We started at the top of a hill. Pittsburgh is built in, over, around, and on top of hills and over and around rivers. One hill, Mount Washington, gives a gorgeous overlook of the city. I'm not a fan of most cityscapes, but I love being on top of the world. Plus, it helped me get a feel for the city. You can ride up the huge hill in a rickety little cable car, but we skipped that for time's sake.
Next we went to Pamani Brothers in Southside. They are known for their sandwiches which have: meat, tomato, cheese, coleslaw, and french fries. Yes, I did actually eat an entire Pamani Brothers' sandwich. I still don't know how I feel about this.
Then came the "Cathedral of Learning," a building at the University of Pittsburgh. It's a state school that got around a building ordinance declaring that the highest building in the city had to be a church with creative naming. Then, partway through the thirty-six story Gothic structure, they ran out of money. So they got countries to sponsor rooms (I heard the story from my ACMNP friend, so I don't have all the details) -- and now a bunch of the classrooms are decorated with traditional art, screens, fixtures, etc. from various nations. If you are seeing a Babel parallel here, you are on my wavelength.
Right next door, we visited the Heinz Memorial Chapel, another not-quite-religious building. It was made to look like a Gothic church and had a gold cross on the altar and saints in the stained glass. However, Abraham Lincoln, Benjamin Franklin, "the Pioneer Woman," and other such figures kept them company. The First Thanksgiving appeared next to the First Christmas: labeled "1620."
After that I got a lightening tour of Dusquene and then our time was up -- she had the day off school, but not work. I still have a lot left to see in Pittsburgh, and will keep you up to date when I do!
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