Category: Life

Market Morning in Chioggia

The travel books call Chioggia “Little Venice”. The locals point out that Chioggia is much older than Venice and call Venice “Big Chioggia”!

We had a guided walk in Chioggia this morning, with the fish market as the main attraction. Diane and I also explored the weekly market on the main street, but it wasn’t terribly picturesque.

Chioggia Canal View
One of the Bell Towers in Chioggia
Two different churches with two different bell towers. Locals call the two churches the father and the son because of the sizes of the towers. Oh, and there’s another church 50 meters away.
Is this raddiccio ticking?
Memorial sculpture outside the fish market
Birds waiting for the fish market to close
Razor Clams
Fresh Salmon – 8 bucks a pound!
The other end of the fish market
Live crabs (they’re surviving despite invasive Maryland Blue Crabs in the lagoon)
Baby MOSE at work
Marble bridge
Venetian Lion
Back to the S. S. La Venezia in time for lunch!

Far too many photos from Torcello, Burano, and Murano

Our day started with a quick boat trip to Torcello – this was a very important center in the middle of the first millennium CE (it’s even been called the mother settlement from which Venice sprang). Today, the permanent population is in the teens, but it’s still a popular spot for tourists, both locals and those coming from far away.

Devil’s Bridge and Church Tower
Devil’s Bridge (no handrails, no walls!)

Our main goal today was to visit the piazza, which houses both a “normal” church (Church of Santa Fosca) and a cathedral (Baslica of Santa Maria Assunta) – in most cities, the two are in separate parts of town.

Church of Santa Fosca (Martyr’s Church) – unusually, it is linked to the adjacent Cathedral by a porch instead of being elsewhere in town.
The stone lions are actually originals, unlike many of the ones in Venice. Napoleon had them torn down throughout Venice, but Torcellio was a backwater and they were spared.
15th century meeting room for lay people, not a church. It housed a mutual aid society.
This is the bapistry. People did not get baptized into the church until they were young adults. The circle is a symbol, of course.

The cathedral was the highlight of the visit. Photography is not permitted, but our guide (Susan Steer, one of the founders of Venice in Peril which helps fund the restoration and conservation of the cathedral) quoted her grandmother’s advice to us: “If you can’t be good, be discreet”, and I chose to interpret that as permission to ignore the prohibition. :-) I was not alone.

Conserved walls – you can see the Crucifixion and Saint Cristopher to the right

Above the altar
In the apse
Inside the Cathedral
The End of Days, including the Crucifixion, the Last Trump (possibly not actually shown here), the Revival of the Dead, the Final Judgment, Heaven, and Hell.

We left the piazza and walked back to our boat.

Hemingway Drank Here!
Atop the Devil’s Bridge
Near a Torcello tavern
At the port
A final look at theBaslica of Santa Maria Assunta and its tower (built as separate structures for safety)

Once back in Burano, we had time for a walk, exploration, and shopping before lunch.

Imagine what these houses would look like on a sunny day!
Enjoying Burano
A little faded, but still nice
Color-matched storm shutters, too!
Murano Glass and Gold Leaf Engraving
Burano Cemetery
Pisa isn’t the only Italian city with a leaning tower!
A small shrine and sitting area on the street in Burano

After lunch, we boarded a ship to Murano for a glass-blowing demonstration at Ferro & Lazzarini.

Queuing up for the glass-blowing demonstration
Even non-negotiable tips are OK
Heating the glass
Readying the decorations
Incorporating the decorations
Reheating
Shaping
Heating the glass again
Opening up the bottle
And a horse for an encore
Finished products

After the demonstration, we had the chance to walk through their showroom and admire the products for sale (prices from 20 to 20,000 Euro…with a special 20% discount for us!). Some pieces were practical (cups, including Kiddush cups); some were over-the-top; all were beautiful. Photography was not permitted, and this time, I obeyed.

Note the lack of a shopping bag!

As soon as we returned from Murano, the ship sailed for Chioggia at the other end of the lagoon. We’re supposed to arrive during dinner and we’re staying there overnight.