We’ve seriously lucked out with the weather; every day has been clear and warm, which makes a huge difference when we’re constantly on the move. Today started early again; we were up and out by 7:30 for a two-hour ride to Continental. The bus rides are long, but at this point, they’re starting to feel like part of the routine, some quiet time to catch up on sleep, music, or just zone out before the day starts.
We got to Continental around 10 and waited a bit before the tour officially started. The morning kicked off with a lecture, then we split into two groups: one to eat lunch, one to start the factory tour. I ended up in the lunch group first (thankfully), because I missed breakfast and was running on fumes. I had chicken cacciatore with fries in their cafeteria, shoutout to Professor Feick for the meal swipe.
After lunch, we went on the tour led by a retired employee who started working there back in 1981. He’s technically retired now, but still gives tours because he genuinely loved his job that much, which honestly says a lot about the kind of workplace it is. He was super kind and passionate, and I appreciated how detailed he was when explaining everything.
What stood out the most was seeing the green circuit boards being made – the ones that basically run the electronics in a car. It was cool to see the mix of machines doing the complex stuff and people stepping in for the smaller tasks robots still can’t do, like placing specific parts or handling packaging. I didn’t expect to be as interested as I was, but something about watching the process, especially knowing how hidden these parts are in the final product, made it feel more meaningful. It’s stuff I’ve never really thought about, but it makes the difference in things like your AC working or your radio even turning on. It reminded me how much work goes into the things we just expect to function.
After Continental, we drove to Regensburg for a walking tour and a stop at the city hall. The town was smaller and quieter, but charming. The city hall was pretty unique, definitely not your average government building tour. We sat in the same room that used to hold city council meetings hundreds of years ago and learned about the scribes, judges, and even the old prison and torture chambers that were once active underneath the building. It was kind of wild to think about how much has changed and how much hasn’t in terms of how cities function.
Before heading back, I grabbed some gelato and sat in the sun while a live pianist played in the background. It was one of those small moments that just felt peaceful. After such a packed schedule, that break was needed.
Tomorrow is the company visit I’ve been most excited for – Audi. Definitely looking forward to that one.
