Pittsburgh

October 15–16, 2018

TL;DR: Pittsburgh is super walkable, and we really liked the vibe of all the different neighborhoods. It’s bustling with activity, and there’s clearly tons to do, from sports and art to food and breweries.

The sights

The Aviary

We parked right outside the Aviary, and ended up going inside. Actually, we started by just walking around it. But then we saw the condor in his cage and decided we had to do it. For $16/each, we had to be sure.

It ended up being really cool, actually. And not just because Bri loves birds. The condors and Stellar sea eagle were huge.

There was also a tiny owl at the beginning, who was just the cutest and had the most adorable yawn.

Andy Warhol Museum and Bridge

We unfortunately visited the museum on a Monday when it was closed. But both the museum and the gift shop looked really neat.

We settled on walking across the bridge, which was bright yellow and afforded us an expansive view of the city.

Gasoline Street Coffee Company

Stopped here for a cold brew and ginger turmeric smoothie. Nitro cold brew was supposed to be amazing but it was a little watery. Cool spot though, with lots of neat signs and bikes and old gas pumps.

The Golden Triangle

It was pouring when we walked over here, but still really cool.

It’s where the Ohio, Monongahela, and Allegheny Rivers meet, and there’s a view of Mount Washington and the buildings and houses and churches on top, as well as the stadiums.

There’s also a crazy fountain that was blowing with the wind when we visited.

And on the way, we spotted Lord Farquaad’s tower from Shrek.

Strip District

The Strip District is lined with warehouses that have been converted into groceries and gourmet food shops. It was pretty dead when we went due to the rain and the random Tuesday hour, but we visited Wholey’s for some fresh fish (though the lobster mac ‘n’ cheese was disappointingly void of lobster). We were going to stop at S&D for some to-go perogis but they had just closed the kitchen.

Primanti Brothers

This famous chain was recommended by pretty much everyone, but … we weren’t that impressed. The “demon tots” with nacho cheese were aptly named, with Sriracha and jalapeños. But the sandwich, which is topped with fries and looked amazing, was just a bit underwhelming. Very glad we tried it, and the staff was wonderful.

But don’t need another. The wall was covered with the cartoon faces of Pittsburgh-born celebs, and Jess thought Andrew Carnegie looked a lot like Sean Connery, but no one else agrees.

RedHawk Coffee

Super cute little coffee shop. Were very tempted to get Vietnamese coffee with condensed milk but resisted. Drip was delicious.

Cathedral of Learning

Omg this place is so cool. It’s a class building for the students at University of Pittsburgh: 42 stories high with 30 different nationality rooms and a 1/2-acre, four-story, vaulted gothic study and event hall (AKA Hogwarts).

Anyone can come in and check it out. We only got to see a few rooms because class was in session (rude), but super neat spot.

Schenley Park

This is where we parked the RV on our second day in town. A pretty park with plenty of trails for walking and biking, a botanical garden, and easy access to North Oakland.

Hot Metal Bridge

Pittsburgh has many bridges, and this one was particularly striking.

Carson Street

Cool street that feels a bit like Mission Street in San Francisco. Tons of bars and restaurants. A little touristy but also hipster-y/dive-y at the same time. Went to Fat Head brewery, which was good.

Duquesne Incline

A fun South Side stop, the funicular scales Mount Washington, is 800 feet long, and at a 30-degree angle. It was originally steam-powered, and one of many funiculars. Fun fact: It’s featured in Flashdance.

Sweeping views of Pittsburgh, the rivers, and the stadiums. Even got to see the sunset from the top, which was beautiful. Thanks for the rec, Pat!

And then this happened…

Bri left his phone in a Lyft, we tracked down the driver after about 15 minutes and he said he was at a Costco, so we went there… but then he wouldn’t answer his phone. We decided to go into Costco to see if we could find him and he was coming out as we were going in. Very strange but we got the phone back!