Where is the Montenegro?

18 JUNE  2022

Montenegro is that rarefied gem not most of us seemed to know. A glorious country that can stir up our imagination, you can just consume its beaches and ports and realize it's a postcard you can live and breathe.

Not all of us have that confidence to picture in our head and pinpoint exactly on a map Not Not all of us have that confidence to picture in our head and pinpoint exactly on a map where Montenegro is. Quite a mystery at the least, given that this Balkan country doesn’t shy away from showing off its grandeur–a beautiful orchestra that is somehow unheard of. Its reticence adds to its charisma–always unassuming yet rich with aesthetics and profound sense of class. Montenegro is a country located in the Adriatic Sea, neighbor to Croatia, Albania,Bosnia and Serbia. Across the sea is the cultural behemoth Italy. That of course is referential, rather than deferential to Italy. Mentioning its proximity to the said country helps in visualizing where Montenegro can be located. Montenegro is as stand-alone and unique as one can get.

The modern capital of Montenegro is Podgorica, replacing the city of Cetinje which remains to be its premier cultural center. Podgorica is a thriving city that has painstakingly reinvented its own identity post-WWII. Which explains a semblance of modernity in its residential area that were built in recent decades. Often outshone by a more illustrious destination in Budva, Montenegro’s capital is the frugal, humble older brother to the other towns, it’s a city to detox from the boisterous and high-energy of the coastal towns.

Budva, destination-extraordinaire

Montenegro is that rarefied gem not most of us seemed to know. A glorious country that can stir up our imagination, you can just consume its beaches and ports and realize it's a postcard you can live and breathe. Be prepared to be bedazzled going there, the coastal town of Budva embraces you with sceneries that can energize you from within. The soothing reverie of its beach fronts is just as invigorating as its medieval citadels that have literally and figuratively protected its vast heritage.

A country that is often brushed aside, or just the lack of recall, Montenegro astounds in the most sneakiest of ways. Gifted with natural and man-made sceneries, this Mediterranean charmer boasts of destinations unlike any other. Budva is in the forefront of that. Budva is either something that takes your breath away or kills you for not having the audacity to visit the coastal wonder.

Montenegro, where have you been all this time?

Montenegro is an experience a tourist can traverse in the vast cultural mesh of Southeast Europe. A country that emerged from the Soviet split, it has held its own and developed its own culture–both a departure and remnants of its socialist past. Traveling is all about discovery. It’s all about navigating uncharted wonders of the world. Which is why legendary explorers of the past braved the perils of the seas to discover the unseen.

Montenegro is a country that surprisingly has gone off the radar for most of us. With all the trappings of depth and beauty, a Montenegro vacation is both escapism to the trivial motions of the times and homage to a cultural success borne off the ever-changing socio-political landscape of the world. But more than anything else, it is an experience we owe to ourselves in this lifetime.