Begin your journey in Virpazar, the tiny townlet on three bridges, located in the heart of Lake Skadar. Leave the dock following a small river channel surrounded by fields of reeds and rows of willows. Find yourself on the open waters of vast Lake Skadar and watch Vranjina and its two peaks rise from the largest lake in southern Europe.
Vranjina Monastery, located on the southeastern side of Vranjina Island, high above the Morača delta, is your next stop. Only one former monastery church has endured the ravages of time, the church dedicated to St. Nicholas. With several other monasteries tucked away on the shores of Lake Skadar, the monastery Vranjina forms a unity called Zetska Sveta Gora.
This monastery was built with the blessing of Saint Sava at the beginning of the 13th century on the foundations of the original monastery (from 1223). Although it primarily consisted of three churches – the Church of Saint Nicholas, Saint Sava and the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, only the Church of Saint Nicholas has been preserved and renovated several times.
The monastery was devastated by the Turks twice, and it served as a war fortress in the meantime. Destroyed to the ground in 1862, the only witnesses to the existence of this monastery are the three bells from the original Church of St. Nicholas. The restoration of its church started again in 1998, and an abbot was appointed.
The walk uphill to the Church of St. Nicholas offers spectacular views of the lake and Morača River, with their shores framed by willows. After a ten-minute walk, you will reach the church and have the opportunity to visit it. On the way back, you will refresh yourself in the sweet lake’s water.
