Montenegro – luck was on my side!

Way back in 2019 – you will remember that was when we could travel and didn’t have a care in the world – we went on a cruise along the coast of what was once Yugoslavia. I was reminded of this as I work through my portfolio adding my best images to my new portfolio and print store at Pictorem. I well remember the excitement as we woke up after an overnight cruise up towards the Gulf of Kotor in Montenegro – would it be raining, would the clouds clear, what would the actual cruise up to Kotor be like?

Out on deck my worst fears appeared to be coming true – heavy clouds and a chance of rain. No opportunity for a second go round – this was the only time we would be sailing this way! Then, as I stood huddled on the bow, the clouds started to part, and I started to see the beauty all around me.

We rounded a bend in the bay and came across the famous pair of islands known as Our Lady of the Rocks. These are actually artificial islands created by bulwark of rocks and by sinking old and seized ships loaded with rocks and a small Roman Catholic church and museum has been built there. The sun was just now starting to break out and beautifully lit the two islands to help separate them from the mainland. Being on a ship, the perspective continually changes and as we turned towards Kotor itself, I could get a different view of the islands.

As we continued to sail, the weather just got better and better – blue skies and an almost windless morning gave me a fantastic view of Kotor with reflections everywhere.

The cloud patterns in the sky are great as well – a blue sky with nothing in it can actually spoil an image, giving you nothing really to look at. These are nicely bringing your eye back down to the coastline and the red roofs of the homes along the water.

All this time, I was hopping about on the boat, trying to capture all the sights around me. The one above is a wide panorama created by taking multiple vertical shots and stitching them together.

You can’t actually just turn around on a ship and see behind you, and so I would go from side to side and from bow to stern as the ship moved slowly towards its destination. This next image is of the same town, but from the other side looking backwards towards the open ocean.

Once there, I am usually the first off the boat with camera and tripod in hand to try to capture the town before it becomes too crowded!

And, if you look behind the town, you might just see a ruined castle on the hilltop. That must be the next stop for me – easier said than done with the steep path and zigzag turns, but the view was magnificent!

A lovely start to a great day in the town of Kotor in Montenegro!