Everything went as planned. It was a gorgeous day for a road trip as we passed through Ohio, a tiny bit of Pennsylvania and on into the southern tier parkway of New York.
We made good time, arriving in Corning about 6pm. After checking in at the Staybridge Suites we made our way downtown — Corning is really one long main drag called Market Street — and had a wonderful meal at the Cellar. A wine bar with an eclectic menu of what was termed "modern fusion" try the Flash Fried Baby Artichoke Hearts and Local Pastured Pork Ramen. The place was packed with locals and tourists alike and without reservations we had to sit at the bar, which was fine with us: we found ourselves well-positioned for an evening of eating great food, sipping wine and watching people.
After a delicious meal and lots of quality time just enjoying the first night of our journey we made our way back to our room and to sleep.
The next morning we took our sweet time getting out of bed and ready for the day. After a brief stop at the museum Welcome Center where we left our car we walked to the museum.
This place is nothing short of incredible. Our friends Patty and Paul in Grand Haven (yep those superb chocolatiers) were the first to tell us what an fantastic museum this is and they weren’t exaggerating. There were family-based activities on hand, especially since it was spring break, as well as the usual demonstrations on their large “hot shop” amphitheater. The numerous exhibition galleries were staggeringly impressive for me since I had thought all along, “what’s the big fuss, it’s just glass.” Believe me it’s much, much more than that.
Don’ take our word for it. Go discover it for yourself.
Besides coming away with a deep appreciation for how difficult it is to produce a glass-based work of art, we learned that Corning Glass sold off Correlle, Pyrex, and Corningware to Borden in the 1990s, which explains why the products sold under those brands today are perhaps not quite up to the standards of past year years.
Anyway, the company, with 40,000 employees world is still headquartered in Corning — although they were founded in the mid-19th century in Massachusetts — and today focuses on glass technology, such as gorilla glass for iphones and fiber optic cables. Oh, and we now know what a "gaffer" is.
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| photo: comog.org |
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| photo: comog.org |
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| photo: gafferdistrict.com |
One hiccup in the day came not long after we arrived at the museum and I began experiencing odd behavior in my right eye.
I called my ophthalmologist in Grand Rapids who suggested going to the nearest optical shop to have the eye tested for retinal detachment. With a quick search of the internet using her iphone Susie found a place right on Market Street, Visionworks. They got us in at 11:30.
After a series of tests, the optometrist, Dr. Eric Crittenden, concluded there was no evidence of detachment whatsoever; I was experiencing what is commonly called “floaters.” We were both impressed with his straightforwardness, his lucidity and no-nonsense approach to the problem. He was also candid in his opinion that I would be wise to rethink having eye surgery to correct my double vision. It is, he warned, an “imprecise surgery”.
As a side-note for reasons which remain unclear, the floaters disappeared after an hour or so -- although one small one still pops into my vision every so often.
An hour after arriving and much relieved we returned to the museum to finish our tour and have lunch in the cafe.
Next: In midair. . .
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