Good morning! As the battles in Budva are getting closer, party activists are running out to collect taxes and everyone is looking to get something. After a long time, the city seems to be living a parallel reality, in which politics is no longer so important. Is that good?
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The Story about Budva
I don’t know how many of you know, but according to Greek myth, Budva was founded by the Phoenician king Cadmus and his wife Harmonia. Cadmus was Europa’s brother. The Europa that Zeus abducted by disguising himself as a bull. Cadmus was omnipresent in Greek mythology because before Sparta, Thebes, which he ruled, was the biggest competitor of Athens in the domination of the Greek world. Many archaeological enthusiasts are still searching for Cadmus’ last resting place, which, according to some writings, is somewhere in the Bay of Kotor.
The Greeks came and built a city among the local Illyrian tribes. One of the many along the Adriatic coast. Budva was there before Kotor and Dubrovnik, of which it is older. Then it died in many invasions. From Avars and Slavs, to Saracens, that is, Arabs. The border of the Eastern and Western Roman Empire passed through the territory of today’s municipality of Budva, namely the inner-city core. Later, Budva belonged to Doclea, the Serbian, Venetian and Austro-Hungarian conquerors, so that in the summer of 1914, the liberating Montenegrin flag flew over it. Red with a golden eagle, if the diaries of the local population are to be believed.
The rest we know or remember through our own experience and the memory of our ancestors. Everyone cherishes memories that please them. But the fact is that Budva was not liberated by any Serbian army in 1918, because there were no battles for Budva. They walked in as an occupying force, after the previous one had peacefully left the city.
The surrounding tribes in Budva still bear the names of their Illyrian ancestors. Many surnames in those tribes indicate the diversity of the origins of the local population, which was exposed to constant migrations along the sea. And precisely in this diversity is the wealth of Budva, which, although small, has a great influence on what happens in the country and the region.
Budva is the city where half, if not more, of the total tourist traffic in the country is generated. When it comes to foreign guests, it is the most visited city in the region, including Slovenia and Croatia. Budva is a rich city. The richest in the country when it comes to GDP per capita. It is also the richest in terms of budgetary issues.
The perception of Budva as the worst affected during the construction boom is wrong. Budva is the only city on the coast that has a deep green belt along the entire length of the coast thanks to Slovenska beach. See what Kotor and Herceg Novi look like. Bar and Dobre Vode. Ulcinj and other smaller places. In addition to its interest and media attention, Budva is not the worst example. Budva did not lead the way in corruption either. There was simply more money in Budva, so there was more to steal.
Budva has been more peaceful in recent years. There are no more good festivals. The Theater City has become a pale image of its former success. At the state level, attention is absent. We don’t have a hospital in town. But smaller neighbouring towns have them. Kotor and Cetinje are smaller than Budva in terms of population. If we have to go to court, we have to go to Kotor. Because we don’t have a court in Budva. When it comes to the pension and disability insurance, we have to go to Kotor again. We don’t have a stadium. The sports center looks like some kind of Chinese mall from the 1990s. The schools are in a terrible state. And they are overcrowded. The marina in Budva is neglected.
These are topics that the city should deal with if it is successful. But it deals with other things. Until when, we don’t know…
That’s it for today. We wish you a pleasant rest of the day.
Kind regards,
Ljubomir Filipovic, CdM analyst and columnist
(The opinions and views of the authors of the columns are not necessarily those of the CdM editorial staff)
