thetrainfamilyFirst impression of Podgorica
According to Montenegro’s constitution from 1993, the country’s “capital” is Cetinje, while Podgorica is the “seat of government.” There isn’t much of a capital feel to Podgorica. With its 136,473 inhabitants, it resembles a larger provincial town. However, it is the country’s largest city! The capital, Cetinje, has only 15,137 inhabitants. We arrived in Podgorica with two people from Uzice in Serbia, so the train station was our first encounter with the city. The kids thought it resembled something from a western movie – flat and somewhat deserted beneath the mountains. Taxis were waiting outside the train station, but we walked the 200 meters to our apartment. We encountered at least 6 stray dogs on our way. They were calm and kept to themselves, but it was just very unusual and somewhat unsettling for us.
Podgorica Highlights
After a good night’s sleep in another great Airbnb apartment, we set out to explore the city.
Mall of Montenegro:
Since we were right next to the Mall of Montenegro, it became our first stop. There was a large hall with everything from clothes to pots and pans, and a nearby hall with vegetables and fruits. Next to this was a modern shopping center with a hypermarket.
RTCG building:
We walked through a playground to reach the RTCG (radio and TV building) built in a brutalist architectural style.
St. Petar and Cetinje monument:
From there, we headed to the park at the university and the grand St. Petar and Cetinje monument. Here, we enjoyed burek from a nearby bakery. Delicious!
Block 5:
We continued our walk to Housing Block 5, which is also in the brutalist style. Where we did some grocery shopping and had a break on a playground area.
Bridges and Monuments:
Then, we headed towards the center and the Millennium Bridge from 2005, offering a beautiful view of the turquoise blue waters of the Morača River. At the bridge, there is a large statue of the Soviet singer-songwriter, poet, and actor Vladimir Vysotsky, who was also very popular in Montenegro. On our way across Blazo Jovanovic Bridge, we looked over at Hotel Podgorica (also brutalist architecture) and a statue of Josip Tito. We also passed by Ribnica Fortress, built around 1477 when the Ottomans ruled over the city.
Podgorica in Conclusion – pros and cons
With temperatures at 28 degrees and the sun beating down, we were tired and concluded the day. We could see that despite its modest size, the city had a lot to offer. But to be fair, it’s a city that even we couldn’t spend days exploring. Like at the train station, there were also stray dogs in large parts of the city – even on playgrounds, and there were significant problems with managing the city’s waste. This was evident from the stinking, overflowing bins and the fact that all green areas were sprinkled with a light layer of garbage. However, that didn’t change the fact that we had a nice and short stay in Podgorica.
