Lipa Cave and Podgorica, Montenegro
Posted on August 5, 2023 • 4 minutes • 826 words
We had to return the rental car by noon to Podgorica, but really wanted to stop at Lipa Cave on the way as other days in Lovcen National Park, we just didn’t want to leave. The first tour of the day was 10am and lasted an hour. Drive to our Podgorica hotel was 45minutes and another 20 to the airport…what could go wrong? Oh and we needed gas.
I really didn’t want to have the 10am tour fill up, so I wanted to leave by 8:30 to get there by 9:15 to be safe. Well, we woke up to no power and rain so really had no reason to stick around. Finished up the breakfast food and were on our way. We were the 2nd car in the parking lot, so no worry there for not getting on the first tour. It was raining, so we hung out at the not open café, eventually got tickets and were on the cute little ‘train’ to take us to the cave entrance right on time.
We are definitely a family that loves caves and this one was no different.
This cave was found by a dog that fell in the entrance (he survived) and they then named that entrance after him. Lots of cool formations, underground river and fascinated kids by all there was to see.
Tour was an hour as promised plus a 5min ride back to the start. Easy drive, got gas, dropped the family and luggage off at hotel, dropped the car off (only 20 minutes late) and ‘taxi’ back to the hotel…they guy from the rental place offered to drive me in the same car for the same price a taxi would charge. Sure. We chatted and told me about the national parks we have to check out in the north after I told him we loved Lovcen National Park.
Rain was just letting up and Dan found a place for us to eat and where we were going to walk around. The lunch place was more or less just take out, so we ordered and took our food to a nearby park. The kids loved watching the woman make the sausage by pushing it through a funnel and then breaking it off at the end of the grill.
The food was a hit! Not sure exactly what we ordered…some cevapi (a Montenegrin sausage) that was served in a hamburger bun, stuffed burgers and fries. Then you could pick any of the offered toppings! Amazing. Most of us got some combo of pickles, cabbage, yogurt sauce and shredded carrots.
We all loved it! Kids devoured it and I think Max ate as much as I did.
Then we let the kids play in the park and took turns having each kid read and write a bit.
Found some ripe figs on trees in the park.
Dan’s tour of the city was great. First, we went by a very old bridge (I love bridges if you haven’t figured that out yet).
It was over a smaller tributary to the larger river and was so cool all around there. Kinda overgrown you felt a bit like you were far from a city.
Some more wild figs and some ruins for the kids to explore. They found ‘a million slugs’ but I passed on checking them out.
In reading about Podgorica, it took a decent amount of bombing from the Allied forces (it was on the route of the Germans withdrawing) at the end of WWII. In walking around the old town, it felt like 1 in 10 buildings was old…stone old…and between were ‘newer’ buildings.
It was hard not to think about the city destroyed after the war and a few standing buildings were infilled between with new ones during the rebuilding period. It felt very modest in the old area…no tall buildings and lots of gardens.
We visited the clock tower, one of the few landmarks that survived the bombing.
And in the old town for my Argentine friends…El esta por todos lados, tambien en Montenegro!!!
Dan had found a café called Gandolf and with the kids love of Lord of the Rings, we had to check it out. We did some writing while we waited for our smoothies and cappuccinos and Ben read us his awesome ghost story. We chatted with the owner for a bit, who also has 3 boys and assured us that ‘it gets easier’…we’ll see lady! You better not be lying!
Walked back to the hotel and passed the old jail on the way.
Rebar was desperately exposed.
When we got back we read about the incredibly sad story that a person had pieced together while we ate left overs from lunch…we somehow ended up with a full extra stuffed hamburger. Not actually extra when we realized that one order contained 2 ‘burgers’ of cevapi.
And at the end of a full and exhausting day, I got dog pilled on.
