Saturday, September 17, 2011

Vacanta in Muntenegru 8. Ulcinj / Montenegrin Vacation 8. Ulcinj

I have choosed to spend one week in Ulcinj motivated by the fact that it is near the Albanian border and I continued the journey there, and second, I imagined there will be not so many people as in Budva or Kotor, which I already visited in another trip. Nothing more wrong! Ulcinj is very crowdy. Most of the tourists are locals or Serbian but I have seen few Germans, Italians or Russians too. I met only one Romanian family on a beach.

I searched the internet for the history of Ulcinj and I found out that the founders have been Greeks, who named the place Colchinium. Than, the Romans conquered the place and eventualy transformed it into a municipium. The Ventians dominated the town over 150 years, changing its name in Dulcigno. The man who becam the famous Miguel de Cervantes was prisoner here for 5 years. Finally, the Turks owned the town for over 300 years. In 1878 it was liberated but only in 1880 the town joined the Montenegro. Of course this only a summary but between its lines people lived here, in the oldest settlement on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It was also a famous pirates place.

Today, Ulcinj resort is a place which still needs much work. At most two days needs a tourist to see everything: the many mosques, the Orthodox cathedral, the Clock Tower, the Old Town, the Bazaar and the beaches. The town is not impressive at all. Many new houses have been built, and the apartments are hired during the summer. The new and funny way to fish, which I see from a bridge, was really interesting for me as I have never seen before such a thing.

My conclusion, based on one week stay there: there are other places more interesting, like Budva or Kotor. Ulcinj is suitable for people who like to stay on the beach all day long or for people who, like us, wanted to explore around the town.

Am ales sa petrec o saptamana de vacanta la Ulcinj din doua motive: e foarte aproape de granita albaneza si urma sa stau o saptamana si in Albania si, deoarece am vazut Budva si Kotor - foarte aglomerate - speram ca in Ulcinj sa fie mai putina lume. Gresit rationament! Ulcinj este foarte aglomerat. Majoritatea turistilor par a fi muntenegreni si sarbi dar am vazut si cativa nemti, italieni si rusi. Desi dupa impresia lasata de cele citite pe forumul softpedia s-ar fi parut si ca multi romani merg acolo, am intalnit o singura familie de bucuresteni pe o plaja, iar o masina de Arad, trecand pe langa noi, chiar in seara sosirii noastre acolo, ne-a claxonat si soferul ne-a strigat: "Salutam Timisoara!" Atat.

Ce am putut afla despre Ulcinj pe internet? Ulcinj este una dintre cele mai vechi asezari de pe coasta Adriaticii. Se crede ca ar fi fost intemeiata de greci in sec. V i.e.n. Locuitorii apartineau unui trib ilir, asa ca romanii cand au venit in Colchinium, l-au luat de la iliri. Asta se intampla in sec. al II-lea i.e.n. L-au fortificat si l-au transformat in municipium si asa apare si in scrierile lui Pliniu cel Batran si ale lui Titus Livius. Ei i-au schimbat numele in Olcinium. Apoi, timp de 150 de ani, zona s-a aflat sub stapanire venetiana (1423-1571), iar numele i s-a schimbat din nou, in Dulcigno. In acea perioada, multi albanezi de religie ortodoxa s-au refugiat aici din calea turcilor musulmani. Dupa batalia navala de la Lepanto (1571), orasul a intrat sub stapanirea turceasca, care a durat 300 de ani, pana in 1878. Chiar dupa faimoasa batalie, s-a aflat prizonier in oras Miguel de Cervantes, cel care avea sa devina autorul faimosului Don Quichote. O localnica de care spaniolul s-a indragostit, a devenit Dulcineea, luindu-si numele de la orasul in care traia. Ulcinj a intrat in Republica Muntenegru abia in anul 1880.

Orasul cu cca.12000 de locuitori, din care 70% sunt albanezi, sta marturie ca masa de turisti l-a invadat intens nu cu multi ani in urma. N-a dobandit inca acel aer de "statiune". Are stradute mici, cu case vechi (nu prea multe) sau mai noi, unele construite special pentru a fi inchiriate, un bulevard principal, aglomerat cu masini, care coboara spre plaja mica a orasului. Vedem o buna parte din el de pe terasa locului unde suntem cazati, constatand ca alcatuieste un frumos amfiteatru in jurul plajei mici.
 Ulcinj
priveliste de pe balcon
casa noua, construita in frumoasa arhitectura traditionala, locala
Desigur ca au aparut multe terase si cafenele, care sa raspunda nevoilor turistilor.
Mai vezi insa din loc in loc si cersetori.
Internetul a ajuns si aici, tinerii pierzandu-si timpul la consola de jocuri sau distrandu-se, cum vrei sa o iei.
Cele cateva agentii de turism pe care le-am vazut, afiseaza cam aceeasi oferta, cam redusa dupa parerea mea. Daca vrei sa vezi mai multe in zona, e bine sa te bazezi pe masina proprie.

In oras se inalta minaretele multor moschei, iar in zona numita Meterezi, Catedrala Ortodoxa Sf. Nikola dialogheaza cu zidurile puternice ale fortaretei care adaposteste Orasul Vechi.
 Moscheea Pasei, construita in 1719
 Catedrala Sf. Nikola
Mai exista, in centru, ceea ce pretentios se numeste Bazar, de fapt o foarte mica piata cu chioscuri unde se vand papuci si tricouri dar si suveniruri. E drept ca cineva incearca sa vanda si covoare artizanale...Oricum, nu se compara cu bazarele vazute prin alte tari.
Turnul cu Ceas sta si el marturie trecutului, pe o panta, fara nici o explicatie si fara vreo intrebuintare decat cea vizuala.
Turnul cu Ceas
Ce mi s-a parut cu adevarat interesant de vazut, sunt aceste "instalatii" (nu stiu cum sa le numesc altfel) de pescuit, neobisnuite. Pana aici, nu am mai vazut asa ceva. La capatul acelor "bete", sunt niste plase mari, care se scufunda in apa, iar dupa un timp se ridica la suprafata si se aduna "prada". Din pacate, nu le-am vazut in actiune. Ele pot fi vazute de pe podul care uneste statiunea cu Plaja Mare.


Concluzia? Mai sunt multe de facut pentru ca Ulcinj sa devina un loc atragator, pe malul Adriaticii muntenegrene. Deocamdata, Budva, Kotor, Sveti Stefan il depasesc. Daca nu aveti de gand sa va miscati prin imprejurimi sau daca chiar vreti sa stati la plaja toata ziua, poate fi un obiectiv de vacanta, altfel, orientati-va spre altceva. In Ulcinj veti epuiza tot ce aveti de vazut in primele doua zile!

22 comments:

VP said...

So many different faces of this almost unknown tiny nation, so close to us and so faraway...

Traveling Hawk said...

You are right, VP. Sometimes, those who are near us are most unknown!

Liliana said...

Ce frumoase is cutiutele cu scoici!

Traveling Hawk said...

Suvenirurile caracteristice zonei:)

joo said...

It's so beautiful! I definitely have to visit this awesome country again! Have you met any Polish people?
Have a great Sunday!

Traveling Hawk said...

Sorry, no, I haven't met any.

Randy said...

This place looks like photographers dream. Great photos.

Traveling Hawk said...

Thanks, Randy!

Kalyan said...

simply beautifully captured shots...lovely!

Traveling Hawk said...

Hello, Kalyan, welcome to my blog and thank you!

RIZALENIO said...

Very interesting. First time for me to see and read about this place. Thanks for touring me here. Love all the photos as always.

Doug Hickok said...

You reveal to us an unusual part of Europe in these fabulous images. I like the architecture, the charming alleyways, and the views of the water that this seaside town shows. Always fascinating to see the places you visit :^)

Traveling Hawk said...

Thanks, Rizalenio! Enjoy! The story goes on.

Traveling Hawk said...

Yeah, Doug! Is a part of Europe that American and westerners usualy don't see but, as you may observe, this doesn't make it less interesting and charming. Great things may be discovered everywhere! This makes the difference between a tourist and a traveler:)

Per Ove said...

Nice pictures. Never been to Montenegro. Thanks for sharing:-)

Traveling Hawk said...

Thanks, Per Ove. May be you will visit the Balkans one summer, discovering its hidden beauties.

LifeRamblings said...

this is wonderful. thanks for sharing the snippets of this beautiful world. the view from the balcony is stunning.

Unknown said...

se pare ca ai fost tare dezamagita de locatia asta, pentru ca de cand te citesc nu te-am vazut asa de critica cu o locatie.(probabil informatiile oferite pe net promiteau - intrun mod balcanic poate -mai multe locuri de relaxare decat probabil ofera). Zic si eu.

Traveling Hawk said...

Yes, Life Ramblings, that view was one of the most beautiful in town.

Traveling Hawk said...

Da, m-a dezamagit intr-o oarecare masura, pharaonx dar nici n-am avut asteptari foarte mari. Nu informatiile de pe net au fost de vina. Era un loc mult prea aglomerat pentru gustul meu.

J_on_tour said...

I love the red roof buildings depicted in one of the photos ... magical.

Traveling Hawk said...

Yes, J_on_tour, the red roofs, disposed at different levels, are very attractive.