Yesterday, the whole lot of us took off on the much anticipated boat tour of the islands of Murano, Burano and Torcello. We set sail from San Marco and cruised on to the three islands and on the way we listened to the multilingual tour guide talk about the history of the monuments and churches on the way. When we neared closer to each island we were given a little history about each.
Murano
The island of murano is about a mile north of venice. It was first settled by Romans and became a major fishing port and was known for the production of salt. What it is known for today is its amazing glass blowing. In 1291 all the glass blowers were forced to move from the main island of Venice to Murano because of the risk of fires. As trade and commerce expanded the island became famous for its glass beads and mirrors. For some time it was the main glass producer of Europe. Today the tradition holds strong as the island is full of glass blowing factories and stores packed from floor to ceiling with jewelry, vases, figurines and remarkable chandeliers.
We saw a mesmerizing glass blowing demonstration. The glass blowing artist worked quickly and sculpted a lava hot ball of glowing glass into an amazingly beautiful vase and a horse figurine. I sadly cannot get the video to properly upload, but i do have a picture of the before and after.
hot ball of glass that will soon turn into a figurine
It took under 5 minutes to make this
After the demonstration we were shoved into the showroom where there were shelves upon shelves of vases, figurines and racks on rack of necklaces, bracelets. It was way too crowded to be able to see how beautiful the work really was. I escaped the hoard of people and walked down the street to explore all of the smaller shops and other glass blowing facroties. There was a lot of the same types of things, and same type of jewelry, but in each shop there was something unique. Unfortunately we only had 45 minutes to explore the island before we had to be back on the boat. It was barely enough time walk down the street and into a few shops, let alone explore the island. However, there are constant vparettos to this island, so one afternoon I will go out and completely explore the island, maybe take in another free glass blowing demonstration, and possibly do a little shopping.
Burano
Colorful houses on Burano
Burano is about a 40 minute boat ride from Venice, but since we left from Murano, it did not take that long. Burano is an old vencian fishing island. It has about 2,800 people living on the island and it is covered with rows upon rows of colorful houses. As i did a little research about this island i found out that the colours of the houses follow a specific system originating from the golden age of its development; if someone wishes to paint their home, one must send a request to the government, who will respond by making notice of the certain colours permitted for that lot. It is also known well for its beautiful handmade lace that at one point was exported all over Europe, and is still done in the traditional way on the island. There were many elderly women sitting doing needle point and it was quite a sight to see.
Again, we only had about 45 minutes to explore this smaller island. There are vaparettos that go to this island and some afternoon I will go out and explore the winding canals that
Torcello
Torcello is a tiny island with a lush green landscape(well lush compared to the main islands of Venice). This island is where the first group of mainland venecians escaped into the lagoon when they were fleeing the barbarians. And at one time it held the largest population of Venecians. This was hard to believe since there semeed to be no one one the island and i heard there were only 14 actual residence of the island. But apparently there is an amazing resturaunt on the island that is only open for lunch. I will have to go back next week so i can actually spend some time exploring this beautiful little island. I would like to go back and see the mosaics in the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta, as i hear they are beautiful. Again, we had only a short visit, but it certainly worth going back to.
It did take a while to get back since we left from Torcello, the furthest island, but it was an enjoyable boat ride back to San Marco. I am very happy the program allowed us the opportunity for this (little over) three hour tour. If anyone is in venice for a few days either this tour or just exploring the three islands yourself is a must do!
Now that the first session is done and the weekend is here i am ready to go on a new adventure. I am heading off to Barcelona in the morning, and hope to have a short, but fun filled stay. And when i come back, i will be greeted by new classes and another 2 weeks in venice.
~Meg