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

[Virtopia]

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!!!

[PCWalton1]

I have been waiting for this review. Thanks taking us along on your amazing trip. The pictures are terrific. :)

[dani negreanu]

Deon,

 

Thank you so much for taking precious time from your holiday to post such a wonderful review and pictures.

 

BUT, at least I, have trouble reading the small letters with the bright color. Could u possibly use a greater font / dark color ? :)

 

Wishing u an amazing cruise, and thanks again, Dani

[Sunny AZ Girl]

Thank you for the great review! We will be in Rome at this time (!) next year and we will be going on the Jewel afterwards for the Italy & Geek Islands itinerary. Looking forward to the rest of your review. Your pictures are wonderful and your smile is so cute, it makes me smile!:)

Edited October 2, 2016 by Sunny AZ Girl

[hova]

Enjoying the review! I am reading it while on the train between Prague and Vienna. In four days we take the train to Venice (for one night at the Hotel Caprera) and then onto the Rhapsody for the same itenerary as you!

[sg1phileshipper]

Still following and still enjoying myself. And of course, I'm getting excited for the cruise part of the trip :D

 

Cindy

Edited October 2, 2016 by sg1phileshipper

[Virtopia]

I have been waiting for this review. Thanks taking us along on your amazing trip. The pictures are terrific. :)

 

Bill! Glad to have you come through here. I copied your idea and brought some appropriate reading for my cruise ... such a great idea and will continue to do it!

 

 

[Virtopia]

Sorry, I know someone mentioned the font was too light, I believe? I don't even know how to make it darker, sorry. I will see if maybe I can bold some of the posts. Is anyone else having an issue with the font/colour?

 

Finally, it's cruise day!!!

 

I barely slept the night before, which is usual for pre cruise day. Also, since I wasn't the biggest fan of my hotel, I was anxious to leave. I left around 10am and made the walk over the large bridge to the people mover - hoisting my bags up and down that bridge was no easy feat, but I did it. Once at the people mover, I bought my ticket for 1.50 euros. Then, once off the people mover, there's about a 4 minute walk to catch the free shuttle that actually brings you to the terminal. Yes, all that just to get my cruise started! Once inside, it was easy going from there. I quickly checked in (first time as Diamond member!!), went through security, bought 2 bottles of wine (wish I hadn't!!) and made my way onto the ship.

 

I'm coming, I'm coming!

 

Finally!

 

 

 

 

 

[Virtopia]

 

 

 

 

 

I didn't waste much time ordering my first drink - Miami vice - and getting lunch in the windjammer.

 

Once again, just modest happiness from me ...

[Virtopia]

At this time, the skies got grey and it started to rain, which made me glad that I had left the hotel early. I'd say around 1:30pm, we were advised that the staterooms were open. Luckily for me, as I walked to my cabin, I noticed both of my bags!!! Yay me!!! I dragged them along to my cabin.

 

I was booked in cabin 3101, which is a large interior stateroom, right near the aft elevators. Now, the cabin was great (minus the dreaded shower curtain!). The room was bigger than a normal inside cabin on that class of ship and I had plenty of space for all my things. My stateroom attendant, Ritzy, was good as well. Not the best, as there were many times that he forgot to replace things, but very personable. Now, one thing I definitely missed with this class of ship was not having an interactive TV where I could check my account balance, order room service or order a movie. I had quite a bit of OBC and there were a couple nights where I would've definitely ordered a movie before bed. I also didn't play close enough attention to where my room was. Near the elevator is great, but below the centrum, not so great. It was loud and loud quite often. Lesson learned for next time however, it would more than suffice for the next 10 days.

 

 

 

 

 

A proper size bed ... yayyyyyy!!!

 

[Virtopia]

 

Oh, this is for me?

 

I quickly unpacked and put away my suitcase. I had grown quite tired of living out of my suitcase over the last 4 days so it was nice to get settled. I also checked my paper work, diamond benefits and my tickets for upcoming tours. Afterwards, I headed back to the bar (it's vacation!!) and just people watched for a bit.

 

Don't mind if I do!

 

During my pre cruise days, I had posted a few pictures in my roll call so I had a few people come up to me asking if I was Deon ... I felt cool! After sitting for a bit, I walked around some more to take random pictures.

 

 

 

[Virtopia]

 

 

 

 

 

[aussielozzie18]

Loving your fab photos and commentary.

 

I am so glad you included photos of Dumono. My daughter recently travelled in Europe and like you she couldnt remember all the buildings names that she took photos of. One of photos she took was of Duomo but she couldnt recall its name so now, thanks to you, I know what this stunning cathedral is called.

[Virtopia]

It was still raining at this time and sail away was getting closer. I'd heard amazing things about sail away in Venice so I was happy to see it start to clear up about 30 minutes before we set sail.

 

Does it get any better than this?? A rainbow!

 

Sail away was amazing! We were a bit delayed since there was another ship that left out before us but I made sure to catch all of it and made a video as well. It was nice as well when they announced that we'd be passing Piazza San Marco.

 

 

 

 

 

[Virtopia]

After about 40 minutes of watching sail away, I went inside to quickly get ready for dinner. I was on My Time Dining and I believe I only used the dining room 3 times. I was given a nice spot near the window and had very attentive waiters who made sure I wasn't lost in the shuffle of the bigger tables.

 

As a solo traveler, I didn't feel uncomfortable about eating in the dining room alone and wanting my own table. Sometimes, I just don't feel like talking LOL so the times that I did dine in there, I brought my iPad with me and read.

 

 

 

Dinner was very good!

 

 

 

After this, the old lady in me was tired (the hike over the bridge was catching up with me!), so I walked around for a little bit before heading back to my cabin and getting ready for bed. Thank goodness tomorrow was a sea day - I could sleep in!!

[Virtopia]

I will pause here and will have more later on today. I think I'm still on European time as I've been waking up bright and early at 5am thinking I should be at the pool bar! :D

 

I'll leave you with this for now ... even their boys in blue or green look like their statues! I was content to stare for long periods of time.

 

Edited October 2, 2016 by Virtopia

[Cindy]

I'm really enjoying your review! I can't wait to read what's next!

[Wayniac]

Subscribed. Thank you for taking the time to share your travels with us!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Hoopster95]

Virtopia is in the house!!!!!

Welcome back! Great job ... Following along :D:D:D

[Happyreb]

LOVE this review!

[dorts]

Never have I ever been addicted to a review before...taking a similar trip next June on brilliance from Barcelona hitting many of the same places...first cruise and honestly can't wait!

 

Sent from my ONEPLUS A3003 using Forums mobile app

[Virtopia]

Thanks for following along everyone! Glad to see that everyone is enjoying it so far. Let's get back to it, shall we?

 

 

 

Ah, I had a great nights sleep. So great that I slept through breakfast and woke up with enough time to get ready for the Meet and Mingle. Now, my roll call had me worried for a bit. It was slower than what I'm normally used to but don't let this fool you - we made the 25 minimum people I'd say mid August and I swear some of the nicest people you'd ever meet were on this cruise. I can't even count the number of people who said if I wanted company where I could find them since they knew I was traveling alone - really warmed my heart. The mingle was held in the Shall We Dance lounge at 10:30am but unfortunately not all cruise critic members received an invitation and when they inquired, they were told it was a private meeting. Not quite sure what happened there but it was disappointing that not everyone was able to attend. They gave out the standard pad of paper and pen and then did the raffle ... Yay I won something!

 

 

I won a Make a Wish T shirt, gambling coins, a keychain and 20% off a specialty restaurant. I had only decided to go to one restaurant but with this coupon, I now decided to do both Giovanni's and Chops Grille. The Diamond Lounge is also in the Shall We Dance lounge. I figured this was the best time to test out my key card should I use the lounge later in the cruise. It worked ... Eureka!! I met Jojo who is just the sweetest thing ever. She told me about all the new perks I'd be receiving and what she would be able to take care of for me, so she helped in setting up my specialty dining reservations for the remainder of the cruise.

 

 

Afterwards, I went to get lunch in the windjammer and walked around until it was time for the port conversations in Broadway Melodies. I had arrangements for each of the ports already but decided since I'm new to European cruising, it would be cool to check out. It was about an hour long and they covered the popular shore excursions for Corfu, Santorini, Athens and Mykonos. It was informative and would’ve really helped those who didn’t have tours booked yet. After this was done, I found lunch and a couple drinks until it was time for dinner.

 

 

Tasty Windjammer lunch

[Virtopia]

Tonight was formal night and I decided to have dinner in the dining room. Once again, I had a great meal and amazing service. I took some professional photos – since I was Diamond now, I knew I was eligible to get one free photo, so I figured I should make a collection so I have some choices to pick from.

 

Getting dolled up for dinner!

 

 

Tonight's Dinner ... not the best escargot I've had.

 

 

 

 

Tonight’s entertainment was the Piano Man who was also quite the comedian as well – he was entertaining and very skilled. Everyone I talked to said they enjoyed his set. After this, I went back to the cabin for a bit of reading and writing before bed. I decided to start a journal specifically for this trip about 2 months ago and I brought it with me on the cruise – best idea ever! I will definitely look forward to reading over that journal in the months and years to come. Up next, our first port stop - Corfu!

[Virtopia]

I woke up excited about being in Greece – we’re in Corfu! Now, out of the 4 Greece stops, this one was actually last on my list in terms of importance but, come on, it’s Greece! I was still excited to have a great time and explore. I had booked a Royal Caribbean excursion for this one called Corfu City Sights. Here is the description from the website.

 

Discover Corfu's natural and man-made delights on a narrated tour that includes approximately 30 minutes free time to explore and shop at Lakones and Paleokastritsa. Ride in a comfortable coach through lush countryside to gorgeous Paleokastritsa Bay, continue to the traditional village of Lakones and the Golden Fox Cafe for a panoramic photo stop, and arrive in Corfu Town for a guided coach tour of ancient and modern points of interest. Discover Corfu's natural and man-made delights on a narrated tour that includes approximately 30 minutes free time to explore and shop at Lakones and Paleokastritsa. Ride in a comfortable coach through lush countryside to gorgeous Paleokastritsa Bay, continue to the traditional village of Lakones and the Golden Fox Cafe for a panoramic photo stop, and arrive in Corfu Town for a guided coach tour of ancient and modern points of interest.

 

Needless to say, I was excited to get into my first port (and I refused to miss any more tours!) so I got up rather early for the 8:30am tour. The meeting place for all the tours were in the Broadway Melodies theatre. I got there at the appointed meeting time and joined my group number. We were then led outside to the coach bus, where it was evident that rain would be traveling with us today. We met our tour guide and then we’re on our way. Our first stop was driving through Paleokastritsa Bay, which is absolutely beautiful. By this time, the rain had started falling slightly but there was no way I wasn’t coming out of the coach bus to take pictures.

 

Found this on my bed the previous night -- yay me!

 

 

 

 

[Virtopia]