Which makes this blog post hard for me, but my goal is to give you my opinions on where I've been and what I've seen.
*Some of these photos are my own, some my fiance Jason took! Just wanted to make sure he got some credit*
Pittsburgh
So I lived here for 4 years during Pharmacy school right in downtown and I hated it the first two years I was here and loved it the last 2. There are actually a lot of things to do in Pittsburgh, especially in the outer areas, but I'm just going to focus on the Downtown area!
Mount Washington
Mount Washington
There are 2 ways to get to the top of Mount Washington which is over the Fort Pitt Tunnel to get this kind of view. You can drive up and find a parking spot or you can take the inclines.
Personally, I think the best way is the Inclines. You really get the charm of the city by taking these. Back during the coal mine/steel mill days of Pittsburgh, a dozen or so of these inclines took men up and down the mountain to get to work and back home.
The Mon Incline takes you from Station Square (a pretty popular eating location) up to Mt Washington.
The Duquesne Inclines is about a mile down the road and boasts the original wooden cars!
Now the main restaurant in Mt. Washington is the LeMont. It boasts the "best view in the city" and is where the picture above was taken from. The LeMont is considered fine dining so be ready to pay for that view!
North Shore
This is where the Pirates and the Steelers call home.
During home Pirates games they shut down the Roberto Clemente Bridge (aka the bridge right beside of the stadium) and I think it's really cool that you can walk down the center of a major bridge.
Ok now I may be biased, but PNC Park is a BEAUTIFUL Field! I'm also a Pirates fan sooo there's that.
The View from Heinz Field
I've been to a couple pre-season Steeler games and a few concerts at Heinz Field. My main issue is that Pitt also plays there and as a WVU fan, I just cannot like the place :)
The stadiums are not the only thing that North Shore has to offer. It also has the Rivers Casino, The Carnegie Science Center, and the Andy Warhol Museum. The only one I haven't been to is the Andy Warhol Museum, but as an always broke college student, paying $10 ($20 if you aren't a student) seemed a steep price. Especially since I'm not an art person.
The Rivers Casino is a casino but it's on the river! (please read that with all the sarcasm I put into it).
The Science Center is really cool if you are a nerd like myself, but when I went in 2010, it was still a little childish for my 21-year-old self.
Places to Eat!
Jerome Bettis' Grille 36 - sports bar
Burgatory - burger place
Foundry - gastropub
McFadden's -Irish pub
Mullen's - bar and grill
All of these are around the stadiums and get there early because on game days they fill up quickly!
The last thing I want to say about North Shore is the Three Rivers Heritage Trail. It's beautiful and gives you a great view of the city!
Southside
This is the place all the college kids go to party. So if you are looking for something other than a drunken fest every Wednesday-Saturday night. Maybe avoid this place.
If watching drunk girls say "I'm totally fine. I've had like nothing to drink. I'm totally fine and not drunk." The south side is for you!!
There is a section on either side of the south side "strip" that is a little more classy. Station Square and Southside Works.
Station Square is where you can hop a ride on the Mon Incline, drink at Bar Louie, or Eat at Buca di Peppi.
Southside Works has Hofbrauhaus and Cheesecake Factory along with some really cute shops.
Downtown
I lived in the Downtown area for 4 years and I loved/hated it. Loved it because I could walk to everything, hated it because sometimes the traffic was ridiculous. I lived by the Mellon arena and watched as they tore it down and built the new arena (I think it's called PPG Paints Arena now).
Point Park - it is completely beautiful especially during the summer. The fountain is on and there are all kinds of people around the area. There is also the Fort Pitt Museum that depicts life when it was a British fort.
There are way way too many places to name to eat in the downtown area.
But one place you HAVE to check out is Pittsburgh Popcorn Company! It's really good and worth it.
One more thing in downtown is the Benedum Center and Heinz Hall, which is where all the great Broadway shows to come! I saw the Little Mermaid on Broadway at the Benedum and loved it! They have really good deals for college students.
Benedum
Outside of the City
There are a few other things to do outside of the city.
Kennywood is one - its a theme park with a few rollercoasters and isn't a bad place to spend an afternoon.
Sandcastle - a water park near Kennywood. It has a lazy river and really what more can you ask for in a water park?
Pittsburgh Zoo - be ready to climb some hills!
Philadelphia
Ok, let me make sure I say this at the beginning. I hate Philly. I think it's dirty and gross. I've been there twice and both times I was completely underwhelmed. But I would be a horrible travel blog writer if I didn't include it into this blog post.
Independence Park
Independence Park
Independence Hall
Independence Hall
Liberty Bell
This is probably the only place I really enjoy in Philly. I adore history and getting to see the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall was an amazing experience. The Liberty Bell is in a separate building from Independence Hall and does not require a ticket. However in the summer, the line is crazy long, but if you go in the fall or when school is in on a weekday, the line to see the bell is much much shorter.
Getting into Independence Hall is a little different. It requires a ticket, now those tickets are free, but have to either be reserved in advance or you have to go to the Visitors Center and get the ticket. It gives you a time for you to do the guided tour.
The desk where they signed the Declaration of Independence
Up close view
Some other things to see at Independence Park is the Presidents house. It's directly in front of the Liberty Bell and is now only the foundation of a house where George Washington and John Adams created the office of President while living here.
The Carpenter's Hall - where the 1st Continental Congress met.
Carpenter's Hall
Elfeth's Alley - the oldest street/alley/houses in America.
Elfeth's Alley
Franklin Court - houses that Ben Franklin owned.
Franklin Court
Betsy Ross House - where the famous lady made the first flag of the United States.
Betsy Ross
There are a lot of other things that you can see in Independence Park, but I feel that these are the most important. There is also a new Museum of the American Revolution by the Visitor's center that I didn't get to see. But I've heard stellar reviews about!
Reading Terminal Market
This was actually an old train depot market that has lost the train part but kept the market! It is on the ground floor and is covered with food markets and little cafes. This is a perfect place to grab lunch or sample some of PA's finest foods.
LOVE Statue
The JFK plaza that it normally calls home is under renovation and for the life of me, I could NOT find where they moved it! But do not worry, LOVE should be back in its home come November of 2017.
Rocky Steps
Let me just say, that Rocky was in killer shape when he did these steps. I tried and I was convinced I was going to die before I made it to the top. The steps are actually the steps to the Philadelphia Museum of Art and there is a statue dedicated to Rocky off to the right of the steps.
Other Sights in PA
Valley Forge
This is about an hour away from Philly and if you like history, then you should definitely spend some time here. I only did the driving tour (sometimes I'm exceptionally lazy) but still, it is really an informative drive.
I'm only going to talk about the things I found interesting because honestly I'm not a historian and I tend to get dates/facts messed up in my brain.
The National Memorial Arch - it is so pretty. It was erected in 1917 to honor the soldiers who fought for our independence. This photo does not do it justice and you should definitely take the time to get out of the car and walk around it!
The last thing that I thought was really cool was Washington Memorial Chapel. Off to the left is an outdoor grotto area. Where you can become a princess if you want.
The church is beautiful inside as well.
Hershey/Gettysburg
How could I forget these extremely two important places in Pennsylvania the first go-round! Don't worry travelers I will fix it immediately!
Hershey
I've actually been here twice, once just for the rollercoasters and another time for a half marathon in Lancaster.
There are actually two separate parks! Hershey Park and Chocolate World. Hershey Park is an amusement park and I have been before, but I honestly do not remember.
Chocolate World is just that a world of wonderful chocolate. You can buy all kinds of different chocolate themed gifts and when I was there in 2016, you can take a ride with 3 cows (I loved this part) and they took you for a "tour" of how the chocolate is made and the history of the company. My understanding is the company has changed this now to something more modern, which makes me sad because I loved the cows. ("It's the milk chocolate, moo moo")
You can also become a chocolate expert at their tasting class and you can even make your own chocolate bar!
If you have kids or just love chocolate, I would put this on my to-see list.
Gettysburg
This is the battle of the Civil War with the most casualties and is known as the turning point of the war. It was another one of the first battlefields preserved. To me, this is an important part of our history as Americans. It is one thing to learn about it in a classroom and it is another to see it firsthand. I have a lot of photos of the place, but in all honestly, without going through an entire history lesson of what happened in that photo, they are really just an empty field.
That's about all I have so far for PA!!
If you have any questions about anything email me! graceparsons2023@gmail.com
Happy Traveling!
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