Murano, more Vino!

We woke today to find the weather was in as bad a shape as our heads. Hangovers from last night’s session and rain!!!With our British resolve we battled on and stuck to our plan of taking a boat to Murano which is is famous for glassblowing. If you want to buy anything made of glass, head to Murano.  So much value did the Venetians hold for their glassblowers, at one time none of them were allowed to leave the island and were forced to continue their trade. The cold, wet and choppy boat ride took 30 minutes and still no sign of the sunshine. 

Little Miss Misery

Moody skyline

We took shelter in glass shop after glass shop and then found a furnace where we actually watched glassblowing. This was both very interesting and a great opportunity to dry off and warm up using the furnace’s heat. Soon afterwards the rain stopped and we continued to wander around, enjoying the quaint streets. We then visited a very interesting glass museum which described all the different varieties of glass styles.

Glass sculpture

Waterways of Murano

When we finished in the museum we got back on the boat to Palace Ca Rezzonico via St Mark’s square and the Grand Canal. The palace has numerous stately rooms holding a huge collection of artefacts from 18^th century Venice as well as paintings from artists such as Canaletto.

On the boat with better weather.

Following a quick shower and change we headed off to a recommended restaurant in the Santa Croce area. We headed there along the Grand Canal again (using our 12 hour boat pass) only to find the restaurant fully booked!! We did however find another lovely restaurant where we had a delightful pasta and glass of red al-fresco. After dinner we met up with the Auzzies again and did what you do when Auzzies hook up with Pohmies, drink!!! We found a lovely wine bar and proceeded to drink red wine, eat some nibbles and chatter away until 1am. Another fantastic night with our new friends and a big improvement from the day’s wobbly start!!

Boozing with Lee and Kristy