A catty little town. Kotor in Montenegro.

We had an early morning call at 6 am so that we could watch our entry into Kotor, in Montenegro, along the famous Kotor fiord, the most southern in Europe.  The only problem is that it is not a fiord!

The yacht came in extremely gracefully and there was not a sound as we glided past the small waterfront villages with their picturesque homes and churches.  The most attractive of all was Perast, especially with the reflections in the still, morning water.

                                                       

                                                                            Perast

Near here were the two islands, Our Lady of the Rocks Island, built by local fishermen following the discovery of an icon after a shipwreck.  The other is the island of St. George, home to the Baroque church of St. George.  This is also called the island of dead captains as it has a large cemetery.

We didn’t hurry ashore at Kotor as we are here till 11 pm.  This is one of the best preserved medieval urban settlements of the 12^th – 14^th centuries.  It seems as if everyday there is another UNESCO world heritage site!

                            Some of the laneways are quiet and private. This is the sign to a bar

We walked around visiting the churches and medieval buildings and strolling along the narrow laneways while admiring the numerous town squares.  It is one of those places where you totally lose your sense of direction but all you need to do is look up. Above the town are the steep hills leading up to the fortress and several churches.  The other direction must be the water and our yacht is docked right next to the old town.

                          Only 400 or 500 steps up to the church! The churches in town are popular!

The symbol for the city of Kotor is a cat so when we came across the Cat Museum, we just had to go in for a visit.  On the counter at the entry point was a kitten asleep in a small bread basket!  In medieval days, cats were an important part of every family to keep down the rats!

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                                                   Cats in war. A fighter pilot cat

We are now ashore for the 3^rd time today and we will probably go back on board for dinner and have another stroll in the cool of the evening. As we sit we look across the small Duomo square to the Cathedral with the backdrop of the path leading up to the churches high on the hill and the fortress. Climb over 1000 steps..no we are sitting with beer and local Montenegro chardonnay.

                       You can't tell from the photo but it is taken from the pub in the square