Just a few notes on our trip before I begin the full blown trip report below. First, the weekend we were there it was hot, hot, hot, not to mention very sticky and humid, and of course, hot. Next, we’d been to Pittsburgh once before many years ago but stayed in the ‘burbs. Back then we “did” an incline and some of the South Shore, but didn’t get as much of a feel for the city as we did staying downtown this time around. Pittsburgh reminds me of a mini-Manhattan but instead of the Hudson and East Rivers, there is the Allegheny and Monongahela, (and instead of new Jersey and Brooklyn/Queens, there are green mountains rising up around the valley of the city – very nice!) Another thing that struck me was the number of southern accents I heard. But when I looked on the map and saw the proximity to W. Virginia and southern Ohio, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. It just seems to me that living in Western New York, I’m not that close to the South – but I am apparently closer than I think!
Trip Report: July 17-20, 2008
Thursday afternoon/evening. On our trip down I-79 to Pittsburgh, we had to stop in order to switch drivers. We chose an exit to “Zelienople” to make the switch. Not sure how to pronounce this (?) but we found Zelienople amusing in more ways than one. First, there was no simple off ramp/on ramp to get back on I-79 heading south, so we had to follow a circuitous route around the town. The evening we were there, the town was holding some kind of outdoor fete, complete with carnival food and a fire truck. Everyone seemed to be out and walking about, enjoying the warm weather and the festivities. The small Pennsylvania town and the outdoor event reminded me of one of my favorite movies, “Groundhog Day,” except here it was summer time. DH said he could imagine starting a new life in that small town – it was very quaint.
We reached Pittsburgh by 8:00pm, and checked into the Renaissance. Nice hotel, but the noisy, rattling door to our room was a nuisance. (We were afraid when it first happened that someone was trying to enter our room, but we got used to it eventually…)
It was now time to search out a meal, and we walked up Penn Ave to August Henry’s, a relaxed, pub type restaurant and bar. DH had crab cakes and I had crab stuffed mushrooms – both were delicious! For entrees, DH had a hearty and tasty hamburger, while I had chicken on salad greens. Loved the chicken! I don’t know how they did it, but it had a light and non-greasy coating of sweet potato, yum. Walked back to the hotel, and enjoyed the architecture of Penn Ave. What a variety of late 19th century mini-skyscrapers, each unique and beautiful!
Friday morning, late. Went down to the lobby, the wine bar to be exact, to help ourselves to coffee. Great start to the day, as this coffee was the *best*. Realized that one of the reasons for coming to Pittsburgh, to see the Allegheny County Courthouse, was going to be difficult as I did not bother to bring the address! I did have the phone number to the Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation, so I figured they could help me find this rather biggie landmark. The woman on the phone was indeed helpful, and I asked if there happened to be any walking tours that weekend. I was informed that one was about to start at noon (it was 11:40am) at Penn and 7th St, one block away, perfect! It was a free, one-hour tour and I saw more of the “Cultural District” we were staying in and learned a bit about the city. Pittsburgh has a wonderful asset with its History and Landmarks Foundation. The Foundation actually purchases historic buildings which are in distress and threatened with demolition (or demolition by neglect) and brings them back to life! There is nothing like an historic building, and once they are gone they will *never* be replaced. Historic buildings are not replicable – contemporary styles, materials, and workmanship are different today, (I’m not suggesting today’s architecture is inferior, it’s just different.) Also, it makes sense to reuse materials – like those in an existing structure – than to waste energy demolishing the thing and dumping its remains in our plentiful landfill space. OK… stepping off my soapbox now. Whew.
After the 1-hour tour, I went to fetch DH back at the air conditioned hotel. Did I mention how HOT is was outside? After a quick meal at the PPG Place, we walked to the Allegheny County Courthouse. I left DH in the lovely courtyard, and ventured into the security station. The guard was super nice. After carefully checking my camera and camera bag, he kindly gave me directions into the building and advised me that people come from all over to see the grand staircase. It was a beautiful site to behold! The various stone and materials were in perfect condition, like new. Really amazing for such an old building. I loved how well the space is used – probably in much the same way as when it was first built, except with more electricity and other technological amenities.
On the walk back to the hotel, we passed Macys/Kaufmanns. I was glad to see they hadn’t completely removed the Kaufmann’s name from the store. Sad that there are no local department stores like there used to be! Everything is big, national (or multi-national) and corporate these days...
At around 5:00pm we had an easy walk across the Andy Warhol Bridge to the Andy Warhol Museum. On Friday nights, they have half price admission, which I highly recommend. I was surprised there weren’t more people in the museum! Plus, the place looked like it was run by teenagers, weird!? We were slightly disappointed with the collection and the curating. No mention of the silk screen process that Warhol was a master of. Also, there were cases chock full of letters and other personal Warhol memorabilia that looked literally like they were thrown together – so much material and no good way to organize it (it looked like they didn’t even try.) I did like the silver balloon room, and the small exhibit of early to late Piet Mondrian paintings on the top floor, and many of the pieces by Kaino.
After the Andy Warhol Museum, we walked to the Carnegie Museum of Science to see the Omni Max movie “Pulse: A Stomp Odyssey.” Even thought we have an Omni theater back home, it always seems like a good thing to do out of town. Not sure why that is? Anyway, the film was super enjoyable, and proved propitious for the future of our trip. The film featured various drum and dance groups from around the world. A highlight for me was a beautiful Spanish dancer named Eva, I think, dancing on a roof top with a band of guitarists, etc. Loved it.
On the way back to the bridge to our hotel, we stopped at Jerome Bettis Grille 36. Surprisingly delicious food for a sports bar with party atmosphere owned by a former football player. I had the Citrus Salmon Salad and DH had the Grid Iron Steak. I highly recommend this place for a meal. After dinner, we walked back to the hotel exhausted from all our walking and suffering the heat and humidity.
Saturday. Another late start. This time we were sick of walking and decided to brave the notoriously difficult Pittsburgh streets in an automobile. Got the car out of the garage and headed east to the Strip District. Walked around with a ton of other people and window shopped for a while. Really impressive collection of goods and people. Almost ate at Primanti Bros, but the crowds and noise drove us away. Did enjoy the cover band they had playing outside. Ended up at Roland’s for lunch. Not bad, and it was fairly crowded, too. Drove back to the hotel, (uneventful ride both ways, managed not to get lost), and DH decided to rest. I drove myself to the nearby National Aviary for a look at the birdies. Nice place, but smaller than I had expected. When I got home, realized that my local zoo membership could have gotten me into the Aviary for free, oh well. Glad to donate money towards the animals in any case. As I was low on gasoline, thought now would be a good time to fill up. Asked at the Aviary about a gas station, and was told to follow the road around a couple of lights till I see one in the distance. I must have followed the road around the wrong way, because I ended up at interstate on-ramps (which I avoided like the plague) and then on a one-way narrow little residential street in the ‘hood. I’m lost and a little panicky, since I’m running on fumes by now. I managed to get turned around onto another one-way street and found my way back to the Aviary. Now I followed the street around in the other direction, and did see a gas station in the distance. Very odd street/bridge situation, but I made it to the station. Gas was only $3.99, which was a lot better than the $4.26 I was paying around here. Whoever thought I’d be happy to pay $3.99 for gasoline? Yey! Then made it back across the bridge to the hotel, no problem.
While listening to the classical music station, DH heard about a new music percussion concert at the City Theatre. We decided to attempt another drive around the city and attend the concert. New Music concerts don’t usually sell out, but we ordered our tickets on the phone anyway. Before the concert, we walked to the end of our block to Six Penn for dinner. Very elegant place, but the various meats on the menu were too exotic for me, and I stuck with chicken. The cubes of bacon in the mashed potatoes were sinfully good, and I almost can’t imagine eating mashed potatoes without bacon cubes ever again. Who thought of that – ugh! It’s so good but it’s just so wrong… Fired up the auto again and headed for the South Shore. Made it to the Liberty Bridge to cross and knew we had to go left at the end of the bridge. Just one little problem – no left turns! Uh-oh. Ended up going straight through to a very loooooooooong tunnel. Had the experience of how it must have felt being born so many years ago. Then, we had no choice but to drive up a mountain. Near the top of the mountain we were able to turn around in a parking lot, and drive back down the mountain and through the birthing canal again. This time I was able to negotiate the intersections before the bridge crossing. I must have missed the signs which said “turn right to go left” on the way there. We eventually found the theater with the help of a passerby, (again, not too wisely left the address back at the hotel, where it was most useful.) The concert was a solo percussionist, Steve Schick, and it was extraordinary. A perfect answer to our Omni Max experience the night before.
Sunday. Tried to sleep in. Had a lazy morning in our air-conditioned room. Checked out at the last possible minute. Uneventful ride home, except for the sheets of rain which made driving 75mph on the interstate quite impossible.
Thank you, Pittsburgh, for an interesting weekend getaway - you have a delightful city.
Trip Report: July 17-20, 2008
Thanks for the great report......as a newbie to Pittsburgh, I can definitely relate to your driving mishaps. Oops, wrong turn - here comes the tunnel again.
What a great report! We get so few on this forum - thank you for sharing!
I%26#39;m so glad you enjoyed your visit and found a lot to like here.
Thank you. I know so many people use the forums to get help planning their trips, but not as many people write reviews or check back in *after* the trip. I wish more people did follow-ups! :|
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