VENEZIA - A HEART OF GLASS



Hooray - sunshine (it didn't last all day unfortunately). It's out the door for the 5 minute walk that takes 15 (lost again!) straight down to San Zaccaria pier to catch the #4.1 vaporetta to Murano Island. Venice is famed for its glassware and Murano is the motherlode. It takes us 50 minutes to circumnavigate the main island (ferries apparently find it difficult to take the shorter inland route!) which is no issue as the vistas from the rear deck are never less than spectacular.

Santa Maria della Salute

Palazzo Ducale

Blue comet - bizarre

Still standing - just

 We pass by the cemetery (which takes up the whole of one particular island - ingenious really) and arrive at Murano, unaware that there are at least 7 stops around the island. We get off at Da Mula and do what you're meant to - gaze incredulously at the 'blue comet', stroll the streets, occasionally taking in a showroom or two. It's mind blowing (as well as glass) what these artisans can do, and to my surprise even los ninos are taken by the intracacy and delicacy of it all. We decide to have a bite at a little cafe which has us in stitches; the wall calendar of family photos had to be seen to be believed (refer pic) - Liam and Aimee get ticked off if I take a snap of them sleeping!! We've discovered that the large factories aren't open every day and, just our luck, this is one of those days. I'm more disappointed than the kids, simply because they don't know what they're missing. As we stroll towards Colonia pier for the return to the mainland we spot a tiny workshop that's open, AND BLOWING GLASS. 5 euro later we're sitting watching a father assist his son, Pino Signoretto (!!), a master blower (!!), making tumblers. The kids are rivetted to such an extent that it is the highlight of Aimee's holiday - "it's like watching magic", and it was. Given that glassware is literally everywhere around Venice, we talk to several Murano establishments about the abundance of breakable merchandise. It's a touchy subject; it would seem that almost 50% of 'Murano' glass sold in Venice itself comes from the Murano of the east - China! (Travel Tip: If you want genuine Murano, either buy it from the island or make sure it has the distinguishable Murano crest embedded in it, which by statute can only be used by the original manufacturers from Murano). We also had cause to ponder the origins of venetian blinds. Why? See below, and we'll leave you to wrestle with the conundrum and your computer for a resolution.

THAT calendar!

Shouldn't they be on the inside?

Everybody's coming to Murano



Sangers and his dad

Master at work

 Carlo has given us a tip and we alight at the first main island stop, Fondamente Nove, and spend the next couple of hours wandering through the alleys and byways littered with everything from superb Venetian masks and costumes to fashion boutiques to pasta specialists to stone masons. Eventually we exit a laneway to gaze upon one of the city's icons, the Rialto Bridge. Choked with visitors, it's a fabulous site and we take our time walking over it, enjoying spectacular views either side. Los ninos are very happy too, as they have been pre-occupied with quills since we first arrived; they now have their quills from the Rialto! A quiet cafe near the Rialto markets, Sora Al Ponte, is the choice for afternoon tea and then it's a leisurely stroll through the maze once more in search of a familiar sight to guide us home. It really is the essence of Venice - walking around and getting lost.

Pasta anyone?

Costumes and masks

R.I.P. Senora Scarpa

  It's our final night and so we head out to another restaurante just metres from our apartment that looks realy nice, Trattoria Agli Artisti (now renamed BULL**** ARTISTI). The open greeting of the maitre'd doesn't rub off on his staff and it takes an age to be served; even worse - no campari aperitivo, and I've got a bad vibe. We share some bruschetta which is not a patch on Al Pozzo, just 4 doors down. The kids go pizza (which looks and tastes good) and I try calamari griglia - and it's delicious. Dulcinea also wishes to try some of Venice's specialty and asks for pasta with seafood. Our waiter kindly recommends the Spaghetti Aragosta from the list of specials inside the front cover of the menu , and it's agreed (at this point we didn't take particular note that there was no price beside these dishes, and our waiter was clearly intent on not providing one). My princess has inadvertently ordered LOBSTER pasta, which was lovely (and enormous); it needed to be as it cost a lazy 44 euro!! The main fare was very good (although the tiramisu was not particularly appetising) but left a bitter taste in our mouths, particularly as the staff could sense that we were less than impressed with their sleight of hand. The cream on the cake, needless to say, was the 'cover charge' of 10 euro applied to the bill. It was a disappointing way to finish our last Venetian evening, but it wasn't going to cloud our overall experience. There are bad restaurant operators everywhere, even in Australia (we also had a similar unsatisfactory experience in Granada - that story is yet to come), so you live and learn for (hopefully) next time (Travel Tip: Everywhere, and I mean everywhere, in both Venice and Milan applied a cover charge which could range from 2-4 euro. Factor this in to your bill. The other side of the coin, I guess, is that tipping is not expected. Just as well I say!).

Trattoria Agli Artisti - looks and tstes great, BUT.....

Tomorrow it's back to the fashion capital of the world - and las chicas are very excited indeed.

The day in pictures:

 

The finished product

Cemetery island

 

The front gate to heaven

Strangers on a vaporetta

On the Rialto Bridge - dunno who 'she' is!

Same spot!

The magnificent Rialto

Now THAT's what I call a 'ride'!

The basilica at dusk - pity about the scaffolding

....and the piazza.

Extraordinary really

Dulcinea in THAT restaurante - calm before the storm