Day 10 (July 21, 2017): Budva, Perast, and Kotor

The plan for today focussed on two key items: getting ourselves to the town of Budva to see its old town section. And then getting ourselves to the small town of Perast, which is well regarded as one of the most picturesque towns along the Montenegrin coast.

After a leisurely breakfast, we walked to the bus station and soon found a bus heading to Budva. Budva is a town on steroids in terms of tourist growth:  Europeans come by the thousands to swell the small permanent population of 13,000 and swim anywhere they can..  Despite the hyper tourist action, Budva's walled old town is certainly a treasure, and we thoroughly enjoyed walking its cobble-stone streets, its ramparts, and exploring its citadel.

We were back at the Budva bus station by noon, had a quick lunch at a restaurant there, and then got a bus back to Kotor, arriving before 2PM. We then took a boat to Perast for the afternoon. 

The rest of the day was spent strolling the streets of Kotor's old town. 

Tomorrow morning, we leave for the capital of Montenegro: Podgorica, the last stop on our itinerary.

This is the view of the main square from the breakfast patio at a hotel. The hotel is built directly into the city walls.

This is Jazz Beach, near Budva.  I have never seen such a conglomeration of beach chairs and umbrellas in my life.  There is precisely measured capacity on this beach for thousands!

The fortifications for Old Town Budva.

Budva's old town has a citadel that is on the side the wall looking out to sea.

The terracotta rooftops of old town Budva.  No wonder it is called a mini-Dubrovnik"!

Old vs. New:  in the foreground, some buildings from within the walled old town.  While right outside is the pack-em-in mayhem of the modern Budva beach scene.

Looking out the fortress walls to the modern beach scene of Budva.

The view of Kotor Bay from our boat tour.  The mountain walls are so similar to Norway's fjords. They certainly are of equal height. Norway's fjords are of glacial origin, while these mountain walls were tectonic.

Just off the village of Pervast is the man-made island of Lady of the Rocks, made by the villagers in the 1800s. The island to the left is natural and is called St. George's Island.

Lady of the Rocks man-made island in the middle of Kotor Bay

The town of Perast is described as a mini Venice. In return for protecting the Bay of Kotor from pirates, Venice provided financial incentives to the town. It became extremely wealthy in its day. And even boasted 16 churches and 17 "palaces."

Saint Nicholas' Church in Perast, one of 16 churches at the village's heyday

We had a 30 minute stop in Perast, so I took the opportunity for a quick dip!

Another view of Perast

The term "palace" was used to describe swanky homes. (Not quite at the level of Buckingham palace however!) We had dinner in the Square in front of this fine palace. 

Our dinner was marked by two entertainment items: the first was watching this dog salivate over a Kotor cat who was lounging around

The second was hearing this duo perform a mix of classical and pop pieces

All over town, cats rule the roost. Legend has it that, during the days of plague, the cats saved the town by killing the plague infested rats. So they are revered to this day.