The temperatures were in the 30s this morning, so we decided that it was time for some indoor activity, so we headed to the Corning Museum of Glass, a little over an hour away. We visited the museum many years ago and weren't sure if we wanted to go back or someplace new. However, every place we were interested in was closed on Monday, so Corning it was.
And I'm so glad that we went because the place is spectacular. As the name suggests, everything in the museum pertains to glass. There were glass art exhibits, history of glass exhibits, and glass technology exhibits, as well as glass-making demos. We had hoped to make our own glass pieces, but the workshops were filled for the day.
After a few hours there, we headed back to Ithaca with a stop at Robert Treman State Park along the way, where we hoped to take an easy hike. Information on the trails in the park was sketchy, but we started out along another gorge trail with a plan to take the rim trail back as we had done at other parks. The plan worked out, except it was not the easy hike we had hoped for. I climbed many more steep steps from one trail to the other than I had planned. I describe this as a hike that is good for me because it forces me out of my comfort zone. I probably wouldn't have gone if I had known about all of the steps before I started. But once I was in the middle of it, I had no choice but to move forward, resulting in good exercise and views I wouldn't have gotten otherwise.
Back in Ithaca, we did a little more sightseeing while driving around Cornell University and the city center. An interesting drive during which we probably dodged more than 100 students. I know that the students have the right away, but it would be nice if they put their phones down every once in a while and look up while walking, she says like the old person she is.
We picked up dinner from a local Italian place to eat back at our cabin in the woods. Now everyone has spread to their respective corners of the house for some downtime after being together all day. Have I mentioned that we are a family of introverts who need our alone time?
A few pictures from the day.
Corning Museum:
 |
| Wally examining an exhibit in the stained glass section. |
 |
| The history of wine bottles with bottles dating back to the 1600s. |
 |
| These were casserole dishes showing how the glass transparency changed at different tempering temperatures. This exhibit explained the discovery of glass ceramics. |
 |
| A piece from the current art gallery. |
 |
| A family selfie taken in front of a thermal camera showing the effectiveness of different glass coatings and heat transmission. |
Robert Treman State Park:
 |
| It's hard to get perspective in these pictures. Lucifer Falls, shown here, has a 115' drop. |
