A Visit to Pittsburgh

If your mental image of Pittsburgh is of a dirty steel town, it's time to update. Pittsburgh is making a lot of "best place to live" lists, as well as "most-affordable" lists, and for good reason. I had a chance for another quick visit recently, and enjoyed exploring a few new-to-me areas.


First up was a lovely morning spent on the Strip District--not a red light district, but a neighborhood full of ethnic food emporiums, restaurants, and funky shops. On weekends there is also an open air farmer's market and plenty of street performers. I didn't take a lot of pictures, as I was too busy enjoying myself and buying gourmet goodies, but I did pose for this one with "Bob" the accordion player:


Nothing makes a good day better like hearing "The Pennsylvania Polka" expertly played on the accordion.

Next up was a visit to the Dusquene Incline. (You can read the interesting history of it here.) The cars have beautiful decorative details, and the wooden parts are nicely creaky.


Here's the view looking out the back window on the trip up--it's very steep!


Here's the station at the top. It's chock full of wonderful historical photographic displays, and there's a spot where you can watch the machinery working:




It's a perfect place to take pictures and to see the confluence of the three rivers-- the Monongahela, the Allegheny, and the Ohio. (Read about how they were cleaned up here.)






Here's a view of Heinz Field:


I love this shot with the coal train and the boat. The water in the Point State Park fountain is pink to raise awareness about breast cancer.


Finally, on the trip back down the incline, I spotted a fascinating conglomeration of what appears to be incline mechanical spare/old parts:

Next: I go for a beer.