• Trip: Rome and Cruise through Italy and Greece (Norwegian Breakaway)
• Dates: September 1 – 15, 2023
• Who: Me (Jess), Emily (one of my best friends), Beverly (my mom), Jeff (my stepdad), Jen (my aunt), and Megan (my sister).

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We pick back up mid-flight to Rome. I’d been sleeping on and off, waking up as they were serving “breakfast.” This was more a continental type with croissant and yogurt. At that point, I turned on ‘Pitch Perfect’ and then promptly fell asleep, again. I woke up right as the Bellas were sharing secrets about themselves and becoming an actual group.

We were starting our decent into Rome, landing about 9:20. We made our way through customs (super easy), got our luggage, and went to find our driver. We’d reserved a Rome 3-Hour Orientation Tour through IterItaly. We found our driver easily and he took us to our van. One note: A lot of the vans have two benches that face each other. So, half of us were facing backwards. Just keep that in mind.

Our driver drove us through the city, stopping at various points of interest. We basically wanted to “see” the major things. We weren’t sure what, if anything, we’d get back to during our two days post-cruise. Our driver pointed out a lot of things, but honestly, we were so tired that I can’t remember what a lot of it was unless it was a popular spot.

Our first stop was at the Colosseum. Jeff opted to stay in the van, but the rest of us hopped out to grab a few photos. Please excuse our “overnight flight” look…..

Our next stop was a very pretty square…. Emily, Megan, Jeff, and I got out to stretch our legs and walk around for a little bit. Our driver told us that he would drive to the other end of the square and wait for us.

Next up was Trevi Fountain. Anything you read will warn you that Trevi is crowded and they aren’t lying. We weren’t feeling fighting the crowds, but thankfully we still managed to get some photos. More importantly, there was pizza right next to Trevi Fountain. We didn’t care that it was probably not the best pizza (though, it tasted just great to us), we were starving. Mom, Jeff, and Jen stayed in the van while Megan, Emily, and I got photos and pizza.

From there, we drove to the nearby Spanish Steps. Again, the three of us got out while the other three stayed in the vehicle. Well, Jeff got out and got McDonalds, lol. We walked around, took some photos, and tried to find the Louis Vuitton store. Emily and Megan had plans, lol.

Our driver took us to a park that had great views of the city. It really was beautiful. Mom, Jeff, and Jen were almost delirious and the jet lag sweats were kicking in for me. I did get out and walk around, but I was ready to be done, lol.

Our next and last stop was a drive by of Vatican City. I was tapped out and we had plans to tour it post-cruise, so I stayed in the van. Megan and Emily got out for a few minutes, before our driver got yelled at by security for idling.

Our three hours were up, so it was time to drop us off. My parents were staying in a hotel through NCL. The rest of us were staying in an AirBnb that I’d found. He dropped us off first. We got settled and took showers. Showers after an overnight flight just hit different.

Megan, Emily, and I decided to grab dinner, while Jen wanted to just chill in the apartment. We walked a couple of blocks and found a really cute restaurant. Our waitress asked what we wanted for “lunch” which had us cackling, since we were planning on going to bed as soon as possible. We decided to split several dishes which was a great plan.

We ordered a lasagna to go for Jen and headed back. We also found a convenience store and grabbed some water and other drinks to take back. I was feeling SUPER dehydrated, so they were laughing at the amount of water I bought.

We got back to the AirBnb, got ready for bed, and were all asleep by 6:45pm, lol.

One funny thing occurred in the middle of the night, which would come full circle later on in the trip. I woke up about 2:30am and thought I heard a male voice. Keeping in mind that my parents were staying in a hotel, there should NOT have been a male voice, lol. At first, I thought maybe it was in the hallway. We were in a large, cavernous building and had two other apartments on our floor. So, I figured maybe it was actually outside on the landing. I tried to go back to sleep. Then, the voice got louder and was definitely IN our apartment.

I decided to investigate. What I thought I would do if there was a random man in our apartment, I don’t know, but all of my stuff was in the front hallway, so I wasn’t going to let it just slide. I got into the hallway, which was long and had automatic lights. The lights above me came on and I saw someone at the other end of the hall. As though it was a bear, I made myself as tall and large as possible to show dominance, lol.

I walked forward and got to Jen’s doorway. She goes, “Jess, are you ok?”

I look over and she’s on FACETIME. One of her friends didn’t understand the time difference and had called her. The end of the hallway had a full length mirror, so I was getting ready to fight my own reflection.

I blame it on the jet lag.

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Italy/Greece 2023 Trip Report (September 1 – 15, 2023)
– The Beginning (Vivi Alla Giornata!)
– The Planning Process (Rome)
– The Planning Process (Greece Ports)
– The Planning Process (Italy Ports)
– Flight Confusion
– Day 0: Leave for Rome (September 1, 2023)
– Day 1: Rome Arrival and City Tour (September 2, 2023)
– Day 2: Board the Breakaway (September 3, 2023)
– Day 3: Sea Day (September 4, 2023)
– Day 4: Santorini, Greece (September 5, 2023)
– Day 5: Athens (Piraeus), Greece (September 6, 2023)
– Day 6: Mykonos, Greece (September 7, 2023)
– Day 7: Olympia (Katakolon), Greece (September 8, 2023)
– Day 8: Valletta, Malta (September 9, 2023)
– Day 9: Messina (Sicily), Italy (September 10, 2023)
– Day 10: Naples, Italy (September 11, 2023)
– Day 11: Florence/Pisa (Livorno), Italy (September 12, 2023)
– Day 12: Disembark and Vatican City (September 13, 2023)
– Day 13: Rome (September 14, 2023)
– Day 14: Leaving Rome (September 15, 2023) and Some Final Thoughts

Related Reviews
– IterItaly (Private Tour: Rome 3-Hour Orientation Tour)
– Shore Excursions Group (Exclusive Santorini, Oia, and Winery Tour)
– Shore Excursions Group (Hop-On, Hop-Off Athens Highlights Tour)
– Shore Excursions Group (Exclusive Mykonos Old and New)
– Shore Excursions Group (Spirit of Olympia and Magna Grecia Farm)
– Shore Excursions Group (Taormina and the Blue Grotto)
– Amalfi Driver (Private Tour: Sorrento, Positano, and Limoncello Tour)
– Bella Italia Tours (Private Tour: Florence, Pisa, and Chianti Wine Tour)