Dear Family and Friends,
Hope you are all well. In Log #2 we were in Venice for our last night before heading for the Balkans. After a late wander through the passageways of Venice we sat on the steps in St. Marks Square and took in the beautiful classical music from a very talented quartet. We got up early the next morning and took a ferry to the main railway station. We then railed it to the port of Ancona, about 5 hours south. We boarded a ship, Svetin Stefan ll, for a 16 hour journey to the port of Bar in Montenegro. Our cabin was tiny with a double bunk bed, but we enjoyed an incredible 12 hours of sleep and left the vessel very refreshed. It’s amazing what a little rocking will do. We also fitted in a couple of great meals while on board.
Bar is a busy coastal town, with lots of traffic. We went to a supermarket and stocked up on food, then studied the map to decide which way to go. To the south-east were the beaches of Ulcinj, to the north-west lots of beach resort towns, to the north the mountains. It was very hot so the mountains sounded good. We hired a car, a tiny Chevrolet Spark, and headed north. We stopped at some markets and bought the best figs and nectrines we have ever eaten – all home grown and organic.
Nearly everyone here smokes. I went into a small store to buy some paper plates. In the few minutes I was there two separate children around 8 years old purchased cigarettes and had them opened barely before they left the store. There are no smoking laws over here so every restaurant is very cloudy. People throw their butts in the street. Beaches, parks, footpaths, streams, etc are all decorated with cigarette butts. We sure live in a great country where smoking is now considered unacceptable by the majority.
The road took us up into the hills until we reached the capital city, Podgorica. Then up into the mountains. The road was very narrow and wound up through a beautiful gorge, higher and higher until we reached the town of Kolasin, near a UNESCO World Heritage national park called Biogradska Gora. This is one of the few remaining jungles in Europe. Along the way we had seen lots of billboards advertising a spa resort at Kolasin. We decided to stay two nights in the area and, while seeking a cheap B&B, I thought we could take a quick look at this resort, the Bianca Resort & Spa. It has to be one of the most impressive health spas we have ever seen. Five star, seven stories built like a huge bee hive, it has a massive indoor pool, gym, treatment rooms, Turkish steam bath for 20 persons, Finnish saunas, solariums, etc, etc. A magnificent restaurant, ski rooms for winter, lounge areas on every floor, it is all built with granite rock and lined with white cedar. Just for the information I asked what the rates were. The receptionist offered us a room for 115 Euros per night. This seemed very cheap but it was still a bit above our budget. I gave her my card and asked if she could do an industry discount. She looked at us for about half a minute then offered us a queen room for two nights, including a full breakfast each morning, a five course dinner each night, a massage each, full use of the pool, gym, steambath and saunas and a whole heap of other small incentives for 60 euros each per night. The offer was too good to refuse. The breakfasts are unbelievable, with many national dishes, local eggs cooked fresh any way you like, abundance of fruits, vegatables, wholemeal breads, etc (am I making you hungry?). Alan, you would really love these breakfasts. The dinners are huge, offering a variety of choices in each course.
Why so cheap? The hotel was originally built in 1948. It was totally destroyed by an earthquake in 1972, then rebuilt soon after. It did well during the 1980’s but went out of business during the Yugoslav war in the 1990’s. It fell into disrepair and rotted away until 2004 when a local man bought it and attracted some Russian investors. He came up with a plan then raised the money to build what is now the best resort and spa in the country. It only opened last year, so they are willing to offer all sorts of deals to build up custom. They are advertising a lot in England so there are lots of English tourists here. The Montenegroan National Basketball team is also staying here. They are all about 6.5 to 7 feet tall. We like it so much that we have decided to stay two extra nights. That means two more free massages!
Yesterday we planned to climb the mountains in Biogradska Gora, but it rained, so we caught up on some rest in the morning and explored the base area of the park in the afternoon. We had a picnic lunch there too. We hiked half way around the lake and it started raining again. It got pretty cold too so we hightailed it back to the car. On the way down the mountain we picked up a French couple hitchhiking. They are staying in the same town in a Sote (B&B). The previous night they stayed in a tiny cabin surrounded by cows and barking dogs. The wind blew all night through gaps in the walls. They could not believe how much we are paying at the resort, because their accommodation alone is not much less. It pays to ask! They have invited us to their home next time we visit France.
We may go white water rafting tomorrow but we have heard that the water level in the river is low and it may be more like a gentle float downstream rather that the real exciting stuff. We will have to check it out. Debbie, of course, is hoping we find some bigger rapids further up the mountain. We’ll see.
We wish you good health and a great week,
Gary and Debbie
