Padova and Island Hopping

Pictures from the weekend and other stuff I came across on my computer...

\/ Basilica in Padova \/

\/ Burano \/

\/ Burano \/

\/ Murano \/

\/ Old Pics \/

This past Saturday I visited Padova. It's only about a 30 min train ride from Venice. It is a very nice town but I wasn't able to see all of it because a lot of time immediately after arrival was spent roaming around/figuring out where we were... but its okay because it allows you to see things in passing that you otherwise wouldn't have seen. The highlight of this day trip was by far the city's basilica, Basilica of Saint Anthony. It is HUGE! It houses many relics which is definitely the most amazing thing about the Roman Catholic Church. It is a popular destination for pilgrims because some of the relics include Saint Anthony's tongue and jaws, as well as the rest of his body which is in his tomb. The church has an alter with reliefs by Donatello and another Donatello statue out front. Both were pretty amazing but i have to admit that I didn't know the statue was a Donatello until after the visit. We also visited the Scrovegni Chapel which is decorated completely with fresco's by Giotto. It was beautiful. Both the Basilica and Giotto's fresco's are must see's!! Sunday I went to Torcello, Burano, and Murano in that order. Torcello was very interesting. It was so nice to see grass and open space because both are pretty limited in Venice. Torcello was one of the first islands inhabited in the lagoon when people were driven from the mainland by Barbarian invasions in the 5th century. In the 14th century, Torcello was the dominant island of the lagoon and was inhabited by more than 20 thousand people. Today that number is less than 20. People left Torcello for the other islands because they were more easily defendable and because of an outbreak of malaria. Today you can see/ Sunday I saw the campanile and the two churches on the island, Santa Maria Assunta and Santa Fosca. I only entered the later because you have to pay to go inside Assunta. It was yet another incredible church. The island of Burano is know for two things, its lace and its colored houses. The lace museum didn't sound too interesting and because of the time of year and day of the week I didn't get to see any old ladies making the lace but thats okay because I was so amazed at the beautiful houses that all Erin and I did for hours was gasp at one house after the next. Not only were the houses beautifully painted but they also had beautiful front doors, most of which are one of a kind. Most people who know me understand how much I love unique front doors! The third and final island of the day was Murano, know throughout the world for its glass. The glass furnaces were all moved to the islands of Murano in 1291 because of fear of fire in the city center. The one disappointment of the day occurred when we discovered over lunch at 4:30 that the Museum of Glass closes at 4. BUT, lunch was very good and the two churches we saw on the island, San Piertro Martire and Basilica Santi Maria e Donato were both remarkable. Once back at home I did a lot of cooking then a lot of eating. Monday afternoon I went on another interesting and informative walk with the school and friends. Attending another today...

**** Project Runway ****

Christian can suck it! He is a pompous, self-cherishing, little twit who, when not plagiarizing, is boring and unoriginal.  "Anyone who quotes Tyra Banks is not cool!" AD. I agree!!!