September, 2006: As I thought about my next trip I thought about seeing someplace that I have never seen before. I thought about seeing as much as I could see in one trip. I also thought about seeing if I could incorporate a cruise into my next trip. Taking all of this into consideration, a lot of discussion and research we decided that flying into Athens, spending a few days, taking a cruise from Athens to Rome and spending a few days in Rome would be the right plan for our Birth of Western Civilization tour. We also wanted a relatively small cruise ship. We didn't want to travel with 2,000-4,000 other passengers. We researched cruises lines, cruise itineraries and found the one that would best meet our travel plans and cost. Azamara Cruise Lines has two ship of medium size, about 700 passengers each. we sailed on the Azamara Journey, which ended up being a great choice for our next "Great Adventure".