Our Itinerary (July 21-23, 2011)
Thursday, July 21
We spent most of the early part of the day on the road. Once we got to Pittsburgh and made our way through some early rush hour traffic we stopped at the Mattress Factory on the North Side. It was very reasonably priced and our entrance into the Mattress Factory also covered another building around the block. There weren't a lot of exhibits/installations because each one took up a room but there were all really interesting. The building is not air conditioned so it was uncomfortably warm, but that was kind of a theme all weekend.
Inside the main building:
Adjacent building:
Next, we made our way to the Duquesne Incline, which is a funicular that takes you up to the top of Mt. Washington for a beautiful view of Pittsburgh. It doesn't take much time and there really is no better view of the city. It's a must-see!
When we got back to the car we drove through the Station Square area thinking we might grab dinner there. It seemed like a tourist/businessmen haven because there was a Sheraton and other hotels so we decided to skip it.
Instead, we went to the original Primanti Brothers on the Strip. After eating there, I can understand why it has such a huge following but we were pretty disppointed with the service. We have to cut them some slack because they were preparing for a bridal party, but I definitely got the impression that locals/regulars were given preferential treatment. I got the salami and cheese sandwich and Evan got a ham and cheese. What makes the sandwiches unique are that they come with coleslaw and french fries, right ON the sandwich. Evan thought his sandwich could have been more flavorful but I really enjoyed mine. I love salami and I don't have it very often so this was a nice treat.
We spent the rest of the evening in the a/c at The Priory Hotel. I don't like hotels but the Priory was really nice. Evan thought it was pretty swanky. I guess my biggest complaint is that as nice as any hotel can be, it still feels like a hotel - impersonal. It had a little bit of a musty smell, too. They did serve a complimentary continental breakfast with freshmade scones, muffins, and other pastries direct from their bakery. Yum!
Friday, July 22
We were busy bees today! We started out pretty early and made our way to the Nationality Rooms at the Cathedral of Learning, which is connected to the University of Pittsburgh. Each room represents a different ethnic group in Allegheny County. It's really inexpensive - $3 a person or something - and it's a self-guided tour with an audio tape. There are also placards in each room that explain the different elements that make up the room. There was no a/c in the Nationality Rooms so we were pretty sticky by the end. I much preferred the original 18 rooms on the bottom floor to the newer rooms on the third floor. They seemed more authentic.
Some pictures of the rooms:
Outside the Cathedral:
Next on our list was the Andy Warhol Museum. As an aside, we were really impressed that we were able to park in a garage just a couple of blocks away and only had to pay $6 for four hours. This struck us as extremely reasonable for a metropolitan area. Anyway - this was a really fun, interesting, thought-provoking museum. It's an absolute must-see as Warhol was a Pittsburgher. While the museum was made up of mostly Warhol art, there were also exhibits by new artists that shared Warhol's vision. I didn't know much about Warhol before visiting the museum. He explored a lot of different artistic mediums - film, photography, paint, TV, etc.
From there we walked to the Cultural District, which must have eight different professional theaters and had lunch at Christo's. If you can believe it, we chose to sit outside. The restaurant was pretty empty so we preferred to be outside where we could people-watch. Evan got a gyro platter and I got a Hercules' Special. It was all pretty decent.
Then we made our way to the National Aviary. This was probably the most disappointing sight we visited. It claims to be America's Bird Zoo with over 600 species but it was actually pretty small. That's not to say that I didn't enjoy it (I love birds) but it didn't meet my high expectations. I think it's also geared more toward kids.
Our last stop for the day was Phipps Conservatory. This was so worth it for the beautiful botanical gardens but what a horrendous day to go! It was hotter than hell outside and it was even hotter, if you can believe it, inside the gardens. It was literally, like being in a sauna. There was even a wedding taking place in the outside gardens (can you imagine?). We could see people fanning themselves and then there was a thunderstorm. If that's not an omen, I don't know what is!
After Phipps we were pretty worn out and in desperate need of some food and drinks. We went to Brillobox, which was recommended in the NY Times article. It was a cute, casual neighborhood joint. It was a little more bar atmosphere than we would have liked but the food was awesome. We had nachos as an appetizer and then I got some gourmet macaroni & cheese and Evan got a BBQ pork sandwich. It was a good recommendation.
Before we went "home" for the night we drove around a bit. There's this area called Squirrel Hill, which has to be where the deans of all the colleges live. Evan made an astute observation by noticing the similarities between these mansions and the ones in Newport, RI.
We showered and cooled off in our room for the rest of the evening. We also took advantage of the Priory's homemade desserts and got a mini-cheesecake each.
Saturday, July 23
We slept in a little, got breakfast, and then headed out toward Fallingwater (you have to make reservations in advance - they sell out quick). It's 1.5 hours outside of Pittsburgh and on our way home so that was convenient.
It's an amazing architectural feat. It's a beautiful and homey abode. I could totally imagine myself living there but I would have to get a/c installed. Yet again, we were stuck on a tour in a place with no a/c!!! And despite the rainstorm the day before the heat hadn't abated. Each room had a million windows and the sounds of the waterfall could be heard throughout the house. Frank Lloyd Wright definitely accomplished his mission of uniting the house with nature.
My only complaint about Fallingwater is that the tours are kind of pricey and if you want to take pictures inside the house you have to pay an additional $20 a person for an "in-depth" tour, which I'm sure is the exact same "regular" tour we got but with photography privileges. I find that kind of stuff pretty obnoxious.
It seemed like two-thirds of our little group had been to the house in other seasons. I'm not sure I'd go out of my way to go again but I do wish I had gone during a cooler season!
We had a great time in Pittsburgh. I think Evan, in particular, is interested in exploring it more. It's a great, warm, artsy city. I like that it's not huge or overwhelming. It's kind of small to medium-sized. If we go back again I think we'll try to see a show. It's definitely a sports city with the Steelers and Pirates but alas, neither of us are big sports fans. There are also other museums we could visit. And next time, if the weather permits, I'd like us to walk around a little more. It was so hot this past weekend that we were in the car as much as possible with the a/c going full blast.
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