Venice with its islands of Murano, Burano and Torcello are amongst the many pieces of an intricate jigsaw puzzle thrown haphazardly over the shallow stretch of Laguna Veneta. The slim and slender Lido di Venezia lies to the east and makes its way 10 Kilometers to the south to another narrow stretch called Pellestrina, slimming down to the laid-back town of Chioggia. The lay of the land in Venice goes back inland to the industrial town of Mestre whose southern half houses Porto Marghera with its huge shipping docks.
Charming with a quaint air, Burano with its fishing and lace industries is famous for its pastel-colored houses which the fishermen found a reassuring sight as they made their way home from the sea. A stroll over the wooden bridge ends with the pleasant Mazzorbo with its open verdant spaces and a few houses. The Museo del Merletto introduces the delicate art of lace making and its history.
Fascinating with its ambience of fierce possessiveness, Murano guards its secrets of glass production. The art of glass craft was smuggled into Venice by merchants who traded with the East and was so well guarded that glass workers were forbidden to leave the city. As an exquisite industry, glass outlets are found along Fondamenta dei Vetrai and Viale Garibaldi. The Museo Vetrario is dedicated as a showcase of the history and art of glass making. The Veneto-Byzantine Basilica di SS Maria e Donato with its colonnaded apse and 12th century mosaic pavement is an architectural masterpiece of Murano glass work.
Tranquil Pellestrina near the southern most tip of the Lido, is a small island comprising of fishing villages, lace-makers and Murazzi with sea walls of Istrian stone that blocked the lagoon from the Adriatic sea rise till the tragic floods of 1966. A quiet strand of gray sand provides a haven for solitude seekers.
Mysterious with the origins of a pre-Republican Venice buried in its veins, Torcello lies north of the lagoon. Marshy and llonely, Torcello has a magical atmosphere with its main square and abandoned buildings and monuments. As home to early settlers, Torcello held the key to safety from barbaric invasions during the 5th and 6th centuries.