The fjords of Montenegro were everything we anticipated. Two hours of very slow morning cruising with the sun glistening off the many hillside houses and churches along the way.

One of those churches is a Catholic church named Our Lady of the Rock. It is a beloved legend that began in 1452 when two fisherman returning from a voyage in stormy seas saw an icon of the Virgin Mary on the rocks. Believing that it was a sign that a church should be built on the site fisherman began a tradition of adding a rock at the end of each voyage, until there was room to build the church in 1792. That is the church you see in this picture on the left. It remains active today for Sunday services and weddings. What a spot!

The fjords of Montenegro are serpentine. Here is the view from high above, reached via a road with 27 switchbacks. Our ship is in the lower right. Quite a feat in a bus, and either we or cars from the opposite direction had to back up a handful of times.

Here is another view while sailing out in the evening. Amazing how the setting sun lit up the cloud.

We fondly recall a cafe on the harbor in Dubrovnik from our visit twenty-two years ago. Betsy had a beer and I had a sundae, and we just paused to watch the beautiful harbor. Going back was high on our list, and it did not disappoint. Here she is then, and our photo from brunch yesterday. Still just as beautiful, and great place to pause. They even comped my dessert when I showed them the pic from 2001.

We have also discovered that all of these small harbors in Croatia are incredibly busy. This one always had a half dozen boats in motion, and is so small that we had to tender in from our cruise ship.

Our trivia for this postcard is that arguably the necktie originated in Dubrovnik. The ladies used to make red scarves for the men going to war. The French thought that was an elegant look, and evolved it into the necktie we know today.

More Croatia to come in the days ahead.