Out of the Ionian Sea and into the Adriatic

Saturday 06 June

We were very relaxed about our departure from Gouvia Marina, Corfu and finally left at about 9.30 a.m. in a flat, calm sea with little wind.  The northern end of Corfu is close to the mainland which at this point is Albania and it is necessary to be cautious about crossing into the territorial water line.  The Captain had decided against making a stop in Albania and that we would head straight for Bar in Montenegro.  As Montenegro is not a member of the EU it is necessary to check in through Customs and the Police, as we have done before entering and leaving Turkey, and we also had to check out of Greece at the marina.  The first thirteen hours of our trip were lovely.  The sea state remained very calm, the sun shone and we saw dolphins, which almost made up for the anxiety I was feeling with the arrival of the sun setting at 9.06 p.m. and by 10 p.m. darkness.  I took the first watch - we had agreed two hours on, two hours off - and initially I could not see a thing but gradually there were lights, from fishing boats mostly, and far enough away not to be a problem.  The Captain had spent the whole day saying what wonderful conditions for a 24 hour sail, blah, blah, blah and it almost goes without saying that at about 11.30 p.m. (and just before the Captain's watch) the wind picked up. The combination of darkness and wind is not a good one or trying to sleep for two hours with the boat crashing up and down through waves and I did not sleep at all.  At 2 a.m. when it was my turn again the wind settled down a little and the Captain had two hours without interruption. 

The Captain changing the courtesy flag to that of Albania

Sunday 07

We arrived at Bar at 7.30 a.m. and helped ourselves to a spot alongside assisted by a fisherman.  It wasn't long before we were greeted by someone who seemed to be in charge of taking our money and then the Captain went off to check in.  We elected not to go back to bed (which is what I really wanted to do) but to go for a walk and see what was what.  There were a lot of people about already but it took a little while to realise that instead of being two hours ahead of the UK as in Greece we were now only an hour ahead - doesnt sound so bad but it meant yet another hour to stay awake! We did, however, return to the boat and fall asleep in the chairs on deck. Later on we went for another walk around Bar. Really very dispiriting and not somewhere I ever want to return to - a typical Communist era town, very drab, hot, dirty and not particularly friendly.  We were pleased to be leaving the next day.

Monday 08

We headed for the Bay of Tivat and Bay of Kotor, a 'must see', very close to the Croatian border.  The Captain elected to spend the night in Porto Montenegro Marina, which is possible the best marina we have ever stayed in. It is a super yacht marina and caters for super yachts in that it is beautifully done.  We have seen 'maids' sweeping along the main walk ways and polishing elecriticty boxes.  We have heard a (super)yacht call up asking for the dustcart to come and take the rubbish. There is a fabulous hotel in the middle of the marina, many restaurants and many over-priced boutiques. In the town is a Henri Lloyd and a Musto charging double the prices we pay in the UK.  It is also in a beautiful setting and amazingly affordable.  We have paid more in Gocek, Turkey. In Montenegro almost everything starts at 8 a.m. which we are really not used to having been in Greece when the day starts when, and if, someone gets up in the morning.

Sequel in Porto Montenegro Marina, Tivat

Tuesday 09

We set off again for Kotor which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and set right at the end of the bay. Again we helped ourselves to a place on a new pontoon right by the Old Town and for the first time ever moored stern to completely without help and picked up the lazy lines - only because there wasn't anyone there to help - and fortunately there was no wind.  We were very pleased with ourselves and then really showed off helping the next three boats in with their ropes and the lazy lines.  We could see from the boat a fortress and a path leading up to it from inside the Old Town but thought maybe we would save this for the next day.  We did venture into the Old Town but were very put off by the passengers from three visiting cruise ships and soon decided we preferred being on the boat. And by that time I was totally put off walking up to the fortress.

Path to the Church and San Giovanni Fortress, Kotor

Sequel in Kotor

Wednesday 10

We had thought we would leave by 10 a.m. Did a little bit of provisioning in particular from a fruit and vegetable market by the pontoon and then the Captain decided we couldnt leave without climbing up to the fortress. By this time it was 10 a.m. but we walked through the Old Town to find the path, initially to a church about a third of the way up, and then to the fortress itself. By the time we got to the church we were dripping - literally - but having recovered from the first climb decided to keep going to the fortress.  We really should have taken the advice from a fellow tourist who told us the view from the church was good enough. It took us 20 minutes to get to the church and double the time from there to the fortress.  The views were amazing but we should have called it a day at the church.  On the way down I counted the steps - I could not have done this on the way up as most of the time I was struggling to breathe, let alone count - and reckoned on approximately 1500. 

View of the Port of Kotor from the San Giovanni Fortress

We made it!

The Bay of Kotor

We have returned to Porto Montenegro marina in Tivat for another night and are recovering from our morning's efforts by catching up with emails etc. Tomorrow we check out of Montenegro and leave for Croatia.  We have had no word from either of our prospective shippers.