Apart Hotel Kukoljac Herceg-Novi

... was recommended by Karmen and booked in there.<br>Had a couple of hours to kill before leaving for the bus station so walked around the old town one last time and visited the Defenders of Dubrovnik memorial which was really good and informative.<br>Got to the bus station at 2:30 and was told the bus to Mostar was 2 hours late!! <br>Ended up getting on bus at 5pm and getting to Mostar just after 8pm.<br><br>

... to Perast and through the 17th Century Church of St Nicholas. Back on the bus and back to Kotor where the ship had docked. The Kotor city wall was built by the Serbian House of Nermanjic and is well perserved and protected by UNESCO. The wall extends almost vertically up approx 1,000 metres and no we didnt go to the top geez it was steep.... took pics to show you ...

... with guns wearing short mini skirts and extremely high heels. I asked Darko how they apprehended criminals in such high heels and he replied smirking that they don't have to run, they merely shot those not halting in the back and that stopped them. Like a dream come true, there I was in Beograd Serbia against all odds and complaints from my friends. Darko helped me get my luggage to his friend's vehicle telling me we could talk about everything I had to say later because we had ...

... to make this our base. The trouble was the town is just up on the map but in reality you have to pass around a bit sea inlet which meant the small extension took another hour!! Now don't get me wrong the drive had some of the best scenery we have seen on our whole trip but having come of a night train and knowing we need to go back to Kotor and do the return it did not exactly make us very happy campers. We eventually reach Hercerg Novi which had nothing ...

... you have to pay for their drinks!!) Anyway, the German man was very nice, and told us he had no trouble at the borders &amp; the amount he had to pay in Montenegro was about the same as we paid at the Macedonian border (50 Euro), so we opted for the driving route rather than the ferry! We had no problem getting through the Albanian border, &amp; had to pay nothing - WOW! As soon as we entered Albania you could see signs of war with all the bunkers ...

... at there house for a small fee. Sure enough when I arrived Mihala was there to shepherd me into her father's taxi to take me to there house, which had rooms rented out to a couple of Japanese people and a trio of Brits. Kotor is like a baby Dubrovnik, another walled city, but its setting at the base of the mountains in Southern Europe's deepest fjord is what makes it a fascinating location. Since I arrived around noon I headed straight out to walk around the maze of ...

... local fish restaurant and staying til sunset, going up into the hills and having the best lamb we have ever had in our lives (cooked by a Serbian guy who uses his own lambs, cooked in a massive metal pan hanging over a wood fire, preceded by his home made prosciutto, homemade cheese, and homemade olives and wine, all overlooking the sea and mountains). Doesn't get any better! So, anyway, back to the buying land/ property thing. Montenegro looks to be ...

... hotel, the price was more than we were expecting. The desk clerk at that hotel told us of another that was 'up on the hill." So, we walked about a mile towards the hill. Tammy started to get a bit worried as dusk was quickly settling upon us. So, eventually, we got to the end of the road and to the base of a small hill. The paved road turned into a dirt path that goes up the side of the hill. We were greeted there by two young girls who ...

... of information from our friend Rick. Mike and Rosa had a place "reserved" in Dubrovnik, and when he told us the price, we gasped. It was more than we paid in Venice! He decided after some conversation with his wife, that they wanted to follow us off the boat and find a sobe; this sense of spontaneity really seemed to get him excited. We agreed, although, I felt an immediate sense of responsibility that I didn't want. It's hard enough finding a place of our own sometimes, but ...

... it would have been a harrowing climb), I couldn't find the stairs to get up it so had to settle for another wander in another pretty and largely untainted old town. Heading south a few kilometres delivers you to a place called Sveti Stefan - a particularly well executed stone settlement that has been converted to a hotel complex and is now a ...