Murano Adventures

We traveled to Murano by boat and enjoyed hearing more about the famous sights of Venice. One of our favorite stories was about the two columns that stand directly in front of Saint Mark’s Square. One is topped by a crocodile and one is topped with a winged lion. The interesting story is the one behind the lion. Venice decided that they no longer wanted Thaddeus to be their only patron saint. They set their sights high on Saint Mark, but needed his relics (bones) which lay in Alexandra, Egypt. They set off to bribe the guards and were successful. On their return trip, they covered the bones with pork as they went through customs. The Egyptian officers were Muslim, and therefore not permitted to handle pork, so the bones left the country undetected. They returned to Venice successfully, so Saint Mark became the second patron saint of Venice, and is symbolized by the winged lion atop one of the columns.

Once we arrived in Murano, we watched a glass-blowing demonstration, walked through the glass shops, and spent time exploring the island. Murano’s history is an interesting one. Many years ago, all of the master glass-blowers of Venice were moved to the island for “safety reasons.” We learned on our tour that the real reason was to keep the glass-blowing techniques a secret. While the master craftsmen were treated very well upon the island, they were threatened with death if they left. Fortunately, we were able to take some photographs during the glass-blowing demonstration, we hope you enjoy them. Below is a video of Murano, the glass-blowing, and our departure from Venice. We look forward to arriving in Greece tomorrow!
C:UserskgentryDesktopGarrett Grant TripMurano and at sea day 1Murano Video from Ms. Gentry on Vimeo.