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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Sharpbill" data-source="post: 3347552" data-attributes="member: 57876">Family holiday to Montenegro in 1987 and my first visit to a communist country at a time when Yugoslavia was still in post-Tito political upheaval. My allotted free birding day was going well, although I had to decline a local's offer of a boat loan at Lake Skadar in order to reach a Dalmatian Pelican colony, mindful that the Albanian border running through the middle of the lake was patrolled by a gunboat. I had all my targets under the belt bar one, Rock Partridge, but I had a site near Cetinje. So there I was gently driving a rural road behind a Lada which slowed, pulled over onto the verge, then unexpectedly swung out in front of me. I hit it broadside. All the locals turned out and the only English I got was from one particular mountain gorilla who said "Fifty pounds, no problems". The police arrived, shook hands with everyone and said to me, "Passport". A cursory glance and it went into an inside pocket in his leather jacket. Back at the police station I was breathalised, completed paperwork and told to attend court next morning. Back at the beach and passportless I found my wife and kids and I believe the first thing I said was, "You'll laugh about this one day". A girl from the hotel went with me next morning to act as translator and she explained the system. A fair hearing, then I would be found guilty and fined. But it didn't work out that way. After giving my statement sentence by translated sentence to an unexpectedly packed courtroom the other driver became so incensed he had to be restrained. On the final not guilty verdict I was whisked away to retrieve my passport and only later did I find out that I was threatened in court as he, "Wished he had beaten me up yesterday". Never have seen Rock Partridge.</blockquote>

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