Burano - A glorious burst of CoLOuRs!!

This is going to be a very colourful entry because I am going to write about BURANO!

If you know how I am obsessed with colours, you will know how much I love this tiny island, which is famous for its rainbow coloured houses.

On this island you will never find 2 houses with the same colour sitting next to each other. It's because the government controls the colour to be used. I wonder if they have recruited a team of artists because the colour scheme is just brilliant!

Other than being beautiful, there is a practical reason for them to paint the house this way. Historically, families in Burano caught fish for a living. While the houses looked almost identical, it was way easier for the fishermen to find their way home by colours.

Burano is a small island and many tourists may find it not much to do there. It's not true. Unlike central Venice, Burano is not purely for tourists. It is where local people live. I strongly advice you to take some time and slowly walk around the island. You will be surprised by the amount of things that fascinate you.

I was wearing the glass necklace that I got in Murano, by the way :)

I found the way they hanged their clothes was extremely artistic.

The small town is famous for making lace too! They were all hand-made and labelled "made in Burano", next to a very intimidating price tag.....

Errrr....there is something wrong with this bell tower.....

I later googled and realize Italy is in fact quite famous for building leaning towers, other than Pisa [ The list of leaning towers ]

Here I bring to you my collection of beautiful window-sills in Burano. Now admire the perfectly matching colours.

 

It's a crime not be to romantic in Italy, I guess

But there was one thing that I was not quite satisfied with Burano: The food. It's quite pricey compared to elsewhere in Venice but the quality was, to be honest, just so-so...hmm....

****************************************************************************

For those who love reading my blog, THANK YOU! <3 *muah*

There is a lot of effort to organize the thousands of photos that I took in Italy. But I just enjoy sharing with people the things that I love. And I wish I can inspire you to admire the extraordinary things in our ordinary lives.

More interesting things about Venice is coming soon. Goodnight, my friends.

XOXO

Murano - the glass island of Venice

I woke up at around 6 a.m. on my second day in Venice (no it was not jetlag, I normally wake up that early lol). The breakfast wouldn't be served until 7 so I decided to run around the neighborhood. It was the 7th of May so the weather was still quite chilly in the morning. But I love the morning sun and the quiet street.

The cars still had their headlights on when I ran out....

Love the beautiful flowers in Italy, they were EVERYWHERE!!
 

As much as I love hotel buffet breakfasts, it is the same thing that I am crazy about no matter where I go - the cereals!!

I strongly recommend everyone who is going to Europe to get the travel pass of the cities. It's really convenient especially if you have extremely packed itinerary like mine...

My hotel was not in Venice but we could get there in no more than 20 mins. The photo was taken at the bus stop and my hotel was only 50m away (right behind the red bus in the photo).

My first destination was Murano, a beautiful island 1.5 km away from Venice. The whole town is devoted to making glass for more than 700 years. There is a glass museum on the island about their successful glass making business. If you are looking for a beautiful glass bottle or some unique glass accessories, this is where you should go.  Every piece of glass they sell was hand-made in Murano. Therefore even for the same design, every piece is unique and and you can't get it anywhere else. I have got a cute glass necklace there and wore it almost everyday in Italy. You will see it later when I write about other cities. :)

Murano was not supposed to be this quiet, but it was 9 am in the morning when all the shops were still closed.

Love this cute Mosaic of people making glass.

 

I struggled a bit whether I should post this picture. Blurred line between being exotic or erotic....

I made several failed attempts to scan this QR code. And it was way too big to be captured in the tiny scanning screen without jumping into the water behind me. Driven by curiosity, I decided to take a picture of it and see what I can do later. 

  

As I was writing this post, and about to scan it again using my phone, I realized the real QR code was at the right hand corner of the mosaic......

LOL

 

 

Among all the wonderful glass products on this amazing island, it was this alien that I wish I could bring home (but of course besides being extremely expensive, the alien was half a feet taller than me).

It was made by an Italian artist Massimo Lunardon who is famous for making cute life-size glass alien and put them on the streets. If you want to know more, read this !

Murano is a small island and you'd probably spend no more than 2 hours there. On the same day I also went to Burano, another interesting island nearby, and then back to Venice for the museums. 

Burano will be coming next, stay tuned if you like reading my travel journal. :)

XOXO

Florence 101 - Dante

Dan Brown's new book Inferno, which is set in Florence, has reminded me of my best memories in Italy. It motivated me to continue writing my travel journal (before I go on another trip lol). Here I am going to slowly refresh what I have learned during my vacation in May. And I hope it's going to help you better prepare your next trip to Italy too.

Florence played a crucial role in the development of Italian art, culture and the language itself. It's often regarded as "the cradle of Renaissance".

The city, of course, is very beautiful in her own right. But if you want to get the most out of your vacation in Florence, I'd suggest you to take some time and learn about a few names that you are bound to come across: The Medici Family, Michelangelo and Dante

I am going to start with Dante.

 Dante Alighieri 

He was a widely loved Florentine poet in the middle ages, a century before the Renaissance started (some called him "the frontrunner of Renaissance"). His works had remarkable influence over the Renaissance artists and the Italian culture. He also represented the people's love and pride of the Florence city.

i. The Father of the Italian Language
He was considered the father of Italian, mainly because of his epic work "the Divine Comedy". Comedy here doesn't suggest his poem was about something funny. At that time the "high" literature was called "tragedy" and "low" literature "comedy". High literature was written in Latin. However, Dante's Divine Comedy was first literary work written in Italian. Due to the success of his poems, the Italian language also became an important language in Europe.

ii. The Inspiration of Renaissance Artists
His works, particularly the Divine Comedy, inspired a lot of Renaissance artists. He created new visions towards the heaven and the hell, and acted as blueprints of many famous religious works of the Renaissance, including Michelangelo's Last Judgement on the wall of the Sistine Chapel. His work was admired by the most prominent artists in the world, including Michelangelo, who was also a poet himself, and Botticelli. 

iii. The Star-crossed Lovers
The life of the poet was a romantic tragedy. He fell in love with a woman named Beatrice at the age of 9 at first sight (yes. 9!). However instead of Beatrice, he married the daughter of an influential family in Florence at 12 (yes. 12!). Beatrice died at the young age of 24, buried at the church where she first met Dante. Much to the poet's grief, she was often mentioned in Dante's work. In Dante's Divine Comedy, he reached the paradise under the guidance of Beatrice. He devoted his work and much of his life to the woman he loved (hmmm...his wife, however, was never mentioned in any of his work).

iv. Florence and Dante
Dante was born, baptized, and raised in Florence. He loved his homeland dearly. However he took the wrong side in a political conflict and was exiled from Florence when he was in his mid-thirties. He was later invited to Ravenna, where he finished his Divine Comedy, and died 3 years later at 56. Until the very last moments of his life, he wished one day he could return to Florence with honour. Years after Dante's death (and success), Florence finally wanted his remain back from Ravenna, but in vein. Despite the fail attempts, Florence built a massive tomb for Dante nevertheless, with a quote from his work Inferno "Honour the most exalted poet" and "His spirit, which had left us, has returned". (so sad!!)

Venice the City of Romance - Day 1

Hotels in Venice are generally quite expensive. For budget travelers like me, it may be a better option to stay outside Venice.

I stayed in Mestre, a small town only 15 mins away from Venice. My hotel was right next to the bus stop, as well as the train station.  There were buses running from Mestre to Venice every 10 mins from 5:00 am till midnight. The hotel itself was inexpensive, very clean, cozy and convenient with daily buffet breakfast (I love, love, love hotel breakfast!!). So what else can I ask for?

You will never understand why people call Venice one of the most romantic cities in the world until you go there yourself. There are no cars, you can only walk, take a ferry or a gondola. When you were there it felt instantly like you time-traveled 600 years back to the most glorious days of Venice.

The city naturally has a classic dark undertone like an instagram filter is automatically applied everywhere

And, lovebirds, Paris is not the only place where you can lock your love to a bridge.

I loved how the gondola, the greenish water, and the reddish brick wall in the background created a perfect sense of harmony. Italians really are natural artists.

It felt good enough to be just there randomly walk around. But Venice has way more to offer. Palazzo Ducale near the St. Mark's Square is a must-go.

Birds chilling out at the St. Mark's Square

Inside Palazzo Ducale

The Palazzo Ducale has more than 1500 years of history and was rebuilt, extended and restored over the years. In the late 15th century, a violent fire broke out and it took them almost 100 years for the reconstruction to complete. After that, the palace remained pretty much the same as we see it today.

I wasn't that familiar with Northern Italian arts and I didn't have time to read about it before the trip. So I couldn't say much about the art works in Palazzo Ducale. One of the most famous thing about this place, however, is the bridge of sigh.

You can easily understand how it got the name because the palace, where the richest and the most influential people stayed, and the cells of the prisoners were only separated by a canal and connected by the bridge of sigh. It was where a prisoner could catch a last glimpse of freedom.

 

Heaven on the left, hell on the right

I have been to one of the cells, it was so dark and it felt ominous. Actually what else could you think of when you were in a dimly lit cell where people only suffered, probably till death. I thought it was a bad idea to take pictures inside but I did....lol. Just it was way too creepy to post it here.

To wipe off the creepiness. I am posting a beautiful picture of Venice taken right outside Palazzo Ducale, for no obvious reason. (except to wipe off the creepiness lol)

After that we went straight to dinner. This restaurant was recommended by one of my friends who has been traveling around the world and knows only the best places to eat. Everything served here was so nice, from the homemade bread, to the homemade pasta and the swordfish <3

 *****************************************************************

Travel tips:

#1 When it comes to food, you can never go wrong with Italian restaurants. But the ones located near where traffic is heavy are tend to be (heavily) over-priced. Even if you have no idea where to go, rule of thumb is to walk a little further from the main streets. The place where we had dinner was just 5 mins away from the Grand Canal. But it was cheaper and the food served looked waaaaay better than the ones facing the water.

#2 Adding to #1, as I suggest you to walk a little further from the main streets, don't walk too far. It's extremely easy to get lost in Venice. You may not be convinced because I get lost basically everywhere lol. But all of my friends including those who I think they can store maps in their brains with built-in GPS say the same.

 [1 July 2014] I am writing this blog more than one month after my Italy trip. Looking at the photos you have no idea how much I am missing this place. I am looking forward to the second time I go there, and I know I am going to have so much more fun than the first ;-)

My Italy - Prelude

I studied Fine Arts for 2 years in the university besides my Engineering major. Textbooks in Western art history usually begins with the astonishing 200 years between 1400-1600 in Italy, what people commonly called the Italian Renaissance. 

I have only come across the important works of art briefly in the textbooks and I always wanted to see the masterpieces with my own eyes. My plan was to follow the development of art, which started in Italy, later spread all over Europe and reached its peak in Paris (A hint of my next destinations LOL).
 

Therefore, the coming travel journals may sound a little boring for those who have absolutely no interest in art. But it is important for me to write down what I learned during the 10 days, and to remind myself how much I used to enjoy art.

It may as well serve as a very simple art guide in Italy for those who are interested but never have the chance to learn more about art. I did my homework and I can show you only the interesting and essential facts :-)

***********************************************************************************

It was a 13-hour midnight flight and I would be reaching Milan at 8 am the next morning. For some reasons I couldn't sleep on the plane so I took some snapshots instead.

I sent this picture to my family during the trip and it took them 2 weeks to realize what was it.

At first I thought these were clouds, but quickly found out they were snowy mountains!

I only managed to see 2 sunrises during the entire trip. This one I saw on the plane was very beautiful, the second one I saw in Florence was beyond words.

As a side note I have requested low-fat-low-cholesterol meals for my flights. And they actually looked and tasted way better than regular in-flight meals! They replaced oily omelet with warm grilled chicken breast, hash brown with low fat mashed potatoes, and served with plentiful colourful fruits and vegetables. For those who are tired of regular airplane food and/or as health-conscious as I am, give it a try next time!

 

It was a 10-day trip in Italy and our plan was to start with Venice, then Florence, Rome, and finally Milan again. We were catching a 11:30 am train to Venice on the day we arrived at Milan. Before the ride we found a seat in a cafe called Bistrot Pasticceria. I ordered a sandwich filled with cream cheese, tomatoes and shrimp. The bread was so soft and the cheese was so rich it tasted almost like a savory cheesecake. Yum!

After that our adventure in Italy began.


***********************************************************************************

Travel tips: 

#1
Apparently Italians do not normally use skim milk to make coffees. I tried to order skim milk cappuccino several times but they looked at me as if I was ordering lemon cappuccino. So I eventually gave up trying. 

#2

As soon as we arrived at the Milan airport we got ourselves vodafone SIM card for EUR 20 with 1GB data. After activating the SIM card I kept receiving SMSs from vodafone, all in Italian. I'd suggest you DO NOT IGNORE THEM. I used google translate and found out they were activating a number of services. If you don't bother to find out which of them are free of charge, disable them all.  

Sydney Trip Finale

What's better than having giant cherry tomatoes for breakfast?

Hmm... How about grilled salmon, baked oysters and passion fruit Greek yogurt?

On my last day in Sydney, I decided to have breakfast in the Sydney Fish Market before heading back to the lodge and check-out. And I, again, hopped on a wrong bus and had to get off at the other side of the harbour. So I unintentionally gave myself the chance to walk over a huge cable-stayed bridge in a beautiful morning...

I was amazed to find out how many Australians ride a bike to work

Despite my mistake I got to the fish market at around 8:00 a.m..

Who could have guessed the fish market was in fact a fruit lover's paradise. And guess what I found? GIANT GOLDEN KIWIS!

OMG!!

A list of what I eventually had for breakfast (in chronological order):

- A box of giant cherry tomatoes

- A giant golden kiwi

- An apple

- 2 baked oysters

- A large piece of grilled salmon

- Passion fruit Greek yogurt

- Half a dragon fruit

After checking-out the lodge I decided to make my 3rd attempt to the Sea Life Aquarium. I hopped on a ferry to the Darling Harbour but was distracted halfway at the Cockatoo Island.

I learned about the Cockatoo Island when I researched about places to watch sunrise in Sydney. The page that I read suggested camping in Cockatoo Island, and I thought it was a joke.

No it was not! 

There were tents for real!

It was a small island no bigger than our Victoria Park in Hong Kong (I later Googled: Cockatoo Island measured 18 hectares, the Victoria Park 19 hectares). On one side of the island sitted around 50 tents facing the sea. On the other side stood several old factory buildings.

Driven by curiosity I decided to get a quick look inside the factories.  And there I saw.....

...a waterfall...

...houses with human face...

As I continued to explore, I felt almost like Alice in the wonderland

Of course it was an art exhibition, but there were no signs, no introduction and no posters telling you what you were about to see. The artists were doing a marvelous job using the old factory space to create a dimension that was so real, yet so unreal. As I did not expect to see anything extraordinary, it was amazing when art hit me in the most surprising way.

I spent around 2 hours in Cockatoo Island and after that I no longer wanted to go to the aquarium. I decided to visit the Art Museum instead, which was located inside the beautiful Royal Botanic Gardens.

On my way to the museum

Entrance to the museum

I was impressed to find Picasso's and several very famous artists' works there.

Picasso granted this lucky (poor) lady the most amazing (boring) job in the world

A selection of contemporary works that I like

Sounded like a messed up woman like me

I stayed until the museum was closing and I had around an hour to sunset. Since Botanic Gardens was in fact connected to the Sydney Opera House. Despite I was not particularly interested, I thought there was no harm just to have a look.

If you ever wondered how the Opera House looks like from the behind, this was it.

Walking around all day carrying my baggage, I was exhausted when I finally reached the Opera House. I found myself a front row seat facing the harbour and watched the sky slowly changed colours.

If you ever realized I haven't mentioned what I had for lunch this day, it was because I didn't have anything. I went on with my journey with an empty stomach until around 7 pm when I eventually felt I have accomplished all my "missions" in Sydney.

How my AUD 3 dinner looked like

After dinner I randomly walked around the CBD and along the train stations until it was almost time to catch my flight back home.

I am going to end this entry and my first solo trip with something interesting I found outside Sydney's McDonald's

You get 543 kJ on every dollar you spend. Sounds like a great deal. But I am not sure if it's a turn-off or turn-on.

*****************************************************************************

[Updated on 21 May 2014]

So this is the end of my very first solo getaway. I have no idea, at that time, how this very trip gradually led to the drastic changes in my life. I was in Sydney from 19 to 23 Apr 2014, as I am now writing this post nearly a month after the trip, looking back, not too long ago, I am amazed how much I have changed, for better or worse.

"Life was like a box of chocolate. You never know what you're going to get" - Forrest Gump 

All I can say is, I kept drawing extra dark chocolates from my box since the trip. It was sour. It was sweet. And it left me with a very bitter aftertaste. Nevertheless, people still love dark chocolates.

After all, you can only live once. Nothing should stop you from exploring and experiencing life. My life journey has so far been full of surprises, happy and sad.  I wish you all good luck on your journeys too, my dear friends <3