We had the amazing opportunity to go sailing out of Tivat at Porto Montenegro onto the Adriatic Sea with some friends we've made here. I'll tell you what...there's a reason that the Adriatic carries a romantic reputation. It was the clearest, bluest, most perfect temperature, most beautiful water I have ever seen. So I dove right in! Our day was spent lying about on the teak deck of the 47 foot sailboat and jumping in for a swim every now and again. At the end of the day we had a beautiful dinner of fresh fish at a restaurant overlooking the water. Our sail back to the port was at sunset. It was as romantic as our honeymoon...with the addition of 10 new friends!
As I've mentioned before, the capital city where we live, Podgorica, is a short drive to the sea, the mountains, lovely lakes and rivers and many historical sites and ruins. On a Sunday for a day trip we drove through the historical capital of Cetinje and on up into the mountains into Lovćen with our friend John. Lovćen is a mountain and national park in Southwestern Montenegro. Atop the peak is perched the Mausoleum of Njegoš. Petar II Petrović Njegoš was a poet and philosopher whose work was considered by many to lead to the modernization of Montenegro. It is said that he was inspired in his writing by gazing upon the mountain peak and wished to someday be buried there. To get to the top, we climbed over 500 steps. The view was well worth it and as breathtaking as the stairs were!
On our way back down the mountain, we stopped at the Adventure Park of Montenegro to do a high ropes course. It was a little scary but super fun! That's me!
Back in Tennessee for a couple of weeks we were blessed to have the opportunity to celebrate two milestones with our families. My dad turned 70! Wow!
Also, Jim's brother Joe married the lovely Courtney in Johnson City. Both of these occasions made the trip well worth it. We wouldn't have missed it!
As soon as we arrived back in Montenegro our household goods arrived! It was overwhelming, stressful, embarrassing and awesome all at once. We packed way too much and had nowhere to put it all. Once we unpacked the boxes and organized a little we repacked and inventoried about 10 boxes and put them back down in our storage unit. I have certainly learned a lot during this overseas PCS about what to bring and not to bring and what we would like to have in our express shipment vs. household goods shipment vs. what can go in storage and not be seen for two years! It was really wonderful to unpack family photos and familiar nicknacks to make the place a little more homey. And of course, I didn't complain about getting the rest of my shoes!
Overall, we're really glad to be settling back in here and getting our feet back on the ground. It will feel even better once we reestablish a routine and once school starts for Jim. We can't wait to get some visits from friends and family on the calendar!
Until the next adventure,
The Adventuring Armstrongs
