Burano, Italy definitely stole a piece of my heart. I love colour, especially when it’s in a disjointed rainbow sort of way, where there are tons of different shades all over the place and somehow it all fits together like a visual symphony. That is Burano in a nutshell. It was complete colour therapy everywhere you looked. Charm and beauty poured out of every crack and corner and I drank it all in through my eyes and lens.

Burano was a little side-trip from Venice. It was on my first full day of my backpacking trip with my Dad and our only full day in Venice so we really had to make the most of our time so I was SO happy we were able to fit Burano in. We went toward the end of the day, hopping on a ferry bus from  Piazza San Marco in Venice and transferred in Murano to the Burano. It turned out to be the perfect time of the day to go as the it felt like only the locals were left, relaxing in the cooler early evening air after the hot day. Everyone seemed to be sitting outside their homes, chatting with neighbours, or on the small main street where vendors were selling fresh produce and kids were running around or eating gellato.

I think I photographed every square inch I passed in the few hours we had there. My Dad and I both adored Burano and I hope to return someday and linger longer!

Check out our next stop on our Italy Adventure: Hilltop towns, Montiano and Magliano in the province of Grosseto, Italy.

 

 

Venice was the first stop on my father/daughter backpacking trip. We arrived at the Venice-Treviso airport with daylight to spare but get into Venice until 11:30pm after our first bus pulled into the airport parking lot spewing smoke. haha. So our first sight of Venice was at night which was beautifully lit and less crowded, with the last few cafes and bars starting to clean up and close. We stayed at Hotel Stella Alpina which was comfortable and close to the train station. Best of all, it had a beautiful little walled garden with wisteria hanging over a trellis that was lovely to sit and eat our breakfast under.

Only about %20 of Venice is really touristy and those spots are super busy, so my Dad avoided those places for the most part. We just peaked our heads in quickly to see San Marco and the Rialto Bridge and spent the majority of our time happily getting lost on almost empty side streets of Venice. We had fun finding hidden gardens and allies as we happily clicked photos. My Dad was the perfect travel partner for this trip seeing as we both love photography. We were on a quest; Venice was the treasure chest and our photos were the jewels. So we were more like pirates than tourists.

Venice, Italy is a unique world of its own. When you first step out onto a Venice street in the day and see a canal in front of you with a gondola pushing past, you feel like you’ve stepped into a fantasy novel. With ferry buses, water taxis, fishing boats and gondolas all sharing the larger canals and grand canals, it’s an amazing site to behold. Standing on a bridge over a canal and looking out can have you transfixed watching all of the activity below.

I left Venice wanting more which is always a good thing (especially since it was my second trip there). I’ll be back for more, I’m sure.

Check out our next stop on our Italy Adventure: Burano!