Montenegro Girl x
Island of Flowers in Montenegro: a remnant from old Yugoslavia
The Island of Flowers in Montenegro got my attention recently when I read that Johnny Depp came here with a 200-strong crew in March 2019 to do some filming for his new film, Minamata. This tiny island has a working monastery on it and is connected to the mainland by a short causeway. So not a proper island at all really.
If you follow the road round at the end of the runway at Tivat Airport, you can just drive onto it easily in about 5 minutes. (Stopping off for some impressive views of the planes taking off, of course).
I have developed a bit of a thing about monasteries in the last few years since visiting Holy Island off the coast of Northumberland (UK) and the island of Mljet (Croatia), which have both been homes to a community of monks years ago. So, the Island of Flowers (also known as Miholjska Prevlaka) with its small 11th century monastery, home to just 3 monks, naturally sparked my interest.
The wierdness of Island of Flowers
The island is only small (only 300m long by 200m wide) so you can walk along its one narrow road that twists through the middle and get to the other end (where the monastery is) in 10 minutes. Along the way there appears to be dozens of small worn-out 60s bungalows dotted in between the overgrown greenery, some with little fenced gardens and wooden lean-tos. Paths with signs marking the chalet numbers lead the way to them from each side of the road in typical holiday camp fashion.
The whole place looks and feels like a ghost town, with its unkempt vegetation and little chalets that look like they’ve not had any TLC since the day they were built.
However, the surprising thing is people are actually living here. Washing hangs out of windows and cars are parked every now and again where the narrow road allows. We saw a couple of passers-by as well as a couple sitting at a table by their front door chatting. There is actually a whole local community living here.
Apparently, one that shares its electricity and water bills too.
What’s the story behind the Island of Flowers?
In the 1960s, the land on the island was originally bought by the owner of Agricultural Combine Belgrade (PKB), who built a tourist resort, naming it Island of Flowers. 10 years later, the PKB sold the resort to the Yugoslav National Army (JNA), who closed it for public use so it could be used as a holiday camp exclusively for military personnel and their families.
Then in the 1990s, during the war it became a camp for refugees from Slovenia and Croatia. It was initially intended that they would be rehoused somewhere else, but nothing was done about it and the Island of Flowers has remained their home for over 20 years.
So, I guess that is how the once stunning Island of Flowers with its well laid out landscaping ended up in the state it is in. But I, for one, can still see the beauty of the place though.
And I am obviously not the only one who can see it.
In the 1990s during the war it became a camp for refugees from Slovenia and Croatia.
What’s next for the Island of Flowers?
A study of the site from the Montenegro Ministry of Spatial Planning and Environmental Protection in 2010 proposed the construction of a tourist complex on the Island of Flowers, along with more tourist facilities at Brdišta, to make the most of the calm waters, and a recreational complex and water park at nearby Kalardovo. It said that it did not plan the development of apartments and houses for sale.
So, it appears the Montenegro government are not blind to the fact that the Island of Flowers is a beautiful spot and has heaps of potential lying there abandoned and neglected only minutes from an international airport.
I haven’t seen any evidence of any developments but I’ll be watching this space, as they say.
Getting cosy with Tivat airport
And yes, on the subject of main transport hubs, Tivat airport is only just across the causeway – a fact that is evident by the occasional boom across the island as aircraft takes off.
They’re not that frequent though. And despite this, the Island of Flowers has an unusually tranquil and peaceful atmosphere to it. Kind of eerie in a way, given the ghost-town-like appearance. But calming, nonetheless. The Island of Flowers has certainly got my vote.
It’s a curious combination for such a small island – an ex-holiday camp for military personnel and a working monastery. But that is the sort of querky thing I love about Montenegro. Brings a smile to my face.
A country that does things just a little bit differently.
Oh, and Johnny, I’m still waiting for your call to find out how you got on.
Montenegro Girl x
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