![\"\"](\"https:\/\/monteonline.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/retrocar.jpg\" "\\"Retro")
<\/a><\/a>Finally the sea appeared \ud83d\ude42 The road improved. Beautiful \ud83d\ude42 There are islands in the sea, the weather is excellent. The signs made it easy to find out where to go to get to Dubrovnik. We drove into Dubrovnik, followed the signs of Public Parking to a covered underground parking. Please note that in Croatia the currency is NOT the euro, but the kuna, the exchange rate is approximately 7.4 kuna per euro. We stood and thought, how much is it - 15 kn \/ hour ...? The parking attendant popularly explained to us that for 6 hours of parking we would be charged about 12 euros - this is the cost of a good dinner in Montenegro! Cheaper parking for only 10 kunas (=1.5 euros) on the roadside, while the machines for paying for parking are quite chaotic - you still need to find such a machine. We spat and drove to the underground parking ...<\/p>\n
Our gaze opened the old city, passing a decent number of steps, we went down to the gate. Right at the gate there is paid parking for 30 kunas per hour (= 4.5 euros)! My heart immediately felt somehow warmer, even if we are not in the most expensive parking lot \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n We barely even walked through the gates when we were pounced on by boys and girls offering kayak tours, car rentals, excursions, and other tourist services. It felt like southern Russia. The place was absolutely packed\u2014and this was in early June, when all the guidebooks recommend a relaxing holiday! Waiters stood around, insistently calling out to passersby with the words "good restaurant, good food." One thing must be said: everyone spoke more or less good English, which is where Dubrovnik differs significantly from Montenegro. Dubrovnik's Old Town is certainly beautiful; it felt three times larger than, say, Budva or Kotor. It has a wide street where two cars could easily pass each other, but cars are, of course, prohibited. There are cathedrals, palazzos, and churches in the Italian Baroque style; they are definitely worth a visit. However, the pleasure of the walk was significantly spoiled by the crowds. Euros are generally accepted in Dubrovnik's Old Town, but I suspect they'll round up. After exchanging euros for kunas at the exchange office in the Old Town, we left in search of peace and quiet and hoping to spend our kunas more economically. \ud83d\ude42 In the Old Town, the smallest souvenirs start at 4 (!) euros, a climb to the fortress wall costs 10 euros (!), and entrance to any museum or place of interest starts at 5 euros. The only free entrances are probably to the cathedrals. Not far from the Old Town, we found a restaurant where we decided to have a bite to eat and finally use the restroom. \ud83d\ude42 When we asked "Where's the restroom?" we were met with the categorical "You must pay"\u2014I've never heard that before in Europe, and I simply can't imagine anyone saying that in Montenegro. When the bartender learned we wanted to eat, he noticeably softened and pointed to the restroom. In the end, the quality of the food did not correspond to the prices in this establishment: ice cream 30 kuna (4.5 euros), coffee (I have never tried worse) 20 kuna, a glass of bottled juice 25 kuna (4 euros), lunch consisted of packaged soup and a second course (French fries and chicken fillet) 65 kuna (= 8 euros), beer 35 kuna (= 5 euros).<\/p>\n While we were in Dubrovnik, there was a strong impression that the city was not worth its prices and that everyone was just trying to rob poor tourists who had been saving up for a vacation for a year. Where has it been seen - to climb the fortress wall, which is nothing special - 10 euros!!! (and we were indignant that the wall in Kotor was paid, 3 euros \ud83d\ude42) In Montenegro, beer in the most luxurious restaurant costs 2.5 euros, and the service in Montenegro is much better for this money. Perhaps there is a service in Dubrovnik, but you will have to pay 3-4 times more for it than in neighboring Montenegro.<\/p>\n Tired of the heat and the crowds, we decided to return to the car for our swimsuits. At this point, we finally decided to park and save a few kuna for a proper meal. \ud83d\ude42 After driving a couple of kilometers out of town, we found an unused road with no paid parking signs, on a hill\u2014as it turned out, above St. Jacob's Beach. After wandering around, we found a descent\u2014and finally, as the English say, we "enjoyed ourselves" completely, sipping Croatian O\u017eujsko pivo in bottles at 0.33 for 20 kuna (2.50 euros), swimming in the warm sea, and lounging on the beach.<\/p>\n Forgive me for such a long history - there were so many impressions! I believe that in Dubrovnik you can have a more pleasant time, but during our first visit we did not really succeed. In a cafe on the beach, the waiter confirmed that Dubrovnik is overpriced, in other cities in Croatia it should be better. Will have to check \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a>