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A good opportunity to visit the Isola di San Michele, the cemetery of Venice, is on returning from a "tourist trap" visit to a Murano glass factory offered by your hotel with a commission for them on your purchases of glass. The island is surrounded with a red-brick wall and a line of tall cypress trees rising high behind it. The pontoon gives access directly to the entrance of the cemetery.
In fact two islands, the one containing the convent and the other one uninhabited, were joined by decision of Napoleon's occupying forces who told the Venetians to start hauling their dead across the water instead of burying them all over town.
Only a few large monuments exist here. The cemetery is divided into sections by plain pale walls, or walls of burial niches. It is a romantic place which alternates cypress, flowers, monuments, graves, and columbarium. The church San Michele built by Coducci from 1469 till 1478 is one of the first religious buildings of the Renaissance built in Venice.
The part of the cemetery most visited by the tourists is the section with the tombs of composer Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) and the founder of the "Russian Ballets" Sergei Diaghilev (1872-1929). He created with Stravinsky the "Rite of the Spring". Visitors deposit small pebbles on their graves by way of homage.
This orthodox "Greek" section where rest also some noble Russian families has an atmosphere of rustic decay in contrast to the formal and beautifully tended Catholic gardens of graves.
Other moving place is the row of children's graves. Stillborn children, very young dead children plunge the guest into the fragility of the existence.
The San Michele Cemetery is crowded and the dead are left to rest just twelve years, after which the family must pay to remove what remains to small metal boxes for permanent storage, otherwise the bones will be tossed into a common bone yard.
But let us go back to Venice and its animation of the alive. Address: Isola di San MicheleCanareggio - 30121, VeneziaDirections: Take from Murano ( or in the other direction from Fondamente Nove) the linea 41 or 42 which are the only ones to stop at S. Michele. Open from April to September 7.30am to 6pm; from October to March 7.30am to 4pm 25 December and 1 January 7.30am to 12am
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Burano island is something for heart and soul. The old fishermens’ island is approximately 45 minutes to Venezia’s west, just next to Torcello. Every house is painted in a different colour. There is almost no colour possible that is not represented there. Together, this makes a magnificent mix of colours – just a feast for the eye. Try and don’t race through the village. It is worthwile to wander through the streets, take in these colours and the atmosphere. In the backstreets and canales, there are lovely options for reflection photos. Yes, make sure to take lots of film or cards and batteries.
In addition, you can visit the lace museum Museo de Merletti, learn about the skilfull art of lace making. It is open daily except Tuesdays, entry fee is 4 € in case you don’t have the Venice Card Orange (in which it is included). You can also buy lace here, but as for glass, it is not cheap. I learned that a table cloth of typical size would need 3 years, made by 10 embroiders. So calculate this before you go. The cheap stuff sold on the island is most probably also Chinese crap, but it is not yet that much condemned by Venezia’s officials – maybe as Burano is a bit more out in the lagoon.
And there is chiesa San Martino, with a very much crooked belltower and a Tiepolo painting inside.
It is easy to get there. Vaporetto line LN (Laguna Norte) leaves every half hour from Fondamenta Nuove (every 10 min and 40 min past the hour). I described more about how to get there, the boat trip itself and the island of course on my Burano page, of which I have added the link below.
You can combine Burano with a trip to Torcello. Leave a Comment
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If you intend to buy fabulous Murano glassware, you should go directly to the island and look, instead of being taken in in a shop around the neuralgic and touristy spots in San Marco. These might sell you Chinese crap for Made in Murano. Now Venezia does a lot to demolish the dealers that dare to do this and destroy the reputation (see what I wrote in the tourist trap section). But to make sure to buy genuine work, it is better to buy directly from the manufacturers. The real work has a logo Vetro Artistico Murano (check the website given below) and is not cheap of course.
In addition, I highly recommend to visit Murano’s glass museum Museo del Vetro, as here you can learn about the process of glass making and appreciate the work behind the finished products (and understand why they are not that cheap as the Chinese crap). Entrance fee is 5,50 € in case you don’t have the Venice Card Orange (in which it is included).
But the very best is a tour through one of the glass factories. You simply go into a shop and ask for the factory. All of them are prepared to let you see the maestros at work. Don’t forget to leave a small donation for the guys in the box. I am not sure if their wages are really calculated based upon how much their work is finally sold for.
There is no real need to follow the touts that want to sell you a trip to the island and a factory tour. Vaporettos leave every 15 minutes from Fondamenta Nuove; take the circle line 41/42, which also stops at La Zaccaria, in case you stay in sestiere San Marco. Leave a Comment
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Of the three islands, Murano, Burano and Torcello, Burano was definitely my favourite and the one I spent longest at.
Famous for it's lace industry, Burano is a pretty little fishing village with brightly coloured houses lining it's streets. It is said that the fishermen painted their houses bright colours so that they could see their own house when coming home from a day at sea.
It is a lovely, quiet place and is nice to just stroll around and maybe sit in one of the cafes, as we did.
Burano actually has 7,000 inhabitants, which is hard to believe.
Please look at my Burano travelogue for more photos. Leave a Comment Directions: It takes around 40 mins to get to Burano from Venice by ferry. You can take vaparetto no 12 from the North of Venice, Fondamente Nuove, or if you are in Murano, it is the Faro stop that you need, something which took us a while to figure out!
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If you are planning to stay in Venezia for a couple of days, a visit to the laguna and the islands is a must. But even in one day it is not possible to see much of the islands. I recommend minimum 2 days or more, especially if you like wildlife watching.
Venezia’s laguna is a very fragile ecosystem, with countless smaller and bigger islands (see website below, and then lagoon of Venice/islands). The site says that the islands make up only for 8% of the laguna’s surface, so you can imagine how much is left for marshland, thus wildlife.
The most important islands to visit are definitely Murano (for the glass), Burano (for the colours), Torcello (for the very old past of the area) and San Michele (the city’s graveyard). But there are others, such as Sant’Erasmo (one of the laguna’s farm island), or San Lazaro degli Armeni (Mechitarist monastery), Lazaretto Nuovo (the former quarantine island for victims of pestilence), San Francesco del Deserto (a Franciscan monastery) and not to forget the outer islands like Lido and Pellestrina for sunbathing and swimming.
For wildlife lovers, the laguna is also a paradise ! I was amazed myself to see how abundant flora and fauna are. Check the website below – lagoon of Venice/fauna and vegetation.
At the moment, I can only tell about Murano, Torcello, Burano and San Michele (but will visit more on my next trips). If you like to know more about the other islands, check Sandy’s travel list. She has visited almost every island. Leave a Comment
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In 1291 all of the glassmakers that previously worked in Venice were moved to the island of Murano as the glassworks created a potential fire hazard in Venice as the buildings there were mostly wooden at the time. Murano is now famous for it's glassware and there are many shops on the island where you can buy glass from. You can also see glassworks being made in the factories there.
This photo shows the main street in Murano with the medieval campanile in the background. Leave a Comment Directions: You can reach Murano from the vaparetto stop Fondamente Nuove in the North of Venice. Tip: if you wish to then go onto Burano then it is best to find the stop Faro as I am not sure if any other stop goes there.
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Torcello is the smallest and quietest of the three islands. It is also very green compared to the others.
From the mid 7th Century to the 13th Century, Torcello was at it's peak with around 20,000 inhabitants. Nowadays about 60 people live there. A succession of malaria epidemics significantly reduced the population.
There is a cathedral, a church and a bell tower to visit on the island.
I would recommend 1-2 hours here at least as there is around a 15 min walk to get to the main square. Leave a Comment
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Venice consists of about 118 islands. The most famous of them seems to be Isola di San Giorgio Maggiore, which is a main landmark of Venice.
Isola di San Giorgio Maggiore is home to a church, a monastery and a 70 m tall campanile (tower), which can be climbed for panoramic views of Venice.
Directions:
The island of San Giorgio Maggiore belongs to the district of San Marco.
It is situated in the Bacino di San Marco, just in front of Piazza San Marco (St. Mark's Square). Leave a Comment
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The Lido is a kind of mainland barrier to protect Venice from the sea. It is situated in the lagoon of Venice and offers approximately 12 km of beach at the Adriatic Coast. Apart from that, many nice old villas and prestigious hotels can be found here. Among them are the Art Nouveau Hungaria Palace Hotel or the 5 starred luxury Hotel Excelsior. Leave a Comment Directions: The Lido can be reached by various vaporetti from St. Mark's Square (San Marco); e.g. no. 1 or no. 82. The trip takes about 20 minutes.
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If you are interested in history, visiting the island of Torcello is a must. It is situated just next to Burano, in the very northeastern end of the lagoon, accessible by vaporetto line LN and changing boats in Burano.
Visiting this island will draw you back in the days of early lagoon settlement, as it was the centre and seat of the bishop until end of 12th century.
Basilica Santa Maria Assunta (photo 5), has been built in 640 and later on expanded. It is most famous for the very much splendid Byzantine mosaics of Maria and apostles and the Last Judgement. Next to her is Santa Fosca of 12th century (photo 4). This one is not as decorated inside, but has a very cheerful atmosphere inside, with little Byzantine or oriental lamps burning.
But the island has many more treasures. Opposite of the churches is a little house with a very much picturesque gaden with mossy statues (like in the main photo), and a small vineyard.
Go up the campanile for a magnificent view over this part of the lagoon and feel how very quiet the life here is. You can also visit the small museum, although I cannot judge, as I was already satisfied to look at all the stones, gravestones, pillars and capitals in the courtyard.
Admission fee for Basilica, museum and campanile are each 3 €. Combination tickets for two of them is 5,50 € and for all three 8,50 €. They open at 10:30 and close at 5:30 p.m. (last entry is at 5 p.m.)
A visit to Torcello can easily combined with a visit to Burano. But try and get there as early as possible, when it is still quiet and no squeaking kids are jumping around. Torcello seems to be quite popular for foreign school classes. Leave a Comment
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