Once you get to Ulcinj you will think that just a view of the ancient town is sufficient relaxation throughout the hot summer day. However, when you start sightseeing the town and its surrounding, you realize that it is necessary to spend another day in order to learn more about it or to enjoy its Old Town, its beaches, ethno-cafes, shops or markets. Should you choose Ulcinj only for the reason of tourism, you will hardly resist the spirit of the Orient, without leaving your favourite beach, hotel or terrace for a couple of hours.
Perhaps you will feel this need to stand up from your pleasant conversation with your partner or from your tasty Turkish coffee, which your kind landlady has cooked in a copper pot and which is then poured into very small cups, as you have just decided to have a walk in the Old Town of Ulcinj or in the nearby old centre.Due to its versatile offer and a big choice of different kinds of trading activities, which one can nowadays discover in Ulcinj, this town has developed into a not only tourist but also trading town, for which its base can be seen in the rich trade tradition, and whose support had always been the century-long seafaring tradition in this area. Such a picture of the town can be proved by a lot of shops selling various kinds of souvenirs and things that carry the spirit of the Orient.
There are so many shops, both in the Old Town and in the newer part of Ulcinj, where you can buy a silver tray, a small copper tray with a pot for making coffee known by its Turkish name “dzezva”, or some other nice thing. Even nowadays you will find a well-developed manufacture in Ulcinj as it once used to be. In such shops you can find leather goods, as well as goods made of artificial leather or some fine cloth, silk. However, there are mostly jewelry shops. The Ulcinj goldsmiths have always been widely known, not only for the quality of manufacturing precious jewelry made of gold, white gold, silver or platinum, but for the go.
Maybe you will even wish to buy it and thus you might gain a feeling of happiness and content. There are also shops where you can find pieces of traditional Montenegrin and Albanian costumes sold as souvenirs, like hats, shirts or other clothing articles. In some of the shops you can buy different kinds of kerchiefs, scarves, which remind us of the details of some traditional Muslim female costumes, as light-coloured kerchiefs are worn with silk shirts and dimije (long, very wide skirts/trousers).
However, you will get the really true Orient’s impression when visiting the Ulcinj green-market. You will be charmed by the multiple colours, the loud conversation, as well as the skillful persuasion of the old Ulcinj tradesmen who will be trying to place their autochthon products, like: olives, olive oil, cheese, oranges or dry figs. Besides the mentioned products you can also buy fresh fruits and vegetables, in addition to seafood, fish from the lake and the river, and a real specialty is traditionally dried-smoked beef the so-called “sudzuk”.
Still, this is just one side of Ulcinj, and on the other side there are modern boutiques, shops or mini-department-stores, which prove that Ulcinj has developed into a modern tourist and trade center. In various shops scattered all over the town, you can buy the latest clothing articles or a pair of the latest designed sandals, shoes or slippers from the leading European and world designers. The shop windows of the nicely decorated boutiques or shops, will attract your attention, so that thrilled by the colours, design, and the quality of the goods, you will hardly resist the calling of the purchase. Besides clothing articles of the leading Italian or French fashion designers, the Ulcinj shops also offer a big choice of the latest swimsuits, for women, men and children. Some shops are specialized for women’s wear, some for men’s and some for children’s. In Ulcinj there are a lot of of beauty salons, hairdresser’s, photo shops, souvenir shops, art workshops or small studios like galleries…
Besides not being able to decide which souvenir among plenty of them to buy: various jewelry, paintings, models of pirate ships, nice clothes – we are sure that a purchase in Ulcinj will enrich you and make you be a skillful chooser.