As
yet Montenegro
is still a little off the beaten track for most people, but this small country
offers a wealth of stunning scenery, history and culture. The name Montenegro or Crna
Gora,
literally translates as Black
Mountain, an apt description
for this beautiful, mountainous country.Situated on
the southern border of Croatia
and neighboured by Bosnia,
Serbia
and Albania,
Montenegro
offers 293 km of stunning Adriatic coast line. A
Mediterranean climate encourages a relatively slow pace of life and holiday makers will find it easy to slip into the meandering
life style for a truly relaxing break.
If the clear blue waters do not
entice you on to the beaches, other activities abound. From leisurely trips
around the many historical or cultural sites, to exploration across the
national parks, there really is something for everyone. For the really adventurous diving, white-water rafting, climbing,
and paragliding are among the activities on offer and for those preferring a
winter trip, there is skiing.
Formerly a
part of the Federal Republic
of Yugoslavia, Montenegro alongside Serbia now
constitutes the Union of Serbia and Montenegro, a loose political
alliance which allows both countries considerable
autonomy. 2006 should see a much herralded referendum in Montenegro on seperation
from Serbia
and eventual accession to the EU. Spared much of the devastation faced by
other Former-Yugoslav countries during the civil war of the 90’s, it
nevertheless suffered considerable economic hardship. It is now going
through a period of rapid change and economic growth. Being a little
rough around the edges adds much to Montenegro’s charm, but it is a
safe and welcoming country.
A paradise for nature lovers, bird watchers, sports enthusiasts,
artists, historians or simply beach loungers, why not
try a trip to this fascinating country? A first taste of what it has to offer
will leave you thirsting for more!
How to get there?
International
Montenegro
is serviced by two airports, Tivat
and Podgorica, with Croatia’s Dubrovnik airport only a 16 km drive over the
border. Currently direct flights to Tivat from the UK are rather
limited but are available in the summer season.
It is also possible to fly in from other European destinations, Paris, Budapest, Frankfurt,
Rome. A
daily service operates from London to Belgrade and a short transfer flight of
40 minutes on to Tivat or Podgorica
ensures a relatively quick total journey time. Direct flights to Dubrovnik leave from a
number of British Airports in the summer and throughout the year from London
Gatwick with an increasing number of charter flights available during high
season. Direct flights from Dublin to Dubrovnik are also
available during the summer and an increasing number of countries across Europe have flights to this airport. Transfers to and
from the airports can be arranged.
Numerous
coach companies travel from neighbouring countries to Montenegro.
Largely used by locals they offer a very cheap option. If you suffer from
travel sickness this is not to be advised as every
point of entry into Montenegro
will require driving over mountain passes!
Trains are
currently limited with the only international train service operating between
Bar and Belgrade.
However there are a number of trains time-tabled each
day and it is possible to get on a sleeper for which it is advisable to book a
couchette in advance.
Driving
into Montenegro
requires a green card for your vehicle, but third party insurance can be purchased on the border for a small fee.
British driving licenses are accepted in Montenegro.
Local
travel
Car hire is
a practical way to enjoy all that Montenegro has to offer and there
are a number of local companies offering competitive rates alongside some of
the international companies. Whilst the main roads are acceptable, off
the beaten track driving in Montenegro
is not for the faint hearted – exploration requires a considerable amount of
twisting mountain journeys, sometimes over fairly rough
terrain. Many companies also hire scooters.
Local buses are not always very reliable and do not necessarily
run to a strict timetable but are fairly frequent pariticularly in the summer. There are a number of
bus tours to many of the major sites in Montenegro and tickets can be arranged through many of the local travel offices.
For quick access from Tivat
airport to the north of the country a car ferry
service operates from Kamenari to Lepetane
across the Strait
of Verige.
Taxis are often expensive especially for
foreigners. If you use them make sure you have
agreed a price before getting into the car.
Climate
Along the coast Montenegro
enjoys a Mediterranean climate with summer temperatures in the 30’s and mild
winters. An average year sees 240 days of sunshine and 180 days when water
temperatures reach between 21°c -27°c. Weather can
change rapidly especially in the mountains but never for too long.
|
AVERAGE
TEMPERATURES
|
|
|
COASTAL AREA
|
MOUNTAIN AREA
|
|
|
Air
°C
|
Sea
°C
|
Sunshine
|
Air
°C
|
Sunshine
|
|
|
max
|
min
|
|
h
|
max min
|
h
|
|
WINTER
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
December
|
13.2
|
6.1
|
14.8
|
106.4
|
3.2
|
-5.2
|
74.7
|
|
January
|
11.9
|
4.5
|
13.0
|
116.1
|
2.0
|
-7.3
|
83.5
|
|
February
|
12.4
|
5.1
|
12.5
|
119.2
|
4.1
|
-5.8
|
95.7
|
|
SPRING
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
March
|
14.8
|
7.1
|
13.9
|
164.8
|
8.1
|
-2.5
|
136.5
|
|
April
|
18.7
|
9.7
|
16.1
|
194.3
|
12.4
|
1.0
|
158.6
|
|
May
|
22.3
|
13.6
|
20.4
|
253.6
|
17.8
|
5.1
|
191.7
|
|
SUMMER
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
June
|
26.1
|
16.8
|
23.7
|
289.1
|
20.8
|
8.1
|
204.0
|
|
July
|
28.6
|
19.3
|
24.4
|
337.7
|
23.3
|
9.3
|
262.1
|
|
August
|
28.8
|
19.2
|
25.1
|
312.2
|
23.5
|
9.1
|
245.5
|
|
AUTUMN
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
September
|
25.8
|
16.6
|
23.8
|
247.8
|
20.0
|
6.2
|
193.8
|
|
October
|
21.6
|
13.1
|
21.3
|
191.8
|
14.9
|
2.4
|
159.1
|
|
November
|
13.7
|
9.3
|
18.2
|
120.7
|
8.8
|
-1.1
|
97.2
|
|
History
CRNA GORA, (Black
Mountain) known to the
outside world by its Venetian name of “Montenegro” was the only part of
the Balkans to escape Ottoman rule. According
to legend, when God created the earth a lot of rocks
were left over; so He made Montenegro.
The Slavic colonisation of
the Balkan Peninsula occurred during VI
century. It is believed that the predecessors of the
Montenegrins came from an area in the north called Slavia and were known
as the Velet and Odobriti
tribes. The Velet and Odobriti tribes longed for the warmer waters of the Mediterranean Sea and settled in the Roman province of Prevalis.
There they found the urban Roman settlements of Kotor,
Risan, Budva, Bar, Ulcinj and Duklja, which lie
within the borders of present-day Montenegro and
also the native Illyrian tribes. The Montenegrins were pagans, but
through coexistence and assimilation they accepted
Christianity from the Romans. They brought with them the name of the old native
country Slavia and more than 860 toponyms.
Even today, in the Baltic, there are around 800 settlements, rivers, lakes and
mountains with names similar to corresponding places in Montenegro.
Montenegro’s
traditional culture revolved around clans, each headed by a ŽUPAN (Chieftain),
groups of patrilineally related families that at one
time maintained tribal identities on their own traditional territories. Faced
with incessant threats from the Ottoman armies and rival groups, clans
traditionally emphasised personal courage in combat as a major virtue.
The division of the Roman Empire
between Roman and Byzantine rule was marked by a line
that ran northward from Skadar through modern Montenegro,
symbolising the status of this region as a perpetual marginal zone between the
economic, cultural and political worlds of the Mediterranean peoples and the
Slavs.
Stephen Crnojevic, the
founder of Montenegro,
spent his life defending his country against the Ottomans. When his position
became impossible he went up to lofty Cetinje, which thereafter remained the capital of his
people. There, he and his descendants established a tiny mountain commonwealth,
which the Turks often invaded, but never permanently conquered.
From 1515 to 1696, Montenegro was a theocratic state
ruled by monkish bishops. From then on until 1918 hereditary
princes of the Petrovic dynasty ruled. The
princely office was made hereditary during the reign
of Danilo Petrovic. This
arrangement of a hereditary prince-bishop was continued
until 1851, when the incumbent established himself as a secular ruler with the
title Prince Danilo I.
In 1688 Montenegrins began
their long struggle for independence and
were finally rewarded at the Berlin Congress. After 1860
the political life of Montenegro
was dominated by the strong personality of Prince Nicholas. On the St. Nicholas
Day Assembly in 1905, Prince Nicholas introduced Montenegro's first formal
Constitution. According to the new Constitution, Montenegro was a constitutional but
not a parliamentary monarchy. He was also very successful in arranging
marriages for his daughters; two married Russian grand dukes and thereafter
played an important role in the Russian court; one became the wife of Petar Karadjordjevic, but died in
1890 before he became the Serbia’s
king. The fourth married Victor Emmanuel III and became Queen of Italy.
In 1910, the parliament
proclaimed Montenegro
a constitutional monarchy with Nicholas as King (Nicholas I). Despite becoming
king, Nicholas’ authority was diminishing.
Austria occupied Montenegro in 1915, during WWI,
when Serb-led forces protecting the region fled to Greece via Albania. The
Allies quickly declared their solidarity with the defeated Montenegro.
British Prime Minister David Lloyd George promised, "The Allies will do
justice to the heroism of the Montenegrins."
Montenegro and Serbia
unified in 1918 marking one of the most interesting and most important issues
of contemporary Montenegrin history.
In November 1945 a constitutional assembly met and the Federal People’s Republic of Yugoslavia was proclaimed. Post-war Yugoslavia was
organised on a federal basis and the state was divided
into six republics: Bosnia-Hercegovina, Croatia,
Macedonia,
Montenegro,
Serbia
and Slovenia.
The break-up of the Yugoslav
federation after 1989 left Montenegro
in an acutely precarious position. The first multiparty elections in 1990
returned the reformed League of Communists to power, confirming Montenegrin
support for the disintegrating federation. The Republic therefore joined Serbian
efforts to preserve the Federation and in 1992 it
acceded to the "Third Yugoslavia," a federal republic comprising only
it and Serbia.
In February 2003 the state changed the name into the Union of Serbia and
Montenegro.
Food and Drink
The diversity
of Montenegro’s
landscape is reflected in the food and a wide range of
national dishes. Virtually everything is organic and much of the cooking
culture revolves around the home. Montenegrins are fantastic hosts!
Although there are plenty of dishes without meat, vegetarianism is a concept
little understood in this part of the world and the Montenegrin diet is heavily
reliant on meat.
In the north much of the cuisine uses forest berries, herbal teas
and wild mushrooms. Dairy products feature heavily in everyday cooking,
with Kajmak (sour cream) yoghurt and cow’s and
sheep’s cheese. Other specialities of the region include steak and lamb
cooked using the traditional method of ispod
(under the coals).
Cooking in
the central region has a predominance of fish, much of it originating from Skadar
Lake, in particular carp,
trout and eel, which is delicious smoked or
fried. Smoked ham, sausage are also core to the diet and as an olive
producing country, olive oil features in most meals in the Mediterranean
tradition of wine, fish and oil. Sea fish and shell food are also popular
dishes and vegetables such as chicory, asparagus and leeks are plentiful.
Bread is a staple food offered at every meal.
For drink you can try the Montenegrin beer Nikšić
or the fine, locally produced red wine Vranac.
Merlot is also readily available and the best white wine is the dry Krstač. The true national drink is Rakija, a fiery brandy distilled from white
grapes. Many people distil their own, and if you are a guest in someone’s
home you are likely to be offered it. Kruna is the slightly more exclusive version,
distilled in copper vats over fires laid with grapevines.
Tap water
is safe, although in high summer water can be cut off
in some areas for a few hours each day. The authorities are working hard
to improve the water system so cuts will become a thing of
the past.
Money and Banking
