We woke up late today as well. We hurriedly had breakfast and rushed to catch the bus. From Piazza Roma, we started walking as fast as our legs could take us and today, we followed the numerous signboards instead of Google Maps. The signboards took us through the streets that the locals use, so it was not deserted like the route that we took yesterday. We reached just about in time for our tour. Travel the way the locals do and you will be fine!
We were about 30 people on a shared motorboat and the boat was half empty so we had a good private seat for ourselves at the back. Yay to that. And we did not have any other Indians on board – the first time that has happened on this trip. Double yay to that.
The Italians seem to have a flare for languages, or they are just very accommodating to tourists. You can see sign boards in about four languages (Italian, English, French, German and sometimes even Japanese to please the Japanese tourists who turn up in large numbers across Europe. Ditto for the Chinese) and even in our boat ride, the guide used Italian, English and French. She pointed out some of the lesser-inhabited islands that house old cathedrals of the 12th century and a mental hospital turned to a monastery, the “cemetery island” of Venice where all the dead are buried and other such islands with fascinating back-stories. We were informed that we had about 45 minutes in each of the islands where we were going to stop.
MURANO
Murano is famous for its glass blowing work. All the Venetian glass blowers moved to Murano in the late 1200s due to a risk of fire. Even today in Venice, you can find lots of shops selling craft and jewellery made out of Murano glass. There are shops that also advertise “Made in Italy. We do not sell Chinese fake items”. We were shown a demonstration of glass blowing by one of the master craftsmen in Murano’s factories. I have already seen a similar demonstration by a Japanese artist two years ago so I wasn’t too fascinated, but there were oohs and aahs in the crowd. After that, we were lured into a showroom with a lot of Murano glass blowing work on display. We kept contemplating on what to buy and ended up wasting time (got a bowl at the end for €15. Most expensive souvenir purchase till date). We missed visiting the Santa Maria church of the 12th century and one more church although I have already forgotten its name.
Tip to future travellers: Do not get stuck in the showroom. Go out and explore.
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| Murano's glass blowing artist under work |
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| He made one of those horses, in under five minutes |
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| Cheena could not stop clicking pictures |
BURANO
Our next stop was Burano. This island is popular for its traditional brightly coloured houses that paint a picture. It is renowned for its lace work. Learning from our mistake in Murano, we quickly walked out of the lace shop and walked through the streets of Burano with its colourful houses and a beautiful church. The church mass was underway when we went in so we just stood by, prayed and walked out. There was a beautiful statue of Jesus on the cross, which we clicked though. We relaxed by a café and had famous Burano biscuits and a gelato cone (of course!). I broke a fridge magnet while I was looking in one of the shops and was ready to buy it, but the guy sweetly gave me a fresh piece. Vedha happy annachi. We met a middle aged Indian couple here. They were probably South Indians. Adhaana…you can’t go too far without seeing namma people.
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| The colourful houses of Burano |
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| The shop where I broke the magnet :P |
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| The beautiful Venetian masks and my face |
TORCELLO
Our final stop Torcello was the fanciest of all. This little island once held the largest population of the Republic of Venice. With umpteen private boats and a LOT of tourists, it was pretty lively. We hear that Brangelina holidayed there too. We just walked by a canal with scenic bridges that ended in a cathedral and a museum. We had less time so we couldn’t get in, but we took pictures outside and enjoyed the view. I wanted to go to the loo, but the fee was €1.50 and the husband’s mathematical brain quickly said, “you can’t pay over 100 rupees for peeing”, so I silently walked away (too much info I know). The husband found a pomegranate tree and was really excited. He loves them so much that he can have pomegranates for all three meals in a day. While we were waiting for the boat, we met that Indian couple again. Being Indian, they had come back late and their boat had left without them. They asked us if they could join our boat, but our strict aapicer guide didn’t let them in. We went on to our boat and as we sailed past, we could see them standing helplessly wondering what to do. They were Kannadigas by the way and the husband was feeling guilty about not being able to help them. As we say in Japanese, “shouganai” or can’t be helped.
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| Cheena and the pomegranate tree |
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| Perfect bridge for a picture, but there was a big queue as you can see |
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| We wondered how old the sculptures behind me could be... |
It was an hour’s ride back to the pier. The waters have signboards on them with speed limits specified. This boat ride was definitely more enjoyable and also friendlier on the wallet than the expensive 25-minute gondola ride from yesterday. We got back on land, and quickly got into the queue at St. Mark’s Basilica after a short argument on lunch.
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| Venice as seen from the waters |
Expenses:
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| One of the private boats that goes to the islands |
· The Tour to the islands of Murano, Burano and Tortello, booked via
www.viator.com -
€20 per person (full link given above)
· Coffee and Ice-creams at Burano – €7.50
· Fridge magnet and postcard at Burano - €3.25
· Murano Glass Bowl - €15.00
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