Tell Us About It: Pittsburgh

Have you ever noticed that everyone thinks their favorite fill-in-the-blank is the best thing ever? I’m thinking vacation spots, pets, you name it…if someone loves it, they probably think theirs is the best. 🙂 Not in a conceited way, just in a proud and happy way! Today I am linking up with Julie and Mattie to talk about my favorite things about my state!

To start, I wore glasses from the age of 7 to the age of 22. I thought I looked SO weird without my glasses. I loved them. Two summers ago, I was a day camp counselor who had to swim with her campers, which kind of REQUIRES you to see, so I got contacts to wear to work. And then I decided contacts were way better. So if you are looking at these pictures wondering why I was too lazy to put in my contacts…I wasn’t. I just really never had them until last year. 🙂

ANYWAYS –> I am from a suburb about twenty minutes from downtown Pittsburgh, so I am going to share all my favorite places in and around that town. If you’re interested in what’s going on in Philly…well, I’ve been there before, but Pittsburgh is better. 😉

The Stadiums

Heinz Field is my very favorite. Even if it’s a cloudy day, as you can see above, the view of the city is perfect from my seats!

You won’t be let down from ANY seat in the house at PNC Park, either.

I haven’t been to Consol for too many hockey games, but I have been there for many concerts and it is a great venue!

Now that I am thinking of all three stadiums/arenas, I have actually been to games and concerts at all three locations. PNC Park hosts concerts, but they also host Pirates’ games all summer and about once a month, they do something special where there is a musician or fireworks after the game. In the above picture, Chris Daughtry played after the game. Whether you are close to or far away from the players/artists, you can see and hear it all. You won’t be disappointed at any of these venues!

The Views

Carrying right on with this theme of the skyline…this was the view from my apartment in college. I love seeing all the buildings! The very BEST view of all is driving out of the Fort Pitt Tunnel onto the bridge that leads into the city. You really have a panoramic view of the stadiums, The Point, the rivers, and the skyscrapers!

I borrowed this video from YouTube. I wish I had found a video that captured what you can see to the left when you drive out of the tunnel…that’s where the stadiums and The Point are! But this one is still pretty cool. 🙂

I took this picture when I was out running one morning. This is The Point where the Allegheny, Monongahela, and Ohio Rivers intersect. In 2013, a giant duck came to visit our city. This 40 foot yellow friend brought almost a million visitors to the downtown area! It was the duck’s first stop in the United States, so Pittsburgh was excited!

With or without the duck, The Point and Point State Park are always filled with people running, biking, and just enjoying the nice weather.

Lots of events, like The Great Race and the Pittsburgh Marathon, end right in or near Point State Park. The entrance to the park usually has some kind of festival going on too…it all changes depending on the season. This summer when I was home, the Three Rivers Arts Festival was going on!

From the other side of the river, you can rent kayaks. I have done this a few times now, and I am always so surprised how much of an arm workout it is!

The last, but most important view…Mount Washington. You can drive or take a little red incline up the side of the mountain to get to the overlooks. Even as residents of Pittsburgh, we love going to the lookout!

In this particular picture, we were visiting with my friend Stef who used to live in the city, but moved away when she was young. She remembers a lot of places, but it’s fun to play tourist!

The Parks

Point State Park is downtown, but Schenley Park is a few miles away and it’s a much bigger and more “typical” park. In true Pittsburgh fashion, there is one spot where everyone likes to sit in the grass and watch the sun go down because guess what…you have a great view of the city. We really like our skyline!

Schenley Park also has many fields and tennis courts as well as an ice skating rink and a disc golf course! My favorite part of Schenley Park is, of course, the trails. I love to run on them and I love to bike them!

Hiking – Summer 2013

The Children’s Museum

This might seem like a strange place to include on my list of favorite places, but The Children’s Museum is a place I loved going as a child and a place I love taking my younger cousins now! Other popular museums include the Andy Warhol Museum, The Mattress Factory, The John Heinz History Center, and the Carnegie museums.

 

My brother Jake (L) and my cousin Lucy (R)

This climbing area at The Children’s Museum was a favorite as a child and it’s still a favorite now. Adults DO fit. 😉

These are my favorite pictures to paint! I had so many with my name on them when I was younger. Now, I make ones related to running. Of course!

Soergel Orchards

I love this place in the fall for the pumpkins, the apples, the hayrides, the vendors, and the activities…like pumpkin painting.

I painted it like candy corn. Because of course I did.

But, I also love Soergel’s come spring for their Easter festival! The year we went with my little cousin Lucy, we got lost on the drive there…it ended up being quite the trek!

I just love how festive they are!

Kennywood

If you are a Pittsburgh native, you are an amusement park lover. We had a day off of school every year in the spring for a Kennywood picnic. Everyone would buy tickets and spend the day at the amusement park with their families! This is the Kennywood mascot, Kenny the Kangaroo.

Lots of the roller coasters are wooden coasters, which makes them all the more bumpy and fun! This is a picture on The Racers. Two roller coaster cars race on parallel tracks and even though we have all now figured out the “trick” about how they decide which car wins every time, it’s still a fun ride. 🙂

Boyce Park and Seven Springs

In my town, we have always had ski and snowboarding slopes at our local park. A few years ago, they added snow tubing, which I think is the most fun winter sport. How fun is it to lay down, fly down a snowy hill, and then lay back down in your snow tube to ride back up the hill?! A great time for all. 🙂

Seven Springs is about 45 minutes away and it is THE place for outdoor winter activities. We usually make a trip to Seven Springs at least once a season!

Duquesne University

My alma mater. I had no idea where Duquesne was even located in our city until I went on a tour there during my junior year of high school! I knew as soon as I got there that it was the place for me.

It’s affectionately known as “The Bluff” because the campus is on top of a hill…which again, gives us a great view of the city. 🙂

The Pittsburgh Zoo

Also located on top of a hill, you enter the zoo by riding a huge, steep escalator! The monkey house, the polar bears, the dolphins, and Kids Kingdom, where there are nets to climb and a huge playground, are always my favorite exhibits! It can be a hard walk if you aren’t used to hills, but there are lots of benches along the way!

Other Random Favorites

The Cultural District for the theaters and the restaurants!

Razzy Fresh in Oakland for frozen yogurt.

Oakmont Bakery for “The Oakmonter”: bottom layer of cheesecake, top layer of chocolate cake, chocolate fudge in the middle. Topped with milk chocolate butter frosting and dark chocolate piping to finish your sugar coma. 🙂     

Hartwood Acres for Christmas lights…but the display hasn’t been open for the past few years! I’m hoping it makes a comeback. Hartwood Acres is another suburban park that is absolutely beautiful!

And my very favorite spot in the whole city…the path near the Convention Center. I spent many, many, many mornings running this path in college.

We are the City of Bridges. 🙂

What’s your favorite thing about your city?