ADRIATIC COAST and suppingthelocalvinoinoutdoorcafes betweentheoleanders. of Haj-Nehaj,StariBarandSva and,mostevocatively,residences thelonelyandmysterious withinUlcinj’sfortifications ruins shops ofBudva’sOldTown,thesurreal glamourofSveti Stefan’s theramshackle villageresort, fied theirsettlementssinceancienttimes. That legacycanbeexplored inthelively barsand and fishingvillagestoexplore. crammed intoit.Avoid thosemonthsandyou’llfinda charismaticclutchofsmalltowns brethren Orthodox the entire Serbianworldandafairchunkofitsnorthern canbefound has focusedfirmlyonthisscant100kmcoastalregion. InJulyandAugust itseemsthat ous stretch leadingtotheAlbanianborder. Montenegro’s shoreline hasdeveloped intosandybeaches,culminating ina12kmcontinu- Withoutthebuffer ofCroatia’sislands,more of small area thecountryitself). (abitlike water’s even clearer. thebayit’salessclosed-in,sunniervibethat’sengenderedalthough unlike here andthe ofmountainsandseathatsendsthespiritsoaring, the BayofKotor,it’sjuxtaposition surely block-voting backtheeastern Adriatic–andnotjustbecauseofBalkan either. Like If coastlinescouldenter anequivalentoftheEurovision would SongContest, thebookies Coast Adriatic 94 © LonelyPlanetPublications Living onthefaultlinebetweenvariouscivilisations,peopleofcoasthave forti- Unsurprisingly, muchofthenation’sdetermination toreinvent itselfasatouristmecca Croatia mayhogmostofthecoastbutMontenegro’s packs alotintovery tinysection
HIGHLIGHTS
Watchingthepassingparadeof beautiful Scoffingabig bowloffishsoupinastilt-house aroundtherockybays Snorkelling Letting offthe leashin thekids totheatmosphericsolitudeof Hiking upthesummerbeachsidebuzzof Soaking Gazinginwonderatthecutesy beautyofthe ( p111) cobbled laneways of people over therimof acoffee cup inthe overhanging the ruined Eastern-tinged walled islandof ( p107) Haj-Nehaj fortress Ulcinj Sveti Stefan Bojana River Budva’s Old Town ( p114 ) (p113) č (p103) . Otherwise justspendyourdayslazingbeside azure. Otherwise waters (p118) Petrovac north ofBar north (p97)
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a t e Z Kru™e Ulcinj Tu‹emili Stari Bar Vranjina Peøurice 00 10 miles 20 km Bar Although beholden to Byzantium, the Although to Byzantium, the beholden of Venice . In 1089, only 35 years after the the after only 35 years . In 1089, Venice of into Catholic Christianity (western) split of of , the rulers halves (eastern) and Orthodox Duklja succeeded in negotiating the creation Eventually a Catholic archdioceseof in Bar. Duklja was brought into Byzantine con- back into the Serbian incorporated trol and later defeated and disappeared from human his- and disappeared defeated another story. One were tory, but the Slavs the group, the Serbs, this part of had reached coast by the 7th century and put down roots, into small clans. These eventuallyorganising Duklja (later the principality of became part of antecedent. Montenegro’s called Zeta), also influenced by the Latincoastal towns were power naval west due in part to the increasing Rvaši Brca Sutomore Virpazar Rijeøani
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ADRIATIC COAST COAST ADRIATIC History History From the 4th century BC the Ancient Greeks Greeks From the 4th century BC the Ancient Byzantine culture. The Avars were eventually were The Avars Byzantine culture. in the 6th century with only Budva (at the time called Butua) holding out as a bastion of most of it within the Greek-influenced eastern eastern within the Greek-influenced it most of (Byzantine) half. to split the Roman Empire in two, the border- Roman Empire to split the line crossed the coast, leaving this section of benefited from its position near the centre of of from its position near the centre benefited When the decision was made empire. a great 168 BC, into their was incorporated the region it 500 years over Dalmatia and for of province coast, such as Bouthoe coast, such (Budva). Once the smashed Illyria in Romans had completely lonelyplanet.com set up colonies along the Illyrian-controlled