"This is it. This is where I always wanted to be. This is my dream. Who needs heaven, when you are here." This was literally my reaction when I got down at Burano island of Venice. Burano is one of the islands in Venice, Italy and is famous for its colourful houses. It was in our list during our trip to Venice. Though we had read quite a lot of things about Venice attractions and places to visit, we were not sure what exactly was coming for us. On the third day of our 4-day trip to Venice, we visited Burano by Vaporetto from Murano island. It was first week of January, so it was cold along with little drizzles. So, we were kind of less interested in roaming (a lot). We just decided to see few nearby places from bus stop and to catch the very next water bus for return.
As soon as we landed at Burano, our eyes were wide open, moving here and there and were trying to capture as much as we could. The place was simply mind blowing. All our pre-decided thoughts were left behind, and we moved with the crowd to explore this pretty tiny place. My first impression of Burano was like a pretty set-up from kids story book. "Cute and pretty colourful houses placed in front of each other and divided by small canals and connected to each other by small, semi-circular wooden bridges. Every house has their own, small boat to travel in the canals. Tall trees standing beside houses and small gardens and parks are made for children near the beach." , I literally lost in that set-up and thought of it as if it is artificial set up.
The colourful houses were so pretty and unique. Each house had its own particular colour and no two adjacent houses were of similar colour. They were decorated with flowers. Some houses even had a bi-cycle and little sitting benches or chairs adjacent to it. We felt as if we were living in a fairytale.
After spending quite a lot of time at Burano and in Venice, we returned to our home but still, Burano was all in my mind even after 2-3 days. So, I decided to read more about this cute place and open some links. Initially, I thought these colorful houses were colored just for tourism purpose. But after reading more about it, I came to know it even has a meaning and motto behind it. So, here are some interesting facts about these colorful houses in Burano, Venice:
Fishing is Burano's traditional and one of the biggest industry. Since ancient times, thousands of fishing boats used to sail in and out of its dock on fishing voyage. So, people in Burano started to paint their houses with pastel colors so that fishermen could identify their houses during heavy rains and fogs. The houses in Burano have to follow a particular color pattern, which is based on specific system enforced since the foundation of village. As per this system, each group is allowed to have certain colours. The colors are decided so that, no 2 houses adjacent to each other can have same color and it looks as if 2 beautiful pictures are placed next to each other. One needs a permission from government if one wants to change the color of a house. These colorful houses also signifies boundary of every house from their adjacent house. Burano is a paradise for photographers. One can spend days in capturing the beauty of this tiny little hamlet and exploring unique angles and light while capturing the most colorful islands on the earth. Burano is not just pretty, but it is a feeling too. A feeling of happiness and over joy. Whenever you visit this place, it has the power to bring smile on your face and to make you feel joyous. The little canals, the unique pastel colored houses, shops, the stunning church tower have more purpose than just making it a nice place.
If you want to cherish the experience of living in a paradise or to feel happy without any reason or you just have to sit at a place and look at a colorful place and smile, Burano is a place for you. So, have you been to Burano already? How was your experience, let me know in comment section. If not, and if you are planning to visit it in future, let me know if you have any questions.
I'm a free mind creative writer, a traveler, an artist and an Engineer. View all posts by Ashudeep