Italy Day 5: Venice-Gondolas & Murano Glass

The alarm rang at 4:00am! Now where is that darn camera battery? Where did I put that pouch?? I finally found it still in the charger.. *phew*.. I didn't misplace them after all. Can't blame anyone for being rather less 'organised' than usual at that God-forsaken hour in the morning! After checking out, the hotel called for a cab.. it was more expensive this time.. €50 without seat-belts (including the driver) and travelling at 150km/hour to the airport! MAMA MIA!!!




We flew via EasyJet Airline.. which was the reason we packed everything into only HAND luggage.. 1 piece per person plus a coat OR long umbrella.. but I guess that's quite reasonable for €15? It was drizzling when we made our way up the airplane stairway.. and after about an hour.. Venice!!! The name even had a romantic ring to it! The wind was biting cold as we chugged down the Canal Grande on the vaporetta (ferry).. which works pretty much like our Ezlink.. you have to tap on the reader before boarding. The boys had the opportunity to train their 'sea-legs' while I kept busy snapping pictures of the worn and torn submerged buildings.. and famous Rialto Bridge as it came into sight.. even the Venice hospital is situated by the waters and ambulance is in a form of.. what else?.. a boat of cos! A fast one.. I presume?



Okay, now I have to something to gripe about.. WHY do MEN hate asking for directions? WHAT??? They actually BELIEVE they will eventually find the way and land up in the right place? Or do they KNOW they're lost but are too macho to ask for help? Jimmy's trust in the latest technological gadget (i.e. iPhone).. landed us walking in 'squares'.. trying to navigate through the maze-like alleys (e.g. Diagon Alley in Harry Potter) with our bags and in our sleep-deprived state! So I ASKED the local grocer.. although I didn't understand a word he said.. nonetheless his hand GESTURES spoke volumes! Miraculously, we arrived at the steps of Hotel Malibran (supposedly built in the 17th century).. slightly wet.. but none the worse for wear. This room was even more picturesque.. complete with Marie-Antoinette furnishing.. embroidered upholstery.. chandeliers and all! Lunch was pizza (yet again) and calzone.. Italian term for a gigantic curry puff?





Despite the grey skies, we decided to venture out to Murano Island to visit the Glass Museum and if possible.. see how glass is made from sand. We found a shop named Gino Mazzuccato that offered free demo and it was amazing seeing the man himself turn.. roll.. blow.. spin.. and then VOILA! A tall vase with spiral motif! He even skillfully blew a very thin glass bubble which burst with an unexpected loud 'POP' when it touched the cold stone floor.. just like a balloon! I'm pretty sure we screamed and jumped in synchrony.. ha ha!

But sadly, we were deflated to discover that they over-charged us for the pendants, rings, cuff-links and paper weights later that evening, when we saw cheaper ones in the stalls back at the main island. They seemed to have similar patterns and we couldn't tell the difference anyway. Oh well.. our mood was somewhat elevated by a scrumptious dinner of squid ink pasta.. spaghetti carbonara.. pizza marinara and margherita.. topped off with white wine!