Bay of Kotor - Montenegro - page 117

(Crkva Sv Ivana Krstitelja) Simple, solid and semi-derelict, this tiny church dates from 1221 or
1397, depending on which resource you believe.
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Stoliv Столив
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Donji Stoliv (Lower Stoliv) is a pleasant seaside village with a huddle of stone houses sur-
mounted by a grand church, 9.5km from Kotor. It's worth stopping here to take the idyll-
ic but steep half-hour's walk through the olive and chestnut trees to the upper village,
Gornji Stoliv . Most of the families who lived here for centuries have now left, with only a
few houses remaining in use and the rest in varying states of picturesque ruin. A church
dedicated to the prophet Elijah (Crkva Sv Ilije) dating from 1553 keeps a lonely vigil. At
250m, the views over the bay to Perast are sublime.
Down in Donji Stoliv several houses offer camping in July and August under their fig
and olive trees for about €10 for two people with a car and tent. Facilities are basic (squat
toilets with a basket for toilet paper) and water supplies sometimes run out.
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Lastva Ластва
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From Stoliv, the road rounds the tip of the Vrmac Peninsula and passes the ferry terminal
at Lepetane before popping out in the front section of the bay.
Two kilometres further is Lastva, another divided village, but the gornja (upper) sec-
tion of this one has been actively promoted to tourists for its rustic ambience. There's a
decent road for starters, leading 3km up the hill. Gornja Lastva doesn't offer the same off-
the-beaten-track satisfaction as Stoliv, but it's nice to see that this village has been kept
alive. Old ladies dressed in black potter about gathering wild herbs, and if you're lucky
the parish priest will be around to unlock the 15th-century St Mary's Church (Crkva Sv Mar-
ije), which reputedly has some accomplished Italian paintings inside. The best time to
visit is the first Saturday in August, when a village fair is held.