Embarkation: what a breeze on such a small boat and the staff took our luggage immediately unlike the experience of some others reported on cruise critic. RCI tells you that you can't board til 3p but from reading the forums I discovered many do board early and enjoy lunch on board. When we disembarked, staff told us that the Journey allows passengers on as early as 11:30am! I think we arrived around 1p- the entire embarkation process took about 15 mins. Staff- Azamara really shines here. The staff was uniformly outstanding and friendly. There's also a relaxed vibe on board- staff seems genuinely happy- not sure if that's really the case but it appears to be.Food-I would give it a B plus. Dishes ranged from terrific to a few mediocre things but if you get something you don't like, just send it back and try something new. Aqualina- we only ate here once and it was a disappointment- food did not seem to be as good as the main dining room and there was something about the lighting and vibe we didn't especially care for. Prime C was wonderful- since Aqualina shares the same kitchen and chefs I don't know why there should be a difference. Prime C was very beautiful, small, serene with outstanding wait staff. Good options for non meat eaters too.We ate here twice. Reservations were only available at the speciality restaurants for one night each but by arriving very early one night at Prime C (6pm) we got a table.The only food item I found unacceptable were the green beans- clearly frozen and dreadful but advertised as "haricots verts" on the Aqualina menu. These were fat, frozen ol snap beans not haricots verts.Fresh squeezed orange juice in the spa area was wonderful but oj delivered to the room for breakfast was poor and watery. Morning room service coffee also poor. But these are really our only food complaints, for the most part food was delicious and we ate ourselves sick. Ports- a dream come true to finally visit places I've read about for yrs. However, just as in the Caribbean, there are none that I would return to for a visit on a land based vacation with the exception of Ravenna, Italy. (In the Caribbean my exception is Antigua because of its breathtaking beaches).Rome- thought we would hate it- thought it would be dirty and chaotic. Wrong! Rome was clean and fantastic. We would love to return here some day.Sorrento- I've been obsessed with the Amalfi coast for yrs and was thrilled to finally get here but was surprised at the sort of seedy feel of the place. We hired a private taxi to take us up to Ravello. Unfortunately, his English was too good and he talked non stop but did take us to an outstanding restaurant in the village of Ravello. Ravello was very attractive.Corfu gray but we could see the outline of the hills and sea which were stunning. Corfu Town was quite seedy and downmarket. We had a very mediocre lunch here at Rex which other tourists were frequenting. We strolled around the fort area.Montenegro- took the walking tour of the old town- kind of interesting- then hired a taxi to take us up into the hills to a village famous for its ham and cheese. Views from above were breathtaking.Split- took the Palace walking tour- very interesting- then hired a private taxi to take us to a nearby village on the water which was overrun with tourists. Split is a large city with many new bldgs and not very attractive- Dubrovnik is supposed to be prettier.Ravenna- arrived on an official holiday- all the shops were closed but churches and mosaics remained open. A beautiful, affluent town with typical wonderful Italian food.