Virica

What a whirlwind! We hit three cities in five days in the country of Montenegro, but the highlight was most definitely Dobra Voda.

We crossed yet another border! This time we got through in less than half the time, about an hour and a half. We stayed somewhere one night just inside Montenegro and honestly it was a blur, because we were anticipating our next destination with two pools that some Germans passing through Croatia recommended. I do remember it was scorching hot and the girls pet a kitten.

We arrived at the place with two pools called Apartment Spa & Beganovic and it was even cooler than expected! This was the first time all summer the girls have gotten to swim in a pool. The girls swam morning, noon and night! My favorite was the salt water rooftop pool with a view of the Adriatic Sea. The night time swimming added an extra layer of fun! It was a little chilly at night, so Seth would take the bigs into the sauna to warm them up. There were lots of pool shenanigans happening such as - racing, diving, coin finding, girls being thrown, and balancing on Seth cheerleader style. Mabel practiced floating on her back, blowing bubbles and putting her face under water. Fun, fun and more fun!

The grounds were just gorgeous too! All apartments were made from this beautiful stone. In the center, they kept a large garden with fruit trees we were encouraged to eat from, and they even had a play area for kids. In addition to that, they kept sheep, ducks and chickens on the premises. They utilized their garden and farm animals to make fresh meals for guests daily. Pretty cool place! FYI... In this country if you order a salad, you most likely will be brought a plate of very fresh sliced cucumber, sliced tomatoes, sliced peppers and mild sauerkraut. Yummy, just not what this American expected.

While at the hotel in Dobra Voda, I had conversations with a girl who worked there. She spoke of her hopes of going to America. She said it is very difficult to get a visa. You can make roughly the equivalent income of one month's pay in Montenegro in just 5 days in America. It made me think about how grateful we should be to live with such privilege at our finger tips. We too often take these opportunities to achieve and succeed for granted.

Our last night there, we ate dinner with two families from Germany that we met while in Croatia. The same ones that recommended the hotel. It was extra special, because they have six kids for our girls to play with! After a late night with new friends and great food, we headed home to pack for our trip closer to the border.

We stopped up in the mountains for one more Montenegro stay, so we would be prepared for the unknown length of time at the border crossing. Little did we know, this resort was high in the mountains, five kilometers further up the mountain than the map showed. Seth drove on a ridiculously narrow single lane road that zigged and zagged back and forth continually. Not to mention, he had to dodge cars that raced too quickly around corners. It was an adventurous drive without a map to guide us or a signal to look it up. We eventually found our way.

The mountain weather brought rain and cooler weather. We lucked out and got there just in time to enjoy watching the dark clouds roll over the mountain. As we settled in to our room, the rain began to pour. God was kind to us with that perfect timing. We were also blessed by this place having an indoor and outdoor pool. Since it was raining, thundering and chilly, the girls just swam inside.

See ya later, Montenegro!Read more