The thought that we guys from the coast should head north over the December ice and snow didn’t sound at all attractive to us. But we couldn't break the promise we had made to a dear friend, and it were well overdue to show you Bijelo Polje, the largest town in the north of Montenegro. So we set of in weather so bad down in the Bay of Kotor that it had almost sunk in the rain! Through narrow ravines and gorges we arrived in Bijelo Polje. The warm greeting of our friends and the beauty of the scenery made us feel at home at once. We set off on foot on our tour of Bijelo Polje in the company of our host Izo Gusmirovic and his family.
Our first visit was to the Church of Saint Peter which really surprised us with its architecture which is totally unexpected in this part of Europe.
Then we set of for the Gusmir Mosque.
The inscription on the plate by the entrance reads "This Mosque was transported here from Jabucina in 1741 from hand to hand during one day and night by the members of the Muslim community of Bijelo Polje“.
Then we visited one of the few remaining houses from the 18th century, of typical Bijelo Polje construction. There is a very interesting story linked to the old house. The people of Bijelo Polje hid Hadji Loj, a great hero and leader of the uprising against Turkish rule in Bosnia, in the house. There we saw the famous tread-mills and baths which today represent a very precious art treasure of national significance.
Nakon toga krenusmo u šetnju centrom grada.
After that we set off around the centre of the town. First we visited the Bijela Rada Hotel which our host, a very hard-working entrepreneur educated in the West, is trying to transform into a modern hotel.
We walked around the town square as far as the bridge on the river Lim, and then we visited the memorials to three famous Bijelo Polje writers on the view point above the bridge.
There for all time Camil Sijaric, Risto Ratkovic and Miodrag Bulatovic look down on their city.
We paid our respects to them all and then headed back to town. Thank you, Montenegro.com