We spent most of our second day in Venice taking a boat ride in the Venetian lagoon. It was a small ferry boat and the ride took about 40 minutes each way. It stopped at the islands of Murano (famous for its glass) and Burano (famous for its lace and colorful houses), and from Burano we took another boat to the island of Torcello, whose wonderful old cathedral was our main reason for the trip.
Cemetery island in the northern lagoon, viewed from the mainland
Our boat arriving at the pier on the north side of mainland Venice
View back to Venice from the northern lagoon
The clouds and water were so beautiful.
Rope on the ferry
One of many glass-making factories on Murano (we didn't stop there)
Pier at Burano Island, where we changed boats for Torcello. The second boat ride only took about five minutes - the islands are right next to each other.
On Torcello, we walked down this nice brick path along a canal for less than 10 minutes to the church
Local fishermen
Torcello Cathedral
Interior of Torcello Cathedral with a seriously amazing mosaic - probably the largest one I've ever seen! It mostly depicts the Last Judgment, with the Harrowing of Hell at the top (Jesus rescuing souls from Limbo before his Resurrection).
Hellfire and damnation
A lovely golden mosaic of the Virgin and Child at the other end of the cathedral
After Torcello we took a brief walk around the island of Burano, which was interesting. It's a small island and fishing village, where everyone clearly knows everyone. It has an intimate, family-like atmosphere except for the tourists tromping through it - poor locals! But the houses are definitely as colorful as advertised and the villagers hang their laundry out of their windows, so it's all quite picturesque. Unfortunately the colors were muted by overcast weather during our visit, but they were still unique and fun.
One of the few remaining masters of traditional Burano lacemaking, hard at work in a lace shop
