The most important thing on our agenda in Florence was to go to the Galleria dell' Accademia to see the statue of David. Since this was a priority, we had obtained tickets in advance of the trip. These were purchased through selectitaly.com. We were given a specific time to arrive at the museum. Upon arriving at the museum, we observed an unbelievably long ling. Fortunately, this line was for people without reservations. We followed the long line to where it entered the museum; there we saw a short second line for those with appointments. The non-reservation line appeared to be an all-day commitment and not practical for those on cruise excursions. Our appointment was for 1:30 p.m., but anything from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. would have worked and given us plenty of time to get to Florence and not rush through the museum. For those without the time or reservations, there was a way to sneak a peak at the David. Just beyond where the lines entered the museum, there was an exit door. People were able to look through the exit door and off in the distance they saw the David.
Along with the Galleria dell' Accademia. We enjoyed a meal at a café, saw Santa Croce Church (where Machiavelli and Michael Angelo were buried), and also saw the Duomo. There was a long line and a short line for the Duomo. The long line took people up into the rafters (I was afraid of heights so this wasn't an option), while the shorter line took guests into the Duomo at the ground-floor level. We chose the ground floor. Unlike the Sistine Chapel, guests were welcome to take pictures in the Duomo. In all chapels and cathedrals women were expected to wear modest dress and men had to remove any headwear. There were also plenty of shops and other museums to fill the day in Florence. For this reason, we opted to skip Pisa.
Dinner on the night of Florence was smart casual. For men this generally meant a sport jacket with a dress shirt but not a tie. Certainly there were men who did not wear sport jackets, but they were the exception. For women, smart casual translated into nicer dresses, although not the cocktail dresses that were worn on formal nights. The following was an example of a smart casual menu:
Appetizers
- Duo of Melon an Grapefruit
- Baby Shrimp Salad
- Melon Prosciutto
- Lentils with Root Vegetable Soup
- Cock-a-Leekie (chicken broth with rice, leeks, and prunes)
- Garden Salad
- Caesar Salad
- Cheese Plate
Entrees
- Singapore Noodles (rice noodles with shredded pork, shrimp, and vegetables)
- Sole Meuniere
- Roasted Chicken
- Alloo Gobi (curried cauliflower and sweet potatoes served with samosa, raita, and bread)
- Mustard-crusted roast beef
- Alternative Selection (These entrees were available every night) -- Fettuccine with Marinara Sauce, Broiled Fillet of Norwegian Salmon, Grilled Black Angus Top Sirloin Steak with Herb Butter
Desserts
- Chocolate Bread Pudding
- Traditional English Trifle (sherry soaked sponge cake)
- Pecan Butterscotch Tart
- Sugar-free Pineapple Upside Down Cake
- Low-fat Poached Peaches
- Ice Cream, Sugar-free Ice Cream, assorted Sorbets
Following dinner, I was on baby-sitting duty and everyone else went out. For my two older sons ages 21 and 23, going out usually meant a night at the Starquest Disco, located on Deck 13 next to the Hollywood Odyssey. The Starquest featured a rotating bar and catered to a younger crowd. We certainly found people 30+ plus in the Starquest earlier in the evening but by 1:00 a.m. it was mostly people under thirty. The Starquest and the casino bars stayed open later than the other bars. My sons told me the Starquest was open after 3:00 a.m. on many nights. Indeed, the Starquest did not post a closing time. Younger teenagers under 18, were not admitted to the Starquest after 10:00 p.m. One of the more pathetic sights on the cruise was the nightly accumulation of pre-18's that gathered just underneath the Starquest in the Crown and Anchor Lounge. They often spilled out into the corridors and stairs, where they were sometimes a nuisance. Curfew for children under 18 was 1:00 a.m. The result of this late curfew was bored bands of adolescents. A more reasonable policy would have been to insist that children under 18 be with parents after 10:00 p.m. I suspected even the adolescents would have been happier.
The problem of bored children aside, day four was Rome. Cicitavecchia was not a tendering port, which was always a good thing. Cicitavecchia was about seventy to ninety minutes from Rome, depending on the traffic. Through much inquiry we had been told that the ship's excursions to Rome were very limiting; one could expect to see only a few of the most important locations in Rome. Consequently, we booked a private tour with Rome Cabs. They came highly recommended, although I was skeptical when they did not ask for any money during the booking process. Happily, our driver, Alberto, met us at the dock. Alberto quickly drove us to Rome, where we managed to see all of the major sites. He knew how to purchase tickets before getting to the Coloseum, so as to avoid the entire line. At the Vatican he whisked us to the front of the long line and in we went. Before we entered, he told us how to navigate through the labyrinth that was the Vatican in the most efficient way. This efficiency continued throughout the day. We saw all of the following while in Rome---what a day: St. Mary's Church, Hadrian's Arch, the Colosseum, View of the Colosseum, Palatine Hill, Caracalla's Baths, view of the Vatican, Forum, several Republican era monuments, ruins of a Roman empire apartments, catacombs, Pantheon, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Vatican Museum, Map Room at the Vatican, and the Sistine Chapel. The only cautionary advice we had received was that Rome Cabs had a tendency to cut it close relative to all-aboard. Consequently, as soon as we met Alberto I told him we had to be back at the ship at 5:00 p.m. We were.
Part 2 - More Brilliance of the Seas Mediterranean Cruise Review
