|  Venice
with its islands of Murano, Burano
and Torcello are amongst the many pieces of an
intricate jigsaw puzzle thrown haphazardly over the shallow stretch
of Laguna Veneta. The slim and slender Lido di Venezia
lies to the east and makes its way 10 Kilometers to the south to
another narrow stretch called Pellestrina, slimming
down to the laid-back town of Chioggia. The lay
of the land in Venice goes back inland to the industrial town of
Mestre whose southern half houses Porto
Marghera with its huge shipping docks.
 Charming
with a quaint air, Burano with its fishing and lace industries is
famous for its pastel-colored houses which the fishermen found a
reassuring sight as they made their way home from the sea. A stroll
over the wooden bridge ends with the pleasant Mazzorbo with its
open verdant spaces and a few houses. The Museo del Merletto
introduces the delicate art of lace making and its history.
Fascinating with its ambience of fierce possessiveness, Murano
guards its secrets of glass production. The art of glass craft was
smuggled into Venice by merchants who traded with the East and was
so well guarded that glass workers were forbidden to leave the city.
As an exquisite industry, glass outlets are found along Fondamenta
dei Vetrai and Viale Garibaldi. The Museo
Vetrario is dedicated as a showcase of the history and
art of glass making. The Veneto-Byzantine Basilica di SS
Maria e Donato with its colonnaded apse and 12th century
mosaic pavement is an architectural masterpiece of Murano glass
work.
 Tranquil
Pellestrina near the southern most tip of the Lido, is a small island
comprising of fishing villages, lace-makers and Murazzi with sea
walls of Istrian stone that blocked the lagoon from the Adriatic
sea rise till the tragic floods of 1966. A quiet strand of gray
sand provides a haven for solitude seekers.
Mysterious with the origins of a pre-Republican Venice buried in
its veins, Torcello lies north of the lagoon. Marshy and llonely,
Torcello has a magical atmosphere with its main square and abandoned
buildings and monuments. As home to early settlers, Torcello held
the key to safety from barbaric invasions during the 5th and 6th
centuries. |
