Kotor was first settled by the ancient Romans in the 5th century BC and was later fortified by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian in 535 AD. The Venitian-built walls which still surround Kotor are 20 metres high and 12 metres deep so it was a substantial fortification in times of conquests. The long line of conquests included the Greeks in the 10th century BC, the Illyranians and then the Romans who ruled the area for 650 years. Kotor was demolished by the Visigoths in the 5th century and it became part of the Byzantine Empire in 476 AD for the next 400 years. During the Middle Ages Kotor became an important artistic centre under the rule of the Venetians who expanded their dynasty into the Adriatic. Today evidence of their influence can be seen in themassive defensive walls of the Old Town and in the medieval architecture of St Tryphon Cathedral, built in 1166.
Through the centuries, Austria, Russia and France have established governments in Kotor, until 1918 when it became pat of Yugoslavia. My what a long ancient and modern history all the places we are visiting on this world trip, have had!
Australia is an ancient continent with an indigenous history that goes way back too but we have no evidence of monuments or buildings or conquering nations until 1770. We do have middens, rock carvings and paintings which record some of the ancient history of the earliest indigenous inhabitants, who roamed this wide brown land, we now call Australia. Kotor has the best preserved medieval town in the Mediteranean which is best reached by sea as the windy roads, which cut through the terrain are long and tedious to travel.
We moored off Kotor harbour early in the morning (as the port is not deep enough for cruise ships to dock) and rode a tender boat to the shore to begin our day in Kotor and surrounds.
Ken had organised an 8 person private tour of Kotor and parts of Montenegro and we set off early with our guide who spoke excellent English and was both interesting and informative. (we've had some good guides so far -what a blessing) We drove through Kotor to the nearby seaside town of Budva where we began a walking tour of Kotor's well preserved and restored medieval Old Town whose massive defensive offer breathtaking views over the city and bay. We entered the Old City through an ancient dual archway and began a wonderous wander through a maze of cobblestones narrow streets and laneways. Budva is over 2500 years old and it's incredibly easy to make one wrong turn and get lost in its labyrinth-like streets - even the locals do! Now Ken likes a challenge but I didn't suggest he take it up as we had other places to see and 6 other tourists with us.
We loved weaving up an down the narrow cobbled alleys, passing cute mini shops, smelling sweet pastries long before we spotted them and sometimes standing with our backs flat against a stone alley wall as small trolley-pulling traders squeezed past us as they sought to deliver fresh vegetable / fruit or other wares to a trading outlet somewhere in this ancient city maze. Every now and then our interesting narrow trail opened up into a small plaza area where people gathered to listen to guided talks, drink coffee and take in the passing parade of tourists. At other times we found ourselves near to the seaside of the old city wall and we got glimpses of the sea. There are several churches within the wall and we visited them. In the past they have been severely damaged due to the earthquakes which occur frequently in this area and regions all around. Rebuilding and repairing is a past-time that people accept as routine here and the restoration of the churches is commendable. Today earthquake building codes are applied to prevent serious damage in the future. You can see the back of the alcove of one of the churches that allowances for movement have been made. The altar and walls of the churches have Byzantine frescoes on the walls and ceiling and elaborate ornate icons adorn the altar where no expense has been spare in their restoration.
In recent years archaeologists have been able to uncover several areas of Roman-building foundations upon which this Old City was built. There is a museum dedicated to articles found in the digs and the search goes on. Just last year yet another ruin site was discovered during an excavation for the erection of a new hotel. Work stopped so that this area can be explored too. Right outside the Old City walls which we left via another set of arched doorways, is the old golden- painted bell prop used in used in a movie where this giant bell played a leading role- sadly the name of the movie escapes our memory but we may recall it one day. Beside the bell was a little red car : a relic from the communist era in Montenegro. Our guide said that thousands were made under the communist regime and to understand their popularity he told 2 Montengrinian jokes. No1: How do you double the value of this car? Answer: Fill its tank with petrol." No2 "What is the best accessory that you can buy for this car? Answer: A bus time table." 
As we headed out to visit the small beachside area adjacent to the Old City we passed a small marina, filled with multi-million $ yachts and numerous little fishing boats. I saw a cat wandering down the cobbled pathway, stop to sniff the air and then he jumped onto a fishing boat where a man was eating fish. The fisherman kindly fed the cat pieces of fish. I tried to photograph it but there were too many rushing tourists who trundled by and I list my chance. I still can picture that plucky cat licking his whiskers even now. We walked a little further along the beach front and watched sunbathers lying in the warm sunshine, listened to a happy throng of Montenegrin women singing a national song and bought a watermelon ice block. Check it out in the photo - it looks pretty cool! and it was!