November 18, 2020 - At the airports in Tivat and Podgorica, passenger numbers have decreased by 80.5 percent compared to last year. After Slovenia, this is the second-worst result for the air industry in the region.

Montenegro has the second-largest rate of air traffic decline from the countries of the region of the former Yugoslavia, the specialized web portal ExYu Aviation announced yesterday, referring to the data of the International Airport Council ACI (Airport Council International), writes Vijesti.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, at the airports in Tivat and Podgorica passenger numbers decreased by 80.5 percent from January 1 to September 30. Only Slovenia has a slightly worse result in the former Yugoslavia region, where the drop in the number of passengers in air traffic for the first three quarters of this year was 81.5 percent. Croatia has seen a decline of 79.2 percent compared to the first nine months of last year, Bosnia and Herzegovina 78.3, while Serbia declined 68.7 percent compared to the end of the third quarter of 2019, a figure that is relatively close to the European average this year.

Airports in Europe had an average drop in traffic of 67 percent from January to the end of September this year, due to a pandemic. A decrease in the volume of air traffic of 68.5 percent compared to the end of the third quarter of last year was also recorded by Macedonia, while in Kosovo, it decreased by 60.6 percent.

The detrimental effect of coronavirus on tourism and the travel industry is best evidenced by data on the drop in traffic at airports in the former Yugoslavia, which are primarily focused on providing services to tourists coming to spend their summers on the Adriatic coast.

Original text 

Thus, in the first nine months of this year, among the ten busiest airports in the former state, the greatest reduction in traffic, a fall of 87.7 percent compared to the same period last year - was recorded by Dubrovnik Airport. Tivat Airport had a traffic drop of 86 percent and in nine months served only 172,493 passengers. The situation is similar in Split, which had 78.9 percent fewer passengers in the first nine months of this year compared to last year. A similar drop of 81.5 percent was recorded at the airport in Ljubljana, which was reflected in the fact that Slovenia recently lost its national airline. "Adria Airways," which performed most of the air traffic in Slovenia, went bankrupt.

According to ACI data, the airport in Podgorica served a total of 278,005 passengers in the first nine months of this year, 73 percent less than in the same period last year.

November 18, 2020 - The Ambassador of the Republic of Italy to Montenegro, HE Luka Zelioli, at the invitation of the President of the Municipality Zeljko Komnenovic, visited Tivat and talked with the new local government about strengthening bilateral cooperation.

"You are the first foreign Ambassador to visit Tivat since the change of government, and I thank you for that. I must note that Tivat and Boka's connection with Italy through history and tradition is more than evident. I hope to create stronger ties, which will result in concrete examples of international cooperation, especially in the field of culture." Tivat Mayor Zeljko Komnenovic pointed out the special importance of a larger presence of Italian investors "to strengthen our ties, especially in the sphere of tourism."

Ambassador Zelioli thanked the mayor for recalling Italy's particular connection with Boka, which has seen an increase in the number of Italian tourists visiting the area in recent years. He pointed out the intensive cooperation in the fields of culture between the Embassy and the Community of Italian Montenegro in the Bay of Kotor's towns. He expressed strong interest in intensifying cultural cooperation with the Municipality of Tivat, confirming the readiness of the first initiative. Zelioli highlighted the importance of the presence of small and medium-sized Italian companies in Tivat and suggested strengthening economic cooperation in spheres of common interest.

Bearing in mind that Italy will co-chair the 26th Conference of the States Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change - COP 26 in the coming years, this country is paying special attention to environmental protection and economic sustainability activities. When it comes to Boka, their particular interest is in the sphere of public maritime transport.

The reception was also attended by the President of the Municipal Assembly of Tivat, Dr. Andrija Petković, who pointed out that the coastal part of Montenegro, especially Boka and the Italian coast, share a similar mentality. "We love Italian fashion, "Calcio," San Remo festival . Many Italians have significantly contributed to the work of the Boka Navy. The people of Tivat still remember the old Italian doctors who worked in our city," said Dr. Petkovic. He expressed his wish that the Italian Community in Montenegro improve cooperation with the Municipality of Tivat and organize cultural events in the city.

The Vice-President of the municipality, Goran Božović, recalled the two twinning projects that Tivat has with the Italian cities of Mola di Bari (from 1969) and San Giacomo Delle Schiavoni (from 2007), which should be revitalized. "I would also like to highlight the Tivat International Carnival cooperation with carnivals from the region of Veneto, Emilia-Romagna, and Lombardy. As Mediterranean countries, we share similar features of cultural heritage. Such collaboration brings people and countries closer; I am sure that there is a lot of room for concrete cooperation when it comes to international projects, "said Bozovic.

Ambassador Zelioli recalled the success of many EU-funded initiatives, citing the example of the Italy-Albania-Montenegro Interreg IPA cross-border program, which covers the two Italian regions of Pula and Molise. He pointed out the opportunities that such a program can provide to municipalities like Tivat, with active participation and project proposals. The Municipality of Tivat has successfully nominated projects in the past period within this program.

The President of the municipality, Zeljko Komnenovic, announced that Boka's towns and cities would act together in the future to increase the chances for better visibility of all activities, and thus increase the opportunities for the success of candidate projects.

November 17, 2020 - UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador to Montenegro Antonije Pusic, better known as Rambo Amadeus, reminds us that today in Montenegro, a real example of chivalry and heroism is wearing a mask and keeping a distance from others.

"Whenever we don't want to put on a mask and keep our distance from our interlocutor, we should remind ourselves of chivalry. The noblest trait of all, by which we protect others from ourselves, regardless of whether they are our friends, parents, brothers, relatives, or someone utterly unknown," explains Antonije Pusic.

He points out that the crisis with the coronavirus epidemic has been going on for too long. That is why we are all upset, on edge, and that our psyche is defending itself by not wanting to accept the factual situation. According to Pusic, the longer the epidemic lasts, the less we want to believe in the facts, suppress them, in the hope that the coronavirus and all the story around it will disappear overnight.

"I am also terribly bored with all this, but I am aware that I have to be civilized, if not for myself, then certainly for the dear people around me," says Pusic.

Suppose we feel completely healthy and have no symptoms. In that case, we are often not even aware of being infected. So wearing a mask and keeping our distance protects others from ourselves so that they do not become infected and suffer consequences that can be much more serious than for us," empasizes Antonije Pusic.

"So, when someone does not wear a mask and does not keep his distance, he does not behave heroically. He does not protect himself from others, but also his behavior can never be chivalrous because he does not protect others from himself," concludes Pusic.

According to the latest public opinion poll conducted by Ipsos in October, with UNICEF's support and the British Embassy in Podgorica, most citizens apply one of the #RazmakMaskaRuke measures, but not all three at the same time, as recommended, according to a UNICEF statement.

"The percentage of people who say they wear a mask rose from 25 percent in March to 81 percent in October, while the percentage of people who say they keep a distance of 1-3 meters during a conversation remained the same - 83 percent. However, people who say they apply all the three measures #DistanceMaskHands are still a minority - only 48 percent of people," the announcement states.

Public opinion polls on coronavirus and comparison of data over time are available on the UNICEF Montenegro website.

November 14, 2020 - “The painting is created, not painted. All of my paintings have been created by the impression of the environment in which I live.” This is the view of Momcilo Macanovic, an academic painter who works and lives in Tivat. He is recognized as one of the most talented artists in Montenegro, as well as throughout the wider area.

This refined artist is well known for his astonishing paintings, which are easily recognizable due to their precise figuration and sculptural form.

His creative opus is characterised by hyperrealism, with a rich presence of the Mediterranean light.

The primary focus of Momcilo's art is on the figure, which is always static and frozen in time."The figure is in the center of the composition and dominates it, while the other objects and details simply have the role of filling the empty space. Everything is centred around the figure; for example like a mooring bollard behind which is painted a ship or an island,”  he said. "The environment is of essential importance for every painter out there. It greatly impacts their view of the surroundings and the way they convey it on canvas".

Momcilo views the world as a composition of light and shadow, which helped him to develop his unique painting style. The presence of shadow and light play on his canvas, followed by olive-gray tonality, sometimes with a certain dose of humour and satire.We can often spot peeled paint, corrosion and rust on his paintings, for which he is well known.

As for techniques, he prefers to work with oil, since it gives him broader possibilities, although he often uses aquarelle paint as well.

While talking with Momcilo, he added that the biggest influence on his creative work comes from Flemish paintings and Italian renaissance.

When asked how he chooses themes for his paintings, Momcilo replied, “Sometimes a random detail, light or a part of a facade catches my eye and I convey it on my canvas”. He is able to create a whole composition, often even a cycle of paintings, out of a single detail. Momcilo never repeats compositions and motives. He uses linear perspective, while his paintings are organized horizontally.

The artist himself concludes,“The process of painting is unpredictable, full of details, and radiates with imagination.”