Venezia
Yesterday, we arrived in Venice and fell in love with the city immediately. How could you go wrong with canals and boats replacing streets and cars with endless alleyways to explore (without worrying about cars or bikes). After dropping our bags at the hotel, we set off to explore, our only goals were to get lost and admire the glasswork in the shops.
After wandering for a little while, we stumbled into a Venetian restaurant and ordered their fixed price fish menu. We didn’t know exactly what we had ordered but we were very happy after the first course arrived and we were served a delicious bowl of penne with salmon. The second course was more of a shock when we were served a whole fish (eyes, teeth, fins, and all). The meat tasted good but it was definitely a challenge to pick around the bones and we had to put the head to the side so we couldn’t see the face while we were eating. We were also served a salad with the fish. Also, apparently we didn’t do a good enough job picking the fish off the bone because the server (who spoke almost no English) thought we didn’t like it and brought us limoncello shots and chocolates on the house in what seemed like an apology.
Embarrassed, we took note of where we were (so we didn’t come back) and set off to explore some more. We had purchased a transit pass for the water boats so we decided we’d get on one and see what we could see. We made it most of the way around the island before we got back off to look around the more touristy district. We had a great time getting lost again, looking at gondolas, climbing over bridges, and admiring the buildings towering over the canals (this time dodging more people).
After awhile, when our water ran out, we headed back to the hotel to refill bottles and take a short break from the heat. Once we cooled off we decided to grab a quick dinner near the hotel and get some rest because we have a lot of early mornings in a row.
Today, our early morning was exciting because we had booked a trip to the glass factory in Murano to watch glass blowing and make glass jewelry. We met a guide in Venice who escorted us on the water bus to Murano and dropped us off at the factory (we’re not sure why, we could’ve taken the bus ourselves). The first part of the tour was watching a master and his two assistants working on a chandelier that they were commissioned to make. We also watched the master make a Ferrari horse which took him less than 90 seconds. In order to become a master, you have to be able to make literally anything with the glass and it typically takes a minimum of 10-15 years to reach that level. Everything you see from Murano is handmade and does not use any machine or molds which makes it is one of a kind and that much more special.
Following the glass blowing demonstration, we went to a different room to make our own glass pieces. We were allowed to choose either a bracelet, earrings, keychain, or mosaic and we both chose to make bracelets. It was fun but nothing we hadn’t done before. The fact that we left with bracelets made or Murano glass beads was more special than putting the beads on a string. When we finished our bracelets, we were led through their seven showrooms to see all of the glass pieces that they were selling. We couldn’t resist buying some, and are very excited to enjoy it when we get home.
With sadder bank accounts, we headed to the water bus to go back to Venice. After a quick pit stop at the hotel to refill water, we took the suggestion of someone at the hotel and went to a local restaurant for lunch. This time, we played it safe with a salmon club and a tuna tataki burger (both amazing). We then back to the Rialto bridge to find a gondola. We didn’t want to get one of the ones at the most touristy area so we headed toward the interior canals and searched for awhile before we found a free one. We climbed on board and got a whole different perspective of Venice. It was so much quieter and more relaxing to see the city from the canals and we had a great time (until we had to get off).
After the gondola, we wandered some more with the intention of finding the synagogue but we accidentally missed a turn and ended up right by the hotel, so we took that as a sign to go refill our very empty water bottles and cool off before going back out. When it was time to go back out, we realized it was actually time for dinner and so we went to a grocery store nearby to get a makeshift picnic which we ate at a table near the hotel.
