Mount Washington Visit

Brendan, George, and Andrew

Sunday, October 9th

On Sunday evening our group headed to Mount Washington to take in the breathtaking view. Arguably the most beautiful view you can find in Pittsburgh, the many overlooks sit on the ridge of Mount Washington, which was formerly known as Coal Hill. Given the name, it makes sense that at one point the annual coal production was 13 million tons. Hundreds of years before this, the view you see from Mount Washington was a view of Fort Duquesne, and then Fort Pitt. Both the French and the British realized that Mount Washington provided great barricade and protection for their forts. We took some pics of the view, and of a few other sights from the area, and were pretty impressed with the area and how interesting it was.

 This plaque was on the railing of the Gallagher Overlook.

 This stand talked about how Pittsburgh was greatly affected from the 19th century and industrialization as well as the efforts after World War II towards "The Greening of Pittsburgh".

This is just a cool ice cream shop we passed when we were walking around.

The best part about Mount Washington were the stunning views.

Perhaps Mount Washington’s most wonderful view is at night, where the city illuminates to provide a starry canvas including sights from the Carnegie Museum next to Heinz field, to the Point, over to the Cathedral in the distance. This picture was taken from one of the inclines called the Duquesne Incline. This nighttime view a must-see, whether it is seen alone, with family, or with a loved one.

MtWash Library: There are a number of small attractions on Mount Washington, including small coffee and ice cream shops, the inclines, and this small public library. I did not explore the book selection, but I did go inside to use the bathroom. The ladies working there were very sweet. The building seemed a bit dated. 

 This is the LeMont Restaurant, which is a Five Star Diamond Award restaurant in Mount Washington. It has a great view for a high price. We learned that Mount Washington is home to many upscale restaurants.  This is not that surprising since some of the hillside condos are listed at over a million dollars.


South Side

Though we were not able to make a trip to South Side as a group, a friend and I went to check it out the first weekend we were in Pittsburgh. We walked up and down checking out the many shops and the even more numerous bars while we waited for a table at Fat Head's Saloon.

 Fat Head's is famous for its enormous burgers. This is a picture I got online, but it accurately shows how huge these burgers really are. Fat Head's is also well-known for its wide selection of craft beer. It's by far one of, if not the busiest restaurants in South Side.

The South Side Works Cinema is a movie theater in the South Side Works Complex. This "complex" refers to and area on the South Side that contains restaurants, shops, offices, apartments, the cinema, and a hotel. It's referred to as a new urbanest designed complex. Which basically just means it was designed to be environmentally friendly and create jobs and a new neighborhood with more living options.

 Perhaps one of the most interesting detail I learned while researching South Side, was the use of steps as streets in some areas. At times the terrain is so steep, steps are used instead of streets. Many houses sit alongside these steps. The steps even have names just as streets would. Special fire trucks are used in the area because your average fire truck wouldn't be able to climb the steep streets when there was an emergency.

Recently, South Side has become a popular destination for the nightlife of students from Duquesne, Carnegie Mellon, and the University of Pittsburgh. The population continues to grow thanks to the convenience of its location to the universities. So it is definitely one of the up and coming neighborhoods of Pittsburgh.

Works Cited

http://www.clevescene.com/cleveland/truce/Content?oid=1577559#

http://www.lwere.com/pages/southsideworks

https://www.coldwellbankerhomes.com/pittsburgh/addr_grandview      %20ave%20mount%20washington/?searchTerm=Grandview            %20Ave%20Mount%20Washington

http://www.brooklineconnection.com/history/Facts/CoalHill.html

http://www.lemontpittsburgh.com/

Downtown

 View of Downtown form Point Park

 Point State Park at Sunset

Map of the Original Fort Pitt

PPG Place

Il Pizzaiolo in Market Square

Trinity Episcopal Cathedral(left) and First Presbyterian Church(right)

Shadyside Visit

Our visit to Shadyside

Julie B, Sarah S, Audrey L

On Tuesday evening we visited the neighborhood of Shadyside. We explored Walnut Street and all of its unique boutiques, restaurants, and people. We ate at The Yard, a restaurant known for its gourmet grilled cheese. We also ate at Prantl's, a bakery, where we got some of the best iced decorative cookies shaped like leaves, flowers, and pumpkins. We walked along the street and entered a few stores including Francesca's, True Runner, and a few other shops along the way. When it was time to leave we noticed the view of the Cathedral, which can be seen at the end of the street. - Sarah S.

• Shadyside was developed in the mid 1800s, and got its name from the wooded roads of which the area consisted.  The neighborhoods surrounding the shopping district consist of a variety of homes, both apartment style for off-campus housing, and older Victorian homes. There are plenty of shops and restaurants, and are all within walking distance (once in the neighborhood of Shadyside) And a bonus, most shops and restaurants are dog-friendly, which is awesome!!(http://www.visitpittsburgh.com/about-pittsburgh/neighborhoods/shadyside/)

View from Walnut Street

The Yard- home of gourmet grilled cheeses

While we were at The Yard, my coffee actually came after the grilled cheese orders -Audrey

We ate dinner around 4:15 and we were the only ones there. Whoops!

Prantl's Bakery has been around for the past 40 years.  It is a German styled bakery, and has over 100 baked goods. (http://www.prantlsbakery.com/about/) 

The BEST iced sugar cookies

We stopped at True Runner so Audrey could check out some running shoes, but they were really expensive.

We stopped to shop around. 

We didn't stop in, but we have heard many good things about Steel Cactus.

Nearly died taking this picture

 We were checking out houses along South Aiken Avenue

The Korean Cultural Church of Pittsburgh

This was a house reverted to apartments for college students to rent. 

"Pittsburgh's BEST Apartments" 

Sources:

"Prantl's Bakery." Prantls Bakery RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Oct. 2016. <http://www.prantlsbakery.com/about/>.

"Shadyside - Pittsburgh Neighborhoods - Explore the City's Regions - Cultures - Pittsburgh PA." Visit Pittsburgh. Greater Pittsburgh Convention & Visitors Bureau, n.d. Web. 6 Oct. 2016. <http://www.visitpittsburgh.com/about-pittsburgh/neighborhoods/shadyside/>.

Lawrenceville

Roughly two and a half weeks ago, we, (being Jenna, Emily, and Jena), went on an adventure in the nearby neighborhood of Lawrenceville.  Lawrenceville is located in between the Strip District and Bloomfield and is made up of three different areas: lower, central, and upper.  It is constantly evolving, and many young people have recently begun taking over the neighborhood.  There are currently around 11,000 people who live in Lawrenceville.  Shadyside may offer some more expensive options, but this up-and-coming town has just as much to offer.  From restaurants, bars, and cafes to eat and drink at, to art galleries to explore, and even to yoga studios where you can find your zen, there is never a dull moment in Lawrenceville.

There's a reason one-"n" Jena rarely uses Snapchat.

Lawrenceville used to be a trading post for both English and French settlers. In 1814, William Foster gave it its name in honor of Captain James Lawrence, orator of the famous quote, "Don't give up the ship!"  Many companies sprung up in early Lawrenceville, such as U.S. Steel, Alcoa, Westinghouse, and Pittsburgh Brewing Company. This neighborhood also became home to a variety of ethnic emigrants, including, but not limited to Poles, Swedes, Italians, and Russians.

 As for our trip to Lawrenceville, getting there was fairly simple.  After a twenty-ish minute bus ride on the 71C, we were off.  While on the bus, we rode past the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, which is enormous and vibrant.  If you ever drive through Lawrenceville be sure to take a peek!  Once we got off the bus, our first stop was Aresnal Park, pictured below, which is located between 39th and 40th streets.  It includes a jungle gym, baseball fields, and even offers a Cinema in the Park Night where they play a movie for people to come out and watch on warm summer nights from a spectacular viewpoint.  

We actually aren't entirely sure what this is, but it
appears to be some sort of small amphitheater.

Despite a brief flirtation with the idea of jumping over 

the wall that surrounds Arsenal Park, we decided it would

be best to use the actual entrance.

Wow, much fun, very picture.

From the park, we then meandered a little further down the road until we found Carnegie Library. What we found was a rather lackluster facade, considering its namesake, but we did find some interesting things along the way.  Lawrenceville has historically been home to one of the largest Polish communities in Pennsylvania, and Pennsylvania itself has had (again historically) the second largest populations of Poles in the United States, second only to New York.  Because of this, Lawrenceville houses its own branch of the Polish National Alliance, a fraternal insurance company specific to Polish emigrants and their progeny, known as the Polish Eagle Society chapter.  On our way, we also discovered a road made entirely of original brick!  Some other treasures known only in Lawrenceville include the local Row House Cinema, as well as several local eateries.  The Cinema houses a single screen, and on it, they play one to two films per day, usually revolving around the theme they have picked for the week.  

Carnegie is a pretty prominent name here in Pittsburgh, so the size of this worn-out structure was quite surprising to us.

Not only is this neighborhood ideologically diverse, but
also culturally.

These are a rarity pretty much anywhere you go, so the fact
that we found them in Lawrenceville is
supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.

To the left of this single-screened cinema is a tiny burger
joint you would totally miss if not for the foldable chalk
sign outside.

As for food, you can grab a sandwich at Deli on Butler Street, some breakfast or brunch at Geppetto Cafe, or some typical bar food at the Thunderbird Cafe, according to our exploration, although we're sure that if you explore further, you might find more unexpected venues to your enjoyment.

Don't let the "Cafe" in this local establishment's name fool you...it's actually a bar.  There is also a laundromat
conveniently located just two store-fronts away, so you could even *cough* if you're of age *cough* buy yourself a
drink while your laundry is running through the machines.

Would you believe us if we told you that this deli is in fact not on Butler Street?  No? Good, because we'd be lying.

This is a cafe.  And they have coffee.  Remember kids, caffeine is a legal drug.  Live it up.

Sources:
Rostein, Gary. "Ethnic Neighborhoods Becoming a Thing of the past." Post-Gazette (25 May 2003):
n. pag. Post-Gazette. PG Publishing Co. Web. 1 Oct. 2016.

Wytrwal, Joseph A. America's Polish Heritage; a Social History of the Poles in America, United States, 1961.

Downtown

Downtown

For Kavya, Ben, and I's trip we went to downtown Pittsburgh. While researching to see where we wanted to go while we were there, we decided that walking around and seeing the view of downtown, going to market square and getting dinner, and going to Point State Park would be the best thing to get a taste of the area.

The first thing we did after arriving on the bus was take a moment to take in some of the sights. By far one of the most unique things that we saw while taking it all in was the Trinity Cathedral.The Trinity Chapel was built in 1805 and was used in the very same building up until a fire occurred in 1967. However, after this fire the Trinity Cathedral decided to modernize its look and it is most certainly one of better looking architectural designs in downtown Pittsburgh because the facade makes it stand out from the glass and steel skyscrapers lining the streets. This part of the day was not only special because of the cathedral though, because right next door we were able to observe a wedding going on.

After we walked around downtown we were all pretty hungry so we took off to Market Square. Market Square is known around Pittsburgh for being one of the best places to go to find food, as it is exactly what the name suggests: a square area surrounded my markets, or restaurants. Now although it is described as typically being lively on our trip there it was probably a little late and too cold to see exactly how lively it can be. After the usual debate that people have undoubtedly anytime eating is involved, "Where do you want to go?" we finally decided upon Il Pizzaiolo.Il Pizaiolo is an Italian restaurant that blends an old fashioned "fancy" atmosphere with new trendy pizza and other meals
.

Finally we decided that, because the sun was setting, we should go to Point State Park. We knew that this was probably the best place to observe the setting sun and get a good view, and we were not wrong. While there we also observed a seaway tour going on which I believe would be a fun way to observe the city in a  new way

Overall the trip downtown was a very good way to get to know some new people and go somewhere outside the "bubble" that is Pitt's campus.