Sabato

Saturday we woke up around 8.30 and caught a boat to Giardini, then to Murano, a a small island on the north side of Venice. We headed to the Murano Glass Factory. Murano’s reputation as a centre for glassmaking was born when the Venetian Republic, fearing fire and destruction to the city’s mostly wood buildings, ordered glassmakers to move their foundries to Murano in 1291. Murano’s glassmakers held a monopoly on quality glassmaking for centuries, developing or refining many technologies including crystalline glass, enamelled glass (smalto), glass with threads of gold (aventurine), multicoloured glass (millefiori), milk glass (lattimo), and imitation gemstones made of glass. Today, the artisans of Murano are still employing these century-old techniques, crafting everything from contemporary art glass and glass jewellery to Murano glass chandeliers and wine stoppers.

While standing in line for the glass factory, a little boy asked if he could take a picture of Elizabeth's earrings because his grandma liked them. It turned out they were from San Francisco but now lived in China or something... weird. After visiting the glass factory and watching a demonstration, we walked around Murano and shopped-- looking for the perfect jewelry to buy. I got some black rose earrings that are so beautiful! The Murano glass is beautiful, especially jewelry, and there are tons of little shops with pretty jewelry in them along the canals.

After exploring Murano, we took a boat to Burano, another island in the Venetian Lagoon. Two stories are attributed to how the city obtained its name. One is that it was initially founded by the Buriana family, and another is that the first settlers of Burano came from the small island of Buranello, five miles to the south. Although the island soon became a thriving settlement, it was administered from Torcello and had none of the privileges of that island or of Murano. It rose in importance only in the sixteenth century, when women on the island began making lace with needles. The lace was soon exported across Europe. Burano is also known for its small, brightly-painted houses, popular with artists. The colours of the houses follow a specific system originating from the golden age of its development; if someone wishes to paint their home, one must send a request to the government, who will respond by making notice of the certain colours permitted for that lot. This practice has resulted in the myriad of warm, pastelly colours that characterises the island today.

We shopped a bit, and I got some cute hippo earrings for 4Euro! After a boat ride to Lido, we had to walk all the way to the other end of the island to get to our hotel. We stopped at Billa for a snack of cheese doodles and ACE. Back at the hotel we packed up and went to bed REALLY early to be ready for our early boat ride in the morning to the train station where we hopped a train to the airport.

The whole 9 days was such a whirlwind, and SO amazing. Italy is the most romantic and beautiful country I've ever seen, and it still doesn't seem real to me even now that I was there. There are so many places in Italy I'd still love to visit, but Venice was the one place in the whole of Europe that I knew I needed to see before I left this continent. It was everything I imagined and more, and being a part of Carnevale was a once in a lifetime experience.

But now it's back to the real world again. My second semester lectures started the day after we got back from Italy, and I'm enjoying those for the most party. Also, my friend Katy from Saint Mary's is here now, and it's been a blast having her here. We've also made some other new friends already! Katy met a girl named Elizabeth Kelling on the plane on the way here, and she hangs with us all the time! We also met Laura and Matt from St. Norbert's in Green Bay! Laura looks like Hilary Swank and is from Marathon (about 20 minutes from Mosinee, where I live). It's crazy how small the world keeps getting!

So it's been nice to have a fresh new start this semester, and I survived Valentine's Day. It was actually not as depressing as it had the potential to be-- it just made me think about all the people that I love and that love me and I was happy. Even though the one I love the most is far away, I'm incredibly greatful to have him in my life, and just thinking about love and luck kept me smiling on St. Valentine's day! My friends and I got all dressed up and went out to Brady's-- it was lots of fun!

Next week here on campus is called "Rag week." It basically consists of activities all week... and lots of getting drunk every night. (Don't worry, I won't be partaking in the "getting drunk every night," but I WILL be partaking in the B*witched concert! Woo hoo!) But apparently lectures are unofficially cancelled during Rag week. I'm not exactly sure how it's actually going to work, but if that's the case, it will be nice to have a break already!

The weather here has been beautiful, and hopefully it will only get nicer. It feels like spring, which makes me think of summer, which makes me think of home, which makes me happy. I love sunny days!