we decided we had to do one "touristy" thing in venice, since, after all, it's been a tourist hot spot for oh-so-many years. so we went to murano, where they blow the beautiful glass for which venice is famous. and on the way, we stopped at isola di san michele, the island where venetians have been buried since 1807.
but first, breakfast:
across the square from our hotel room is a little cafe, which closes at 3:00 p.m. you walk up to the counter, and if you stand there for drink it, your espresso is only 1 euro. you dump in a packet of sugar (if you are me), stir, and down that sucker in 2-3 big sips. then, for another euro, you get an arancini, which is risotto formed around some marinara and ham into a ball, then coated in breadcrumbs and deep-fried. you'll walk it off.
on the other hand, if you are ryan, you will have a ham and NOTHING panini (no cheese, no NOTHING), and a pellegrino/orange soda thing.
then we went to isola di san michele, also called cemetario. in 1807, the venetian government decided that it was unsanitary for bodies to be buried on the mainland. so this island was chosen to be the cemetery for venice.
but you aren't allowed to take photos. so here's a few sneaky ones. sorry.
wetro map of the islands around venice.
after the cemetery, we went to murano, to see the famous glass blowers in action. murano is where venetian glass has been blown since 1291, when the glassblowers were forced to move to the island because of the risks of fires on the mainland (also to protect the secret of venetian glass, but that was an UNOFFICIAL reason). glassblowing is still the main industry on the island, since it brings in the tourists that are the second main industry.
bits of colored glass. the blowers dip their product into these at an early point in the process, and it makes the final product look multi-colored and gorgeous.
this guy was the tour guide, and he really wanted to be in all of my photos. i have about 2 without him. so here he is, since he wanted to be in the photos so bad!
produce delivery, murano style.
and there's a few bridges, as you can see!
glass sculpture. i guess that's pretty cool... !!
that's a lot of wine for lunch. it was 7 euros. i love italy.
ryan's pasta had cream sauce. he couldn't even deal. also, shrimp-- so i couldn't deal. we shared my pizza....
...which was delicious.
see? healthy.
view of cemtaria from the wetro.
and there i am on the wetro.
around 3:00, when the venetian kids are home from school and playing soccer in the square outside our room, and they're using our wall as a goal, it's nice to go have a glass of wine. and the gondolier in the background feels the same.
ryan agrees too!
this is our square.
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