Ireland (Part 6): So this lady walks into a bar....

Our last full day in Ireland appealed to the engineer buried in me and confirmed my resolve to never live in large metropolitan city.  It was a beautiful day for lots of driving.  My husband had become a pro at driving on the left side of the road by then, so I suggested that I should drive home from the airport when we return to the states lest he attempt to drive on the left side there too.  We initially drove from Cork County in the southern part of Ireland to Waterford City located not too far from the eastern coast.

At the mall in Waterford City we toured the original House of Waterford Crystal. Touring manufacturing factories in Japan at the age of 17 as a naive student ambassador is what sparked the idea in my mind to become an engineer.  It was so fascinating for me to see how various Nissan cars or Konica cameras were made that I decided I wanted to work in a field that allowed me to make new products.  Since then I have worked in plants that manufactured phone switches, home networking systems, Bounty paper towels, Charmin toilet paper, tire molds, Uniroyal tires, Michelin tires, and even gigantic tires for earth mover equipment.  I have toured factories that produce BMW roadsters, GE jet engines, Converse tennis shoes, maxi-pads, fossil fuel energy, wine & spirits, and so much more.  I have seen intensive manual labor and full scale automation.  I have enjoyed all these tours, and touring the Waterford Crystal plant was no exception.  I was surprised, however, to learn how much of their production is still all hand crafted.  They have an automated etching machine, but it is only used for about 5% of their production and only in cases where the 3D engravings are too detailed and too finite for human hands.

9/11 memorial , apprentice bowl showing every possible crystal cut or design, marking table

Top row:  Waterford crystal champagne flute that is taller than me, Detailed harp - the instrument of Ireland, American BCS football trophyBottom row: Butterfly gift, 1st Waterford design, William Maddock clock encased in 45 custom panels and 250 buttons in custom Waterford crystal

Heat to 1500 degrees Celsius, shape before mold, place in mold, blow air to form hollow center, strictly controlled cool in furnace, sand, mark, etch with diamond cutters, wash, polish

Automated etching machine, smash pit, industrial diamond head cutters, pieces requiring industrial cutter, marking table, 2D horse before 3D cutting, queue for sanding, mold for Irish Open golf trophy

I was not nearly as impressed with the Guinness factory tour.  Perhaps that was because of the enormous cost and efforts exerted to get there.  We had already tried to find the factory once on our first day in Ireland.  That attempt required five hours of driving, getting lost many times in downtown Dublin, asking directions from pedestrians and other drivers at stoplights, all at a cost of about $15/gallon, enduring rush-hour traffic, and several near misses that could have been quite tragic only to get there right after the doors had closed for the day.  This time we parked the rental car at the hotel for an exorbitant parking fee, got directions from the hotel staff, and tried to walk.  Fearing we would once again get there too late, we tried to use public transportation which was also ridiculously expensive and equally as time consuming, but it at least provided some interesting people watching.  Dublin isn't that different from New York City in terms of hectic pace, diversity, odors, crowds, and crazy cost of living.  I did manage to capture the attention of some cute kids on the tram who made me miss our kids in a way that really had me longing for home.  Our trip was nearing it's end, and I was ready to be home with my family.

I had to laugh at the pic of Obama on the bar window because all of his many scandals proving him to be a compulsive liar were being exposed at that time, and apparently the Irish think a little Guinness will get our POTUS to finally tell the truth.

After taking the tram, we still felt lost and ended up following some American college students into the Guinness Storehouse.  I think these young guys thought we were also college students which would have totally made my day, but they had probably had a few too many drinks that day.

I expected a manufacturing tour, but it was more of a history museum showing the initial process and equipment used to start the business.  It seemed most of the people there were only interested in the free pint given to patrons at the Gravity Bar at the top of the building.  I at least got a cute pic of my husband "posing" for a Guinness ad and enjoyed looking at old manufacturing equipment, although I would have loved to see how they make it now.  I guess that's a trade secret.

We took a pass on the free pint at the GRAVITY Bar and chose instead to fully take in all the excellent views of the city.

Day 7 in Ireland began so early it was about the time of day that I usually go to bed.  We had a very early flight to catch and busy Dublin traffic to conquer.  My husband received urgent calls from his office, so he worked all the way home.  We had some close calls, and the airport in NY was as congested as always, but we got home smoothly and met my super supportive parents and our excited children for dinner.  We were jet lagged and exhausted, but there was no time for sleep because we had to move out of our house, find a place to live, figure out where to send our kids to school, and do some serious purging and packing.  When our flight landed near the end of June 11, summer had essentially ended for us.  We made our memories, had our fun, and were now ready to embrace some major life changes.