28 August 2018

Whilst the boats were safely tucked up in Kotor and before Anna and Michael left to continue their journey to Italy we had a day trip together on the bus through a tunnel in the mountains to nearby town of Tivat.

Tivat is a small town that has been added to by a huge new development, Porto Montenegro, built around a very posh marina. Walking around its eerily quiet, bright white, squeaky clean streets Michael commented that it seemed to have been built like a 1970s vision of the 21st century. It is full of very swanky hotels, apartments and shops and seemingly consequently very few people.

There were however several rather out of place looking sumo wrestlers along the water front. One of them seemed to be asking for a high five!

At the Museum Arsenal we were able to explore a training submarine of the former Yugoslavia’s navy.

Not usually one for military history even I found this diesel-electric submarine fascinating. The terrifying prospect of being underwater for up to 10 days aside, the science and technology involved is incredible.

Life on board must have been pretty difficult. The space is so small and filled with equipment.

Only the Captain got his own tiny cabin. There was no privacy at all for the crew.

Anna fully immersed herself in the experience and got told off for trying to climb down into the tiny galley. Apparently, the crew member responsible for the cooking was called the “tin man” as all their food came out of tins to be reheated.

Emerging from the windowless steel tube we were glad to find the open spaces of the imaginatively named Large Town Park. Apparently sailors had been encouraged to return to Tivat with new species of trees to plant in it and consequently it had a very diverse collection.

After the brand new buildings of Porto Montenegro it was good to find something old at the Buca-Lukovic Museum and Gallery, housed within its own 500 year old fortifications.

We might have got away from the boats for the day but that didn’t stop us taking advantage of the well stocked chandleries of Tivat and we returned home on the bus with presents for both Pintail and Red Rackham in the form of new fenders, amongst other things.