31 August - 1 September

Our gate in Philly before they announced the delay -- notice the "On Time" remark in the lower right corner!

It was a relatively smooth and easy trip. The only hiccup we had was a broken plane in Philly. They had to replace a coupler on the 2nd high-frequency radar in order to have communications in Europe. Fortunately, the part was in Philadelphia and we were off the ground only 90 minutes late. In comparison to the length of the flight, it really wasn't that bad. We arrived in Venice only 45 minutes late, so the tailwinds were good and we made up half the delay in the air. Customs was a piece of cake and ALL three of our suitcases arrived intact, within seconds of each other! Yay! That was one of my main concerns since I've never travelled to Europe before.

It turned out that a large contingent from our plane were booked on our cruise and we filled up a bus in no time and were on our way to the ship. Again, we had no issues checking in for the cruise and they allowed us to embark at 10:30 even though embarkation wasn't scheduled to begin until 2:00. Staterooms weren't to be ready until 1:00, so we sat and enjoyed the warm weather at a table on the pool deck. As more people boarded the ship, we were quickly reminded that we were in in Europe -- two groups sat on either side of us and lit up cigarettes and smoked us out of our nice little spot. It was then we realized that the starboard side was smoking and the port side was non-smoking! As if the crew knew we needed rescuing, the Windjammer Cafe opened for lunch.

Being a Mediterranean cruise, there was a whole section of the buffet dedicated to the region with a spread of pita bread, hummus, kalamata olives, tzatziki sauce, roasted tomatoes, and some seafood. I was in Heaven!

After a bite to eat, we quickly headed to the spa to book our massage appointment before they were booked solid. We headed back to the pool deck, making sure to sit on the non-smoking side and chilled until the cabins were ready. We met a rowdy bunch of retirees from Boston while we waited.

At 1:00, we headed for our room for a much needed nap! Our bags hadn't arrived yet, so we flipped on the TV to wait, but just as soon as we got comfortable, a knock on the door signaled that our bags had arrived. Without the energy to unpack, we crawled under the covers to catch a short nap -- which turned into a long three-hour nap! We hadn't intended to sleep so long, but we must've needed it. We were woken by the announcement that the muster drill was in 30 minutes. We'd wanted to take showers and change clothes first, but didn't get much chance!
The muster drill -- so you know how to wear your lifevest and where to gather in case of emergency

Almost as soon as the muster drill was over, the engines fired up and we pulled out of port in Venice. Our stateroom attendant gave us a hint which side of the ship to be on to get the best view and he didn't disappoint! We ordered a bucket of beer and lounged at the railing watching Venice slip by. It appeared to come straight out of a photograph -- hundreds of brick and stone structures rising up, topped with red-tile roofs glowing from the afternoon sun. St. Mark's Square looked absolutely beautiful and I can't wait to return to Venice to explore it ourselves!







St. Marks Square, including the bell tower and church

We finally got a moment to shower and change, just in time for the evening entertainment. They previewed the Royal Caribbean singers and dancers, who would performing later in the week and then two small acts. The first, Fluorescence, a cute black light puppet-type show with fluorescent pink and yellow boas and birds with long legs. The second, a married couple, Mysteriaque (pronounced Miss-teer-ee-ack), who performed aerial lifts and magical illusions under some corny-themed pretenses (a cat burglar and Zorro).


Second seating is later on this ship, 9:00 instead of 8:30, like we've had in the past. Our table mates are all from the U.K. Philip and Natalie, a just-married couple on their honeymoon, and two couples celebrating their 25-year anniversaries, Jim and Maxine, and John and Lisa. Jim and Maxine seem very typically British to me. Besides the accent, I don't know if I can think of the appropriate words to describe them at the moment. Jim is very quiet and almost glum most of the time. Maxine is a big bigger, louder, and chattier. John and Lisa seem very fun. They are quite stylish -- from their clothes and hairstyles to Lisa's glasses -- and appear to be hip and much younger than they probably are. It's hard to imagine both couples being about the same age and the same point in their lives with older children! Natalie is very sweet and shy and Philip strangely reminds me of Prince William. They look nothing alike, but Philip is very bright and proper, even a bit authoritative -- it's clear who's in charge in their relationship. Dinner felt like we were stuck in an episode of Frasier, listening to Maxine and Lisa talk is like having Daphne on both ends of the table! Everything is "lovely" or "brilliant"! I'm pretty sure I'll be dreaming in a British accent the rest of the week!