One More Time: Pittsburgh

Looking toward the Duquesne Incline at dawn

I used to love extended road trips. About 15 years ago we traveled from Pennsylvania, to New York, Boston, the Berkshires, Maine and Montreal, with various stops along the way. We had no agenda, no schedule, we had a wonderful time. So, recalling the romance of that journey, I set off on a 3-weeks trip from Washington, D.C., first to Pittsburgh, then Toronto, where I am as I write this.  

How things have changed. Yes, I have the convenience of GPS to guide me. Mostly, it tells me a trip will take X hours and it ends up taking X+++ hours as the red lines with traffic stoppages appear on the screen. Traffic has been terrible wherever I go. $5 a gallon gasoline hasn’t seemed to reduce the amount of vehicles on the road, at all. Add road repair almost everywhere, your infrastructure dollars at work, and aggressive drivers and it is enough to make me want to turn around and go home, except, I’d have to drive!

I did get to Pittsburgh, checked into a downtown hotel and hit the street with my camera. The weather had been sub-par on the drive, light flat with moments of brightness. Not great shooting weather, but we photographers deal with that, always. 

Pittsburgh’s skyline has a nice mix of contrasting styles of architecture, everything from generously ornamented old buildings to tall boring blocks of concrete.

Pittsburgh Plate Glass, known now as PPG, has a plaza with a fountain surrounded by its glass faced buildings. The water display fascinates kids, and me. I however can resist the impulse to walk into it.

My second of the two days I was to spend in Pittsburgh was pretty much rained out. I drove out to the botanical gardens, rain, no go. I drove back to the Phipps Conservatory in town and the light was bleak. I did go out for a great dinner at Eddie Merlot’s, a steak and seafood place in the Market Square. This is one beautiful restaurant and my meal was superb. 

Now it’s time to take the head cold I got walking around in the rain to Toronto. 

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