When we got into Venice, we took the water bus to Fondamente Nove and walked around a little. Then took another boat to Burano. It was quite a long ride, but Skylar wanted to see all the brightly colored houses. We got good seats again, so we just relaxed. There is something about taking a boat that makes the drive time not seem to matter at all. Burano is an island that is known for it's brightly colored houses that were painted by the wives of fisherman so they could identify which one was theirs from out at sea. As we got nearer we passed a few smaller islands that looked like they had been submerged in water from time to time. As we got nearer to Burano, we saw the brilliant blues, yellows, red, purples, and pinks of the buildings. Every house was a different color! Not just any color either, but beautiful bright, vibrant colors! Burano is also known for their lace, so there were many shops with fancy lace dresses and scarves. Many of the inhabitants were just going about their regular business hanging their laundry out on a line. It really made me feel like we had gone to some little villiage from long ago full of wives waiting for their husbands to return from the sea. There was also quite a few cats and dogs wandering around. There doesn't seem to be any leash laws here, so even in Venice the dogs just run around. At least they don't have to worry about them getting hit by cars :)
Again we tried to search for vegetarian food options, but gave up and had pizza again. I do love pizza though, so it was just fine by me. Maybe in less touristy parts of Italy the food selection is better. Besides, since Burano is a fishing village, just about everything had fish in it.
After lunch, we took a foot bridge to a neighboring island and walked around it. We came to a cemetery that was very well kept. All the graves had flowers on them and they were the kind above the ground with clean polished stone lids. There were many really fancy ones and also some that looked like drawers. Once we circled the whole island, we headed back over to Burano and caught the water bus back to Venice.
Skylar had picked the Doge Palace out of the sight seeing book as a place he really wanted to see, so we went there this afternoon. The place was extraordinary! The ceilings are all painted and decorated with exquisite detail. The Doge Palace is where the council representatives sat and the Doge is like the president. The palace is filled with courtrooms, meeting rooms, hearing areas, and the prisons. In the center is a beautiful courtyard. There are rooms of weapons and torture devices as well. Pictures were not supposed to be taken, but we got a few. The paintings have gone through many renovations and even redone after a fire in about 1500.
As it was getting late and Skylar was in a hurry to get back to the hostel, we caught another water bus back to the main station. We got to watch the sun set over the canal from the boat; it was breathtaking! The buildings look even more beautiful along the canal in the evening. There were tons of tourists getting Gondola rides. I thought we would do it, but at 80 euro, I am a little hesitant. Skylar hasn't pushed for it at all once I told him how much they cost and he seems happy with the water bus boat, so that's good. We got to the shuttle just in time. Another long day that was over before we knew it.
More photos can be seen at http://picasaweb.google.com/osani77/VeniceDay4
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