Mata Family Mediterranean cruise, Brilliance of the Seas June 3-15, 2009. After many months of research for a special cruise, I finally selected the Royal Caribbean BRILLIANCE OF THE SEAS. My wife and I celebrated our 40th Wedding Anniversary in May, my son and his wife celebrated their 13th Wedding Anniversary in April, and we all decided to keep the celebrations going by cruising the Mediterranean, also with our two young granddaughters. We flew to Barcelona and boarded the Brilliance of the Seas. We were all impressed with the ship, with its towering 13 decks. The check-in and boarding process went smoothly, very organized and efficient. We were on board within 30 minutes. After boarding and going to our upgraded cabins with balconies, we found them comfortable and very clean, not as large as we had expected, especially the bathroom (shower very small), but otherwise very neat, nice decor and having the balcony was a big plus. Our cabins were kept clean, the housekeeper and her assistants did a great job. Very friendly and could not do enough for us. We explored the ship and found it to be large and decorative with marble, granite and other beautiful stone work, as well as fantastic decor, lots of windows enabling us to have wonderful views of either the ocean, ports, other cruise ships. There were only two pools, the one outside where most of the passengers headed as soon as possible each day. It was small, not big enough to have a good swim, and very crowded. The inside pool was a little larger and quieter. The bars throughout the ship were well stocked, and here again, very friendly and courteous employees. The dining rooms were large, the tables spaced in good formations and again, windows all around. In the formal dining room the service was superb. Our waiter, Kerwin and his assistant Junelle made us feel like we were the only people in the dining room. Their attitudes, their big smiles, they could not do enough to make our dining experience very special. The menu for dinner was nothing spectacular, very repetitious, but there were selections that were good. The best dining on the ship was at Portofino and Chops, with an extra fee for both restaurants, the extra fee was well worth it, food was superb, service again, fantastic. The other dining area we enjoyed was the Windjammer Buffet, it offered a variety of food for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and here again, it was a delight to enjoy the food looking out of large windows all around the area. The other amenities, such as entertainment was good, though we did not attend every show. We walked through the Casino, it was never very busy. They had live music throughout the ship, during the day and during the evening. My son and I used the gym a few times, it was good with free weights and machines and other things to do, such as aerobics, bicycle spin class, seminars on health subjects, etc. Our two granddaughters spent most of their time at the children's camp. They were kept busy with activities every hour. We can highly recommend the children's camp. The camp leaders worked hard, all the kids seemed to adore the leaders. It was very safe and well organized. If I had to rate the ship on a scale from 1 to 10, I would give it an 8. Having to pay for a soft drink since we did not purchase a soda package seemed unusual. My wife and I had purchased a wine package, only to discover we could not take advantage of it in any of the bars. We had to purchase the wine from the bars. We could drink our own wine in the Windjammer, our cabin, any of the restaurants and anywhere else on the ship. There was an episode going to the formal dining room, with a smart casual shirt, and shorts (passengers are given the "do's and don'ts of dress for the formal dining area), we were not allowed in, even though we had seen passengers dressed in shorts entering the formal dining with a crowd of other passengers and they were able to "slip in". We did receive an apology and the explanation of why were not allowed in, but it did leave a question in our minds. We did not see the Captain very often, but apparently his crew are very fond of him, in fact all the waiters, assistants, cooks, housekeepers, helpers throughout the ship, were exceptional - and they work hard! The majority of our side tours were booked with private tour companies, after reading comments on all of the tour sites, such as Cruise Critic, we decided we would enjoy a personal tour guide. The tours offered by the ship used buses carrying as many as 50 people, and the cost at times added up to more than what we paid for our private tours. We also had the advantage of getting in and out of the streets that were very narrow in the ancient cities, this was not possible for the buses. Our first stop was Villefranche, France, a very clean and quaint fishing village, our tour company was Alain Dream Tours (info@dream-tours.com), they were fantastic, very professional. We toured Monaco, the Palace and the Cathedral where Princess Grace is buried beside her husband. Our tour guide/driver Lucien pointed out the casinos, the famous hotel Paris, Nice, Eze Village, St. Paul de Vence a medieval village now full of shops and galleries, Monte Carlo, etc. Lucien was very professional, knowledgeable and a nice guy. The Mercedes mini-van was perfect, so comfortable. Our next stop was Livorno, Italy, a beautiful region of Italy with the Tuscany countryside. Our guide/driver named Daniele and his company (info@tuscanheart.com). Daniele is a local and knows this part of his country like his heart. We visit as much as we could on the amount of time given, Pisa and the Leaning Bell Tower, various bridges over the Arno River, drove on the Tuscan freeway to Florence or Firenze and onto Piazzale Michelangelo, with the magnificent panoramic view of Florence. The piazza has one of Michelangelo famous works, the statue of David, then onto Piazza Santa Croce where we saw Michelangelo's tomb as well as others lilke Machiavelli, Dante, Galileo, etc. We saw many other sights at the Duomo or Cathedral, it took six centuries to complete and is the third largest Cathedral in the world. A 45 minute drive found us in the Tuscan countryside to Fagiolari, a Tuscan country farm house where we were met by Gulietta Giovannoni, a wonderful Italian lady and friend of Daniele. She cooked us lunch that was phenomenal, we had Chianti, bread and olive oil made by her. Both of these wonderful people are great at what they do, and we will certainly go back some day. Here again, we feel we found good friends. We enjoyed the day with these good people.

The next stop was Civitavecchia, Rome, Italy. As most everyone knows, Rome is a big city with horrendous traffic, but we had the good fortune of hiring Stefano Costantini and Romecabs (romecabs@yahoo.com). Stefano set us up with probably two of his best people, Walter the driver with a beautiful and comfortable van, he knew every nook and cranny in Rome, and Maurizio, our guide. Amongst all of his gifts, he is an historian, arquelogist, etc. After driving in the Etruscan countryside for 1 1/2 hours and getting to what is known as the Ostiense Road, we arrived in Rome and saw the Pyramid built for Gaius Cestius, a magistrate in white marble, this is a very ancient pyramid in Rome and dates back about 18 to 12 BC - and it is the tomb of Gaius. We continued into the city and saw the ancient Roman Wall built by Emperor Aureliano for protection from the Goths and other Germanic tribes, as well as the gate of San Paolo, it was started in 271 AD. We continued onto the Circus Maximus, the large ancient stadium where they held chariot races, and this is the place where they filmed BEN HUR, it was the first and largest circus in ancient Rome. Behind the stadium, there is the Palatine Hill which is the centermost of Rome's Seven Hills, and one of the most ancient parts of the city and Roman mythology states this is the place where Romulus and Remus were found. They decided to build a new city and Romulus killed his brother Remus, this is how Rome got its name. Excavations show that people lived on the Palatine Hill before 1000 BC. We saw the Arch of Emperor Constantine located between the olosseum and Palatine Hill, a beautiful arch which spans the Via Triumfalis which was the way taken by the emperors to enter the city in triumph. We entered the Colosseum, which is enormous and breathtaking. It is an amphitheater in the center of Rome, it is the largest ever built by the Roman Empire, it was capable of seating 50,000 spectators and was used for gladiator games, animal hunts, execution, reenactment of famous battles etc. We saw the Roman Forum at the center where the ancient Roman civilization developed, and where the oldest and most important buildings are located, this was the center of the republic and empire. It holds many temples, arches and basilicas which is where people of Rome gathered for justice, faith, etc. We drove through the Piazza Venezia and saw the Vittorio Emanuele Monument dedicated to the first king of Italy. We visited Vatican City with the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica, and many other chapels. It is a huge museum with all of the statues, marble, frescos, paintings etc. St. Peter's Basilica has the largest interior of any Christian church, capable of holding 60,000 people. Michelangelo's Pieta is stunning in its beauty, although is set back and behind thick glass and quite a distance, due to the crowds of people visiting. It is the first of several works by the artist done in the year 1499. Bernini's 17th century colonnade that encompasses St. Peter's square of 284 columns and 140 statues is another wonder. It took 10 years to build. We visit the Fountain, our granddaughters threw in their coins and hope to visit Rome again. We said our goodbyes to Walter and Maurizio. It is not possible to see Rome in a day, when we return, we know we will meet up with our friends Walter and Maurizio.

The next stop was the Greek island of Santorini or Thera, it is what remains of a huge volcanic explosion which destroyed everything of what was a single island, creating a caldera or lagoon, surrounded by cliffs which measure 1000 feet high, making it also a safe harbor for all kinds of ships, all of the island harbors lie in the lagoon, the capital Fira clings to the cliffs and looks down on the lagoon. Santorini has no rivers and water is almost non-existant, it has to be brought from other islands at a great cost. Salt water is used in many instances. The island receives about 5 inches of rain per year, it has a small wine industry, the vines are extremely old and have proven resistant to any pests. They are planted far apart and their only source of moisture is dew, they are planted in low spiraling baskets to protect them from the sometimes very high winds. We did not book a private tour here, we went with the ship's tour. It was a lot of walking, we were warned about it. It was very hot. There are only three ways to get to the village high above the cliffs, by mule, cable or or walk the hundreds of steps up the cliffs. We went to Pirgos Kallistis, it is a very picturesque village with a very small population, very narrow streets or paths, it is built on a hill that offers magnificent views of all of Santorini. On the very top of the hill are the remains of the ancient Venetian Castle. Santorini, so we are told, has 900 churches and only 11 priests, this is something to do with taxes and a host of other amenities the island allows. Read more