Today our Lindblad staff and guests got to explore the legendary UNESCO World Heritage Site of Butrint. We went on a journey into the past as our Greek guides led us through the ancient ruins of a theater, baths, baptistry, and Byzantine Basilica. We took a brief hike up to the acropolis that eventually became a Venetian and then Turkish fort. After our visit of Butrint, we rode buses back to Sarande and up to the Ottoman Castle of Lekuris, where we enjoyed views, light refreshments, and traditional musical entertainment.
Courtney’s story is a little different than most of the Midwest kids she grew up with. Rather than settle down in her hometown of St. Charles, Illinois, she set out to make an adventurous life all her own starting in St. Augustine, Florida. It was th...
Allan Langdale is an art and architectural historian, documentary filmmaker, photographer, and travel writer who received his Ph.D. in art history from University of California Santa Barbara.
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The walls on the outside may seem imposing, but the Old Town and people of Dubrovnik are resilient and welcoming. The pride of the Old Town is apparent in the lovingly restored buildings and monuments. The work continues today as we saw workmen on rooftops and statues and buildings surrounded with scaffolding. Our explorations took us through a myriad of narrow alleyways, up polished limestone steps, around the perimeter wall and, finally, to a shady table with a cold beverage. The photos accompanying this paragraph display the diversity of experiences from our day spent in Dubrovnik.
As our expedition aboard the Sea Cloud continued, we progressed up the Dalmatian Coast of the Adriatic Sea and arrived at Montenegro — one of the world’s youngest countries. Montenegro had been part of Serbia since 1992, but they voted for independence by referendum in 2006. Montenegrins are a Slavic people and are predominately Orthodox Christian, but also include a sizeable Muslim minority. Yet the name Montenegro — Italian for “Black Mountain” — and the small number of Roman Catholic adherents alludes to its medieval history. During the 15th century, as the Ottoman Turks expanded westward, this region came under the protection of the Venetian Empire, their Stato da Mar. Kotor became a key naval base and supply station for their fleets of galleys which plied the trade routes across the Mediterranean Sea, bringing foreign exotica into Western Europe from the Levant. Today the cultural diversity of Montenegro reflects the regional influence of these foreign powers — Italian and Catholic along the coastline, Islamic and Turkish further inland. In the early morning we cruised into the Bay of Kotor, one of the most spectacular harbors in the world. Passing by steep mountain slopes on either side of the narrow entrance channel, we saw bell towers and small villages along the shores. We spent the morning in the bay, first heading to the island of Our Lady of the Rocks. This charming little chapel was founded in the 17th century and came to be venerated by sailors — and some of their anxious family members — to ensure they returned home safely. Afterwards we explored Kotor; this Venetian fortress has great bastions and ramparts along the waterfront, and a great curtain wall which defends the eastern approaches and encloses the town across the towering slopes of Mount San Giovanni 900 feet above. In the afternoon we took a coach tour to explore the hinterland, passing by the resort and casino city of Budva before ascending into the highlands. We drove through mile after mile of an incredibly fragmented landscape, with crags and outcrops of jagged limestone interspersed with clumps of shrubs and small trees. Our destination was the small village of Njegusi, situated in a small vale with what seems to be the only patch of arable land for many miles. Here we were treated to the local specialties, smoked hams and cheeses, washed down with a glass of wine. Our return journey to the ship was itself a spectacle, as we negotiated the narrow winding roads and twenty-five switchbacks during our descent to Kotor. When the Sea Cloud pulled out from the dock, we enjoyed another beautiful evening on the lido deck, with locally produced oysters and champagne.
During our second day in Albania we travelled inland to explore the historic capital of Krujë, located at the foot of Mount Krujë. Here we visited the National Skanderbeg Museum and learned about the Albanian national hero for whom it is named. As leader of the League of Lezhë, Skanderbeg successfully defended the castle against three Ottoman sieges until his death in 1468. At a local restaurant we were treated to authentic Albanian food and a rousing performance of traditional Albanian music and folk dancing. Before returning to the ship we had free time to explore the unusual collection of shops in the medieval market, including locally made rugs and memorabilia from Albania’s communist period. Before dinner, expedition leader John Frick gave a presentation about the history of the Sea Cloud and we enjoyed a tour of several original cabins.
