on our second last day in venezia, we decided to do a day-trip to one of venice's neighbouring island: burano. it's one of the three main ones, and each is famous for their own thing - murano for its glass, burano for its lace and torcello for its calm, romantic atmosphere. we chose burano because several people had recommended it as an island full of "colourful, pastel houses", a change from venice's buildings... but still with canals running every which way through it...
after a considerably long & winding walk to the north of the venice, we found the little dock where our boat would come and whisk us away to the islands. we nabbed the outside seats, so we sat out in the sunshine with the cool sea breeze whipping our hair - watching venice grow smaller and smaller as we made our way further out to the lagoon islands. 45 minutes later we floated up to the island of burano.
we were met by little box houses in bright red, yellow, peppermint green, purple, sky-blue, magenta, etc, etc...every house had its own individual shade, with colour-coordinated window shutters, flowerpots & curtains. meg fell in love & went snap-crazy with her camera. the most beautiful thing of all were the brightly coloured reflections of the houses, mirrored in the water of the canals.
burano is famous for its lace work, a tradition that has been carried out there for over 500 years. we didn't get to see anyone actually undertaking the painstakingly slow & precise art of lace making, but we were able to admire all the final products: from lace parasols, to bookmarks; fans to scarves. gorgeous.
time seemed to stand still in burano - there was no hustle or bustle, no rush & and there was a hard-to-explain 'quietness' that hung in the air. we strolled around, getting lost, finding ourselves, then getting lost again. looking back now, i'm surprised there weren't more tourists there, seeing as it's such a stunning island...
it was beautiful. it was quaint. it was colourful. it was welcoming. it was, in meg's words "where dreams come true". so happy we got to visit..!
to top off an amazing day, we caught the boat back just as the sun was beginning to sink towards the horizon. there's nothing more magical than sailing into venice at sunset - with the burnt, golden sky silouhetting venice's many cathedrals & bell towers.
a magical end to an unforgettable stay in venice - the floating city.
addio venezia ♥ ,
S.
