**Trip of a Lifetime Review - Italy and Rhapsody of the Seas 9.16.2016**

[jopretzel]

Deon,we were on the same cruise. Too bad we didn't meet up!

 

 

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[Virtopia]

Deon,we were on the same cruise. Too bad we didn't meet up!

 

 

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That's too bad! I met some great people - hope you had a fabulous time on this cruise!

 

 

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[jopretzel]

Hey,there's always next time!

 

 

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[Island wannabe]

Once the ship sailed by, I quickly made my way to the water bus station and of course, took the short way back to my hotel. I wasn't feeling the greatest as I arrived back (another reason for nixing the boat tour) so I took a quick nap for about 90 minutes. Once I was up again, I got my stuff ready to check out for tomorrow and made my way back outside to take in the surrounding sights.

 

 

 

Authentic venetian masks

 

I also thought it would be a good idea to walk the path I'd need to get to people mover. Since Venice is an island, it has many bridges so I really should be fortunate that I only had one bridge to cross over but it was a big one.

 

:eek:

 

From my hotel to the people mover was less than a 15 minute walk. One thing to note is that beside the people mover is a left luggage office. If I had visited there earlier in the day, I definitely would've brought my suitcase over and left it there overnight to avoid the hassle in the morning, but they were close to closing at that point in time. Now that I was comfortable with the path I'd need to take the following morning, I went to the same place and had the same wonderful dinner ... I know, I'm boring and really way too much pizza for 1 day but I doubt I'll be eating pizza again until I return to Italy or find someone who makes it like this in Toronto so I have to enjoy it while I can! After dinner, I picked up some other souvenirs and made my way back to the hotel for a restless night ... It's cruising day tomorrow!!!

 

 

Sinice you live in TO I highly recommend going to Libretto for awesome Napoli style pizza. There are a number of locations around TORONTO and the pizza really is superb and authentic.

[Virtopia]

Sinice you live in TO I highly recommend going to Libretto for awesome Napoli style pizza. There are a number of locations around TORONTO and the pizza really is superb and authentic.

 

 

Thanks for the suggestion! I've looked into it and will be making plans to go there soon [emoji4]

 

 

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[GaMtnMom]

We are going on a similar cruise out of Venice in September 2018. I was so glad to find this review since it was on the same ship and sailing out of Venice. Some of the ports are the same, and we are planning to stay 3 days in Venice pre-cruise and then get on the train and go down to Rome for 5 nights after and take day trips to the Amalfi coast and Florence etc from there. I was already so excited about planning the details and this has helped me so much! Thanks for such a detailed review and awesome pictures!

 

Sherrie

[Virtopia]

We are going on a similar cruise out of Venice in September 2018. I was so glad to find this review since it was on the same ship and sailing out of Venice. Some of the ports are the same, and we are planning to stay 3 days in Venice pre-cruise and then get on the train and go down to Rome for 5 nights after and take day trips to the Amalfi coast and Florence etc from there. I was already so excited about planning the details and this has helped me so much! Thanks for such a detailed review and awesome pictures!

 

 

 

Sherrie

 

 

Thanks Sherrie! Glad you enjoyed it! I definitely think this will be my favourite cruise for years to come.

 

 

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[mrsfecura]

Deon! What a whirlwind trip and an amazing well thought out plan and review! I just booked on Rhapsody for Nov 2018 and we will visit some of the same ports (Kotor, Corfu, Athens & Mykonos). We stopped in Santorini in 2013 on a cruise and man is it stunning!

 

 

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[Virtopia]

Deon! What a whirlwind trip and an amazing well thought out plan and review! I just booked on Rhapsody for Nov 2018 and we will visit some of the same ports (Kotor, Corfu, Athens & Mykonos). We stopped in Santorini in 2013 on a cruise and man is it stunning!

 

 

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Thank you so much! It was truly the trip of a lifetime [emoji4] Kotor is absolutely beautiful and I'm definitely planning to go there again.

 

 

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[kathleen21]

Thanks so much for the review! I was debating Greece or the Canary Islands, and you have convinced me to head for Greece! Beautiful photos. I'm looking at a 10 day cruise for next April/may. I've never cruised that long. How do you keep from getting exhausted? There is only one sea day. Also, was language a barrier on the islands at all?

[suekay]

Although I'm only up to page 12 I had to jump to the end to say how much I'm enjoying your review. Until you got to describing your scary wake up call, I didn't realise you were describing the cruise we were on. We were on deck seven and my bed and furniture finished up across the room surrounded by everything that had been on the dressing table. The tilt was so bad and so prolonged we were convinced we were sinking. Even as I type I'm getting the same crushing sensation in my chest that I had at the time, so I'll go and do something else for a while to take my mind off it . I'll be back to finish your review later though. (the experience, though frightening, has not put us off cruising, and we were back on a ship three months later)

[Virtopia]

Thanks so much for the review! I was debating Greece or the Canary Islands, and you have convinced me to head for Greece! Beautiful photos. I'm looking at a 10 day cruise for next April/may. I've never cruised that long. How do you keep from getting exhausted? There is only one sea day. Also, was language a barrier on the islands at all?

 

 

Thank you for reading my review!! [emoji4]

 

I didn't feel a language barrier surprisingly. I'd say hello in their language but once they realized I only spoke English, they switched over.

 

My 10 night cruise had 3 sea days. I don't know if I could do one with only one sea day but I made it a point to nap after getting back to the ship and on sea days, I'd take a couple hours from the afternoon to sleep. I didn't want to feel ragged at any time.

 

 

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[Virtopia]

Although I'm only up to page 12 I had to jump to the end to say how much I'm enjoying your review. Until you got to describing your scary wake up call, I didn't realise you were describing the cruise we were on. We were on deck seven and my bed and furniture finished up across the room surrounded by everything that had been on the dressing table. The tilt was so bad and so prolonged we were convinced we were sinking. Even as I type I'm getting the same crushing sensation in my chest that I had at the time, so I'll go and do something else for a while to take my mind off it . I'll be back to finish your review later though. (the experience, though frightening, has not put us off cruising, and we were back on a ship three months later)

 

 

Oh that's scary! It wouldn't have stopped me from getting back on a ship in a short amount of time but some people I met were on their first cruise and it totally shook them. She actually wanted to get off the ship at the next port and fly home.

 

 

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[WaywardBlue]

Wow! Thank you to whoever bumped this thread this month as I may never have encountered this wonderful trip log otherwise :D

 

... Thank You Virtopia, for I thoroughly enjoyed every picture and every post!

My wishlist is long, but Italy and Greece have just advance to a much higher slot (sigh...someday, fingers crossed:D)

I sooo enjoyed your enthusiasm and the way you told your story...it made me so happy for you and your trip of a lifetime!

...and you've the heart of a poet I think...I loved the line about blending with the blues of Greece! and the picture of your feet in the sand...Goodness, what a beautiful journey! Thank You for sharing!

 

(I just found and began reading about your 2013 trip and am loving that one as well!)

[Virtopia]

a little late to the game here but can I ask if you regretted not doing the Colosseum tour?

 

 

 

Yes, I regret it, but fortunately for me, I’ll be back in Rome late October and that tour is my first stop :)

 

 

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[Virtopia]

Wow! Thank you to whoever bumped this thread this month as I may never have encountered this wonderful trip log otherwise :D

 

 

 

... Thank You Virtopia, for I thoroughly enjoyed every picture and every post!

 

My wishlist is long, but Italy and Greece have just advance to a much higher slot (sigh...someday, fingers crossed:D)

 

I sooo enjoyed your enthusiasm and the way you told your story...it made me so happy for you and your trip of a lifetime!

 

...and you've the heart of a poet I think...I loved the line about blending with the blues of Greece! and the picture of your feet in the sand...Goodness, what a beautiful journey! Thank You for sharing!

 

 

 

(I just found and began reading about your 2013 trip and am loving that one as well!)

 

 

 

Aww thank you!! It was so fun writing this review - I still go through it about once a month to relive it.

 

I’ll be back in Italy in November but hoping to go back to Greece and Montenegro in two years.

 

 

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[Virtopia]

That is awesome!!!

We’re going in September so I’m excitedly planning and figuring out my priorities for things to see

 

 

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Have fun! Planning was one of my favourite parts of this trip - it was a lot of logistics but it was fantastic seeing it all together.

 

 

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[sm0115]

This is my favorite post and has been for a long time! I hope you get to go again soon. We are lucky enough to live in Europe for a few years and we are in the process of picking out a cruise through the Greek Isles!

[Virtopia]

This is my favorite post and has been for a long time! I hope you get to go again soon. We are lucky enough to live in Europe for a few years and we are in the process of picking out a cruise through the Greek Isles!

 

 

 

Aww thank you! I’m going back the end of October to catch a TA from Rome - I can’t wait!! I will definitely make it into the Colosseum this time around!

 

I also wrote a story about this trip that is being published in an upcoming Chicken Soup for the Soul book [emoji5]this trip just keeps on giving!

 

 

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[LoveSummerFun]

Oh My Gosh, this is just the best review! Planning on a similar trip in 2019. Doing Canada/New England this September. Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and pictures!!

[Virtopia]

Oh My Gosh, this is just the best review! Planning on a similar trip in 2019. Doing Canada/New England this September. Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and pictures!!

 

 

 

Aww thank you so much for reading! [emoji5] it was an amazing trip!

 

 

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[Choozin Croozin]

What an amazing review of an amazing trip. Thank you for taking the time to write it. I'm from your roll call on the Navigator in April 2019 and followed your link. We are doing a 14 day Greece and Italy with 3 days in Rome in October of 2019, but we are going on the NCL Jade. So I was happy to read your review as most of your ports are the same as ours. I have a bunch of questions, but I have to go back and re-read and write stuff down. We were just on the Rhapsody in April too (caribbean) and really learned to like the ship (deck 4 is great) but I agree with you, the entertainment was very lacking. Service and food was very good though. And we also met JoJo in the Diamond lounge. She was so sweet and a "hoot". We did visit her every night, but sounds like you opted out of that scene which I get. Can be "stuffy" in there. Stay tuned as I will be back at some point with questions. LOL Looking forward to meeting you in April, too. I love someone with a smile on their face all the time. You made me smile through the whole trip report.

[estebofarr]

Wonderful review. Love your beautiful smile.

I’m sorry if you’ve already answered this, but what did you do for laundry?

[Virtopia]

What an amazing review of an amazing trip. Thank you for taking the time to write it. I'm from your roll call on the Navigator in April 2019 and followed your link. We are doing a 14 day Greece and Italy with 3 days in Rome in October of 2019, but we are going on the NCL Jade. So I was happy to read your review as most of your ports are the same as ours. I have a bunch of questions, but I have to go back and re-read and write stuff down. We were just on the Rhapsody in April too (caribbean) and really learned to like the ship (deck 4 is great) but I agree with you, the entertainment was very lacking. Service and food was very good though. And we also met JoJo in the Diamond lounge. She was so sweet and a "hoot". We did visit her every night, but sounds like you opted out of that scene which I get. Can be "stuffy" in there. Stay tuned as I will be back at some point with questions. LOL Looking forward to meeting you in April, too. I love someone with a smile on their face all the time. You made me smile through the whole trip report.

 

 

Aww thank you so much! This is still my favourite trip to date and I have so many pictures and memories.

 

Please come back with as many questions as you have - I’ll be happy to answer them! [emoji5]

 

 

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[Virtopia]

Wonderful review. Love your beautiful smile.

 

I’m sorry if you’ve already answered this, but what did you do for laundry?

 

 

Thank you very much!

 

I didn’t do much laundry - things that were easy to hand wash, I did that with some liquid soap I brought with me and I used the laundry services onboard when there was a special.

 

 

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