The way I determine the spine is to put the butt end of the rod section on a hard surfice. I used to use a glass top table in our conference room at work. Now hold the tip of the rod section with one hand and roll the rod as you bend it into a parabolic curve. The rod will want to jump and settle into one spot. put a piece of masking tape on the rod and with a pen make a mark on the convcave part of the rod. That would be the top in your cereal bowl analogy. The spine, or strong side of the rod, is 180 degrees away or on the convex side-the bottom side in your cereal bowl analogy.

You can place the guides on either side depending on the action you want to feel on the casting stroke. I put them opposite the spine which makes the rod feel a little stiffer on the back cast.

As I said before, most rod makers claim it really doesn't make a difference where you put the guides.

Dave