, we left by the main doors at the rear and walked around to the road — though others did use the shortcut). Andrew had assigned seats by writing our names on cards and placing them on the seats. That was the practice for all tours this week; we didn’t employ the formula of “next day, so many seats forward (or backward) from those of the previous day”.
 Janet wrote, about the “weather: hot and sunny. Marvellous. Yesterday was very breezy (like Lanzarote) but today it was pretty calm”; then her account continued: “We travelled through the mountains to Njeguši and had a short stop there. We bought a drink then I bought [John] a €5 bottle of locally made ‘Srčanik’ (‘Rakija’). We bought a couple of postcards (one for us and one for Chris — and a stamp) and a small ‘Montenegro’ (or rather, ‘CRNA GORA’!) pottery bell for our ‘stair cabinet’ [souvenir cabinet at the top of the stairs].”
 As we travelled I wrote a few notes, as Andrew spoke over the address system:

• “Cetinje”, for that was where our main visit was going to be;
• “Pop[ulation of] Montenegro: 600,000 people”;
• “1 state-owned old people’s home, 2 private [ones]”, the implication being that Montenegrins looked after aged relatives in extended families much more than we tend to do in the UK;
• “Nikola”, the name of the last monarch of Montenegro (b.1841–d.1921; reigned from 1860; deposed, 1918), and the first and only to be styled “king”, whose palace we were to visit in Cetinje;
• “Njeguši” — to which I added “just after 10am” (presumably our arrival time) and “break till 11.30am”;
• “Karst landscape”, about the knobbly landscape through which we were passing; with additional words: “Carboniferous”, “Oolitic”.

 We stopped: first, in Njeguši; then, at the Restoran Konak, Zabrđe (“an authentic restaurant for a tasting of traditional smoked meats and cheeses with delicious priganice: doughnuts served with honey, which locals traditionally offer to house guests,” according to Riviera Travel’s blurb); then, Cetinje for a visit to the Royal Palace and free time. The Google Maps “Directions” route, below, seems to include much toing and froing along the same route, which makes me wonder whether we got, at least, to Njeguši by a different route. However, the first three photos were taken at a viewpoint above Budva, which suggests that we were on the zigzag portion of the “M23” route north of Budva as shown on the Google Maps route.


Our starting point and places visited today, as plotted by Google Maps “Directions”
(Click on image to enlarge.)

We had a brief “photo stop” overlooking Budva—


Saturday 9 September 2023 09:46:00
Viewpoint above Budva


Saturday 9 September 2023 09:46:14
Viewpoint above Budva


Saturday 9 September 2023 09:47:04
Viewpoint above Budva

—before going on to Njeguši for a “comfort stop” and free time.


Saturday 9 September 2023 10:49:28
Refreshments at “Konoba Njeguška sijela”, Njeguši


Saturday 9 September 2023 11:06:20
Rakija flavoured with “srčanik” (yellow gentian)


Saturday 9 September 2023 11:07:38
“Konoba Njeguška sijela”, Njeguši


Saturday 9 September 2023 11:16:42
Gift etc. shop in Njeguši


Saturday 9 September 2023 11:20:08
Njeguši

On our way to the Restoran Konak, Zabrđe, we were held up briefly by “20-odd goats on [the] road (11:48)” (as I jotted in my notepad). We “passed the Cetinje sign (11:49)”.


Saturday 9 September 2023 12:15:30
Priganice with honey at “Restoran Konak”, Zabrđe


Saturday 9 September 2023 12:26:08
Pršut with Njeguši cheese at “Restoran Konak”, Zabrđe


Saturday 9 September 2023 13:10:38
“Restoran Konak”, Zabrđe


Saturday 9 September 2023 13:13:02
“Restoran Konak”, Zabrđe

From there we went back to Cetinje, through which I’d noted our passing earlier. I made a note: “Rendezvous 4pm.” The parking place is shown by a (P), towards the left on the map below. My references to places in what follows use the wording of this map’s legend.


Saturday 9 September 2023 13:31:56
Map of “Cetinje” outside the “Tourist info Centre”, “(i)” on map
(Click on image to enlarge.)

On arrival, we went in procession to “King Nikola’s Castle and Museum”.


Saturday 9 September 2023 13:37:20
Cetinje: “Castle Church, Ćipur”, “8” on map


Saturday 9 September 2023 13:37:20 (detail)
Cetinje: “Castle Church, Ćipur”, “8” on map


Saturday 9 September 2023 13:37:34
Cetinje: Approaching “King Nikola’s Castle and Museum”, “9” on map

On the opposite side of the courtyard from the front entrance to “King Nikola’s Castle and Museum” was a “monument to Ivan Crnojević, founder of the city”. I was having difficulty with my camera — the push-button for taking photos kept getting jammed — and that’s perhaps why the top of Ivan Crnojević’s head has been cropped.


Saturday 9 September 2023 13:39:36
Cetinje: “Monument to Ivan Crnojević, founder of the city”, “14” on map


Saturday 9 September 2023 13:39:48
Cetinje: “King Nikola’s Castle and Museum”, “9” on map


Saturday 9 September 2023 13:41:40
Cetinje: “King Nikola’s Castle and Museum”, “9” on map


Saturday 9 September 2023 13:44:10
Cetinje: “King Nikola’s Castle and Museum”, “9” on map


Saturday 9 September 2023 13:44:24
Cetinje: “King Nikola’s Castle and Museum”, “9” on map

It’s not obvious from the photo above, but things were pretty crowded in there, around my side of the cordon especially, with 47 of us, plus tour manager plus local guide. I got fed up with feeling restricted by all the folk around me; our guide’s accent wasn’t the easiest to understand, and I had little interest in the succession of “prince-bishops” of Montenegro which he was describing at some length (“Vladimir”, though, whose name I jotted down, wasn’t one of them); and after I’d taken two photos someone pointed out that photography wasn’t allowed (which always pisses me off). Before long it all became too much for me — being bored, stifled, and shown things which I wouldn’t remember because I couldn’t photograph them — and I decided to leave. Janet told Andrew that I wasn’t feeling well and needed fresh air. We retired to a nearby establishment in the main street, just around the corner from “King Nikola’s Castle and Museum”. On the menu was “Budweiser Dark” draught beer. I’m not a fan of Budweiser American-style beer and find it somewhat insipid, but decided to try it. My enjoyment of it is perhaps explained by the following:

Two different companies, two completely different beers. American Budweiser is a huge company that produces an inferior beer but backs it up with large advertising campaigns. Czechoslovakian Budweiser (Budvar) is a much smaller company — the original — which produces a fine beer. [Quora]

Janet had orange juice and a slice of chocolate cake. I finished with a rakija and Janet an americano.


Bill from “Scottish Pub”, printed “14:10:01”


Saturday 9 September 2023 14:16:44
Refreshments at Scottish Pub Academia, 2 Njegoševa, Cetinje


Bill from “Scottish Pub”, printed “14:38:26”. “Vinjak” is perhaps the generic term for a cognac-style brandy, i.e. not the make or type of rakija that I had.


Saturday 9 September 2023 14:49:32
Refreshments at Scottish Pub Academia, 2 Njegoševa, Cetinje


Saturday 9 September 2023 15:09:32
Scottish Pub Academia, 2 Njegoševa, Cetinje

Then we wandered around, as shown in the photos which follow. We looked at “Cetinje Monastery” — seeing before we did so the opposite side of “Castle Church, Ćipur” from that seen in “13:37:20”. The church was built in 1890 by King Nikola on the site of ruins of the original 15th century Ćipur monastery.

After his death, he was initially buried in a Russian Orthodox church in Sanremo. On 1 October 1989, his remains (and the remains of his wife Queen Milena and their daughters Princesses Ksenija and Vjera) were repatriated to Cetinje where they were given a state funeral and interred in the Court Church [“Castle Church, Ćipur” on the map] near the Cetinje Monastery. [Wikipedia]

Saturday 9 September 2023 15:10:40
North-west along Ulica Njegoševa, Cetinje


Saturday 9 September 2023 15:12:28
Corner of Ulica Njegoševa and Dvorski Trg, Cetinje


Saturday 9 September 2023 15:13:58
“Transformator”, Dvorski Trg, Cetinje; (right:) King Nikola’s Castle


Saturday 9 September 2023 15:17:56
Cetinje: “Castle Church, Ćipur”, “8” on map


Saturday 9 September 2023 15:19:28
Cetinje: “Castle Church, Ćipur”, “8” on map


Saturday 9 September 2023 15:21:24
“Cetinje Monastery”, “5” on map


Saturday 9 September 2023 15:23:00
“Cetinje Monastery”, “5” on map


Saturday 9 September 2023 15:26:48
“Cetinje Monastery”, “5” on map

To the right of the courtyard, shown in the above photo, there was parked a Montenegrin police car (or were there two?). The police officers weren’t perceived as posing a threat to me, for I had a quick climb up the steps just shown at the right of the photo; then, deciding that there was nothing much of interest for us to see up there, I returned to where Janet was waiting.


Saturday 9 September 2023 15:27:46
“Cetinje Monastery”, “5” on map


Saturday 9 September 2023 15:31:32
View south from near “Cetinje Monastery”, “5” on map

I made a note: “Sveti Stefan photo stop”. Because the island was almost in the direction of the latish afternoon sun, I didn’t think the photo opportunity was all that opportune; but, with a little tweaking, I think the photo turned out quite well.


Saturday 9 September 2023 16:53:14
Sveti Stefan

Before we arrived at the hotel, Andrew told us, or reminded us, about tomorrow, and I jotted down notes:

PASSPORTS
8.30am meet
Stari Bar
Andi guide Albania

We must not forget our passports, unless we would want to spend the bulk of the day waiting on the Albanian border. In the morning, we’d be visiting Stari Bar (“Old Bar”), with the option of climbing up to the castle by a steep, rather rough path. Our guide in Shkodër, Albania, would be a knowledgable young man with excellent English called “Andi”. We arrived back, ca.5.10pm, and Janet and I skirted the hotel by its west end and north side before going in at the north-east corner entrance. At the back of the hotel there (“back”, i.e. following Janet’s earlier writing “front” for the side facing the sea; I actually wrote “in front of [the] hotel” in my notes), was a grove of olive trees, where we met a very friendly pussy cat. There were a great number of cats in Petrovac, all of them almost without exception kittens or not much older than kittens.


Saturday 9 September 2023 17:23:30
Cat in the grounds of Hotel AMI Budva Petrovac

This one followed us back to the hotel, even entering the revolving door and getting its bum kicked by a leaf of the door as it did so. “We’re sorry: it followed us!” we said to the receptionist.


Saturday 9 September 2023 17:39:38
Purchases made today: bell with a map of Montenegro/Crna Gora…


Saturday 9 September 2023 17:40:18
Purchases made today: bell with a map of Montenegro/Crna Gora, labelled “ЦРНА ГОРА”…


Saturday 9 September 2023 17:41:22
Purchases made today: bell with a map of Montenegro/Crna Gora, labelled “ЦРНА ГОРА” and “MONTENEGRO”


Saturday 9 September 2023 17:47:20
Purchases made today: bell with a map of Montenegro/Crna Gora, labelled “ЦРНА ГОРА” and “MONTENEGRO”; and a bottle of rakija flavoured with “srčanik” (yellow gentian)


Saturday 9 September 2023 17:48:46
Purchases made today: postcard of “CRNA GORA” / “Montenegro”

The sink in the bathroom had a mixer tap of a daft design: its outlet was straight and low, and stuck out right over the middle of the sink. If one was cleaning one’s teeth and spat into the sink, the water from the tap went straight down the sink and wouldn’t touch it; and it was impossible to wash one’s hair by bending over the sink because that mixer outlet would be in the way. (I only ever wash my hair in the shower, but Janet was faced with this problem.) Anyway I helped her to wash her hair: she had to insert her head to the side of the outlet, and I poured water over from a glass. Then we went out for dinner. We decided to go to the outdoor area across the promenade of the Hotel Riva. Janet had a mixed fruit drink and I had a Nikšićko beer.


Saturday 9 September 2023 18:50:12
Dinner at Hotel Riva, Petrovac


Saturday 9 September 2023 18:55:16
Hotel Riva, Petrovac


Saturday 9 September 2023 18:59:00
View from Hotel Riva, Petrovac

I had bruschette with ham, followed by a dish with lamb on the bone, while Janet had no starter and a Greek salad as a main.


Saturday 9 September 2023 19:01:22
Dinner at Hotel Riva, Petrovac


Saturday 9 September 2023 19:10:36
Dinner at Hotel Riva, Petrovac

We finished with coffee, and I also had an (almost obligatory) rakija.


Saturday 9 September 2023 19:47:26
Dinner at Hotel Riva, Petrovac

Contrary to our experience hitherto, there was no bill till we asked for it.


Bill from “Hotel Riva”, printed “19:53:32”

Because there were “service charges” we paid the exact amount and added no tip. Leaving there, we first turned left to buy water at a little market nearby—


Receipt from the market just west of “Hotel Riva”, printed “20:09:45”

—before turning back along the promenade the way we’d come. We stopped at a gelateria, where I had two scoops of pistachio flavour and Janet had three scoops of different flavours. We turned left up a path, but when we got to its end we didn’t know where we were; it all looked unfamiliar (such as happens in dreams sometimes, when you think you know where you are, but find that you are not!). We didn’t risk turning left, to see if we’d come across something we’d recognise, or right for the same reason; we just went back down to the promenade and found the path along which we’d first come. After that, as we were approaching the hotel I was taken by surprise by the noisy, noisome putative “entertainment”. In the enjoyment of the evening, I’d completely forgotten about it. Rage welled up in me, and I cursed him repeatedly and very loudly to die.[ii] Janet was upset and there were “words” between us.

[ii] This is in effect a contemporary writing, for it’s copied from my notebook. Time will tell whether I’ll let this offence go completely. A later, more measured, and possibly final imprecation is at “8 September 2023”, written after I got home: “May that bastard be totally robbed of his voice for seven years, during which time he will come to total poverty and near starvation (though afterwards, may God restore his fortunes, but not to disturb, annoy and upset people)!”

 We were back in the room, ca.8.45pm. I transferred 46 photos from the camera’s SD card to the Samsung computer (21:08–21:09 CEST). Normally, I’d have transferred them to the WD Elements HDD, but of course I didn’t have it with me. What could I do therefore to back them up?… I copied the three folders of photos back onto the camera’s SD card (20:11–20:13 CEST). I got ready for bed, ca.9.30pm, with the intrusive racket unabated.
 Janet’s own writing from after we got back is this: “We… were back in our room at ca.8.45pm. I’d decided that the only way to cope with the singing was to simply go to bed later [i.e. at ca.11pm after he would have stopped]. (Apparently, the bastardo will not be singing Monday evening[iii] so I shall have an early night!) So I had a shower, did my teeth, updated this [journal], then got into bed at 11pm. (He stopped at 10.55pm: I turned the air con. off and opened the window.) Then I had a meltdown. I explained the state I was in then tried to sleep.
 “I slept for about two hours; I lay awake for quite a long time before I dropped off…”

[iii] That’s what the receptionist told us, but it turned out to be untrue.

[Sunday 10 September 2023]