Wednesday, September 10th, 2025
Our first stop this morning was the island of Murano. It was located in the lagoon of Venice and about a mile from the city. Murano consisted of 247 acres and this was made up of seven small islands linked together by bridges. We reached the island by boat.
As we approached the island we passed the Faro Lighthouse. It was built in 1912 and stood about 115 feet tall. The lighthouse was still in operation.
Murano was first a fishing port and by the late 13th century began its legend as the island of glassmakers. These glassmakers came from Venice to continue their glass making. The extreme heat from the furnaces needed to make glass was too dangerous to have in the wooden Venetian buildings.
At the New Murano Gallery we saw a glass demonstration from one of their master glassblowers. The hand-blown craftmanship was passed down through the generations of these masters.
The vase was so hot that it burned a piece of paper. You would not want to touch it.
After the glass demonstrations we visited in the glass gallery where we saw some amazing Murano glass pieces. Of course pictures weren’t allowed inside but outside the gallery they had displayed glass objects.
After our visit to Murano we boarded a boat for the island of Burano. This island was known for its colorful houses and lacemaking.
Burano became important in the 16th century when women began making lace with needles. In 1872 a school of lacemaking opened. Now only a few make lace the traditional manner because it was very time consuming and expensive. We visited the Merletti “dalla Olga” (Olga Lace) and a lacemaker visited the shop and gave us a demonstration.
Burano was considered to be in the top ten of the most colorful islands in the world. People who lived on the island had to get permission to paint their home and the color.
Burano was also known for the bussolà, a donut-shaped cake. They also baked buranelli which was “S” shaped. In the past the wives of fisherman prepared these simple, shortbread cookies when their husbands were headed fishing for a long period. These were a nutritious snack for the sailors. The pastry bakery below was well-known for their bussolà, buranelli, and other baked goods. Of course we purchased the bussolà and a gluten free pastry and enjoyed our treats.
We saw Burano’s leaning bell tower was built in the 17th century. It was completely scaffolding when we visited. The tower inclined about 6 feet off of its axis and stood 174 feet. Even being covered we could see the incline.
It was a great day exploring Murano and Burano.
