A Day in the Capital

Today was the only full day I had in Podgorica, and there were only a few things I really wanted to see. As a result, I allowed myself to sleep in and didn't start exploring until after I'd grabbed some food and had a chat with the people at the hostel.

My first stop was the Millennium Bridge. It wasn't overly exciting, but the river running underneath it was beautiful. I immediately regretted not bringing a towel, as the water looked perfect for a swim. After debating whether it was worth going all the way back to the hostel, I decided I may as well keep moving.

Next up was the Orthodox Temple of Christ's Resurrection, which was far more impressive than the bridge. As you turn the corner, this enormous building suddenly appears in the distance, seemingly sitting in the middle of nowhere. Despite being in the city centre, there is a huge amount of open space surrounding it, which, for whatever reason, adds to the scale and magnificence of the building. The church was particularly interesting because it looked completely different from most of the churches I'd seen elsewhere in Europe. Rather than having the traditional shape I'd come to expect, it was built from an array of smaller and larger cylindrical structures that all combined to create one enormous building.

The final thing I wanted to see was the Old Town. After seeing how incredible the Old Towns of Kotor and Budva had been, I had some pretty high expectations. The entrance was actually really cool. You crossed an old cobblestone bridge and walked through some ruins before entering the area. Unfortunately, the Old Town itself was incredibly disappointing. It looked more like a neglected neighbourhood than an historic Old Town. I walked around for maybe five minutes before starting to look for a way out. I barely took any photos.

In total, I managed to see pretty much everything I wanted to in Podgorica in around three hours. Most of the attractions were relatively close together, and there simply wasn't enough there to keep me interested for much longer. The church was easily the highlight.

With everything ticked off, I headed back to the hostel to relax for a while. Later that evening, I suddenly had a massive craving for nachos after Jack had sent me a photo of his from Spain. Naturally, I decided I needed to find a Mexican restaurant. It was Friday night, and the city was even livelier than the night before. People were out everywhere, drinking, talking and enjoying themselves. There might not have been a huge amount to see in Podgorica, but there was definitely plenty of life in the city.

Eventually, I found a Mexican restaurant and ordered the nachos. They were surprisingly good. They were also absolutely enormous. I barely managed to finish them before heading back to the hostel and collapsing into bed with a serious food coma.Read more