Waterford and Arthur’s Day

November 27, 2011 by Heather Lucier Stanley 1 Comment

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

After leaving the John F. Kennedy Arboretum in County Wexford, our bus stopped at Waterford Crystal in County Waterford. I toured the facility with the group while Alan found an ATM. When Alan returned, he asked me if he missed anything, and knowing his personality, I said no.

I found the process of watching a piece of crystal being made intriguing. The factory our group toured produces specialty items and is not a mass production facility. At the end of the tour is “a New York style showroom,” our guide Robbie’s words, not my own.

In my 20s, I owned several pieces of Waterford Crystal, but not today. Now, I prefer Crate and Barrel. Isn’t it supposed to be the other way around? I do appreciate crystal; however, I feel that I do not need to own it to enjoy it. If only I felt that same way about some of paintings I saw recently on the East Austin Studio Tour that I want to buy, I could save myself a lot of money and hours spent working to buy them.

Arthur’s Day is a national holiday in Ireland. The Irish are supposed to start drinking Guinness at 5:59PM on Arthur’s Day to honor Arthur Guinness. Marketing? Yes.

After our tours of the Dunbrody Famine Ship, the Kennedy Homestead, the John F. Kennedy Arboretum, and Waterford Crystal, we traveled to our hotel, The Park Hotel, Dungarvan, Dungarvan, County Waterford, and ate dinner. Then went out to celebrate Arthur’s Day.

We spent Arthur’s Day at Robbie’s Aunt Maeve’s pub, The Lady Belle, in Dungarvan. A coincidence? Yes. Robbie did not plan the tour. Our tour operator did. When he saw that the group was going to be in Dungarvan on Arthur’s Day, he called his aunt earlier that day and told her we would be coming to her pub. We all wanted to visit her pub and support his aunt.

heather and alan

About Heather Lucier Stanley

Heather Lucier Stanley grew up in Central Massachusetts and lived in New England until she started studying at the University of Michigan where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing and Literature. In her early 20s, she moved to San Antonio, Texas and started studying business and accounting. In her late 20s, she became a Certified Public Accountant. She has held many varied and interesting business and volunteer positions: public accountant, internal auditor, systems implementer, project manager, business analyst, tax preparer and Austin Skiers board member. While traveling 35% for a position she held, she earned her Master of Information Systems (MIS) at the University of Phoenix. She is enthusiastic about learning and trying new things. A few of her passions are personal development, fitness, snow skiing, and travel. She is outgoing and real. She feels that success is easy to attain if the individual defines what success means to her and then has a plan to achieve her individual success. No two definitions of success are the same because each of us is unique and has something original to share with the world.
View all posts by Heather Lucier Stanley →

Trackbacks/Pingbacks

  1. Exploring Ireland: How To See A Lot and Have a Blast | Heather Lucier Stanley - December 10, 2011

    [...] 04. Dunbrody Ship and Kennedy Homestead 05. John F. Kennedy Arboretum 06. Waterford and Arthur’s Day [...]