Central Montenegro - Montenegro - page 213

commandeered by the Montenegrin President - hence the manicured gardens. Its neigh-
bour is the equally graceful former British Embassy MAP , built in 1912 but Georgian in its
sensibilities; it's now a music academy. Just north of the pedestrian-only section is a
striking art nouveau building covered in glazed tiles which was once the French Embassy
MAP .

Vlach Church
MAP
(Vlaška crkva; Baja Pivljanina bb) Vlach people can be found throughout the Balkans and much
of Central and Eastern Europe. They're believed to be the remnants of the Roman popu-
lation (either ethnically Latin or Romanised Illyrians) who retreated into the less access-
ible areas as the Slavs poured in from the north. In Montenegro they formed seminomad-
ic shepherding communities, moving their flocks between summer and winter pastures.
While in neighbouring states they retain their own Latin-based language and customs to a
greater or lesser degree, in Montenegro they appear to have been assimilated into the
Slavic population.
One echo of their presence is this church. While its present appearance dates from the
19th century, it was actually founded around 1450 and therefore predates the
Montenegrin founding of Cetinje. The original structure was made of thatch daubed in
mud. A sumptuous gilded iconostasis (1878) is the centrepiece of current church.
Take a closer look at the fence around the church: it's made from 1544 barrels of guns
taken from the Ottomans during the wars at the end of the 19th century. Two 14th-cen-
tury stećci stand in the churchyard, examples of mysterious carved stone monuments that
are found throughout northern Montenegro and neighbouring Bosnia.

CHURCH

Fairy of Lovćen
MAP
(Baja Pivljanina bb) During WWI many expatriates answered the call to return to fight for
Montenegro. This bronze statue was erected in 1939 to commemorate the 350 American
Montenegrins who died when their boat was sunk near Albania.

MONUMENT

Sleeping

Pansion 22

GUESTHOUSE €€