Steel City

What I have for you today are some iPhone photos from a three day jaunt in Pittsburgh. I basically took the best parts of my favorite days in the 'Burgh over the last few years and then crammed them all into less than a 48-hour time span.

Breakfast at Pamela's Diner, midmorning coffee in Squirrel Hill, playing in the fountains at South Side Works, escaping the heat of the day at the $1 movie theater in West Mifflin, wine during happy hour at the Porch, dinner at Nakama (and dessert next door at Edward Marc Chocolatier), a ride up the incline at sunset, and drinks in Shadyside (the $3 goblets of beer at Mario's are quite a deal).  

Lemon and vanilla latte at Commonplace Coffeehouse in Squirrel Hill 

Racing through the fountains in the Town Square of South Side Works 

View from the top of the Monongahela Incline at sunset; Pittsburgh is the City of Bridges

In Oakland

I-76 East

And some proper photos of bucolic Pennsylvania backcountry, shot with my Nikon in the Laurel Highlands of the Allegheny Mountains.

 

My Favorite Museums

Well, it's been almost four weeks since I completed my internship in Pitt's Study Abroad Office, and I really honestly miss the place, the people, everything about working there. There are few places where it's not only possible, but acceptable to spend an afternoon discussing, debating, and ranking the best museums in the world. In consideration of things like diversity and coherence of the collection, food, manageability and location, here are the museums that I advocated for:

Dylan's TOP 5 Museums

1. Leopold Museum in Vienna 
2. Philadelphia Art Museum
3. Imperial War Museum in London
4. Museu Nacional de Catalunya (MNAC) in Barcelona
5. Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City 

At the Tate Modern during my first trip to London

Honorable Mention:

Art museums like the Uffizi in Florence and the Louvre in Paris are indisputably some of the best in the world - yet for someone like me, who appreciates art but can't necessarily ingest/comprehend such enormous collections, they're just not manageable.

On the other hand, some of the museums that I have visited have been randomly fun and interesting but a bit too specific to make my list: these would be museums like the Museum of Childhood in London or the Museum of Hash, Marijuana, and Hemp in Amsterdam.

The museum that was the most unexpected success for me was the National Gallery at Veletrzni Palace in Prague. I'd definitely like to throw an honorable mention their way. 

Obviously there were many diverse museums to visit when I was living in London: the Freud Museum, the Victoria & Albert Museum, the Tate Modern and the National Gallery. In Provence curiosity pulled me into the Museum of Natural Science in Aix-en-Provence and even the Camargue Rice Museum. And because Pitt subsidizes the arts in Pittsburgh, students have free admission to all sorts of interesting museums - the Carnegie Museums, the Andy Warhol Museum, the Mattress Factory...

But at the end of the day, my Top 5 are untouched by any of the museums that I have seen (so far). My coworkers gave me some recommendations that they hope will challenge my Top 5. Their favorites are the Musee d'Orsay in Paris, the National Portraiture Gallery in Washington, DC and the Museo de la Memoria in Rosario, Argentina (a museum of political dictatorship and the dirty war). We'll just see about that! And hopefully soon, I feel that travel bug itching to have its way...

This Week I'm Loving

Food: Nakama Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi Bar, Pittsburgh
Nakama is a trendy restaurant at 17th and Carson in the South Side. I have only been to their Sushi Bar (which is outstanding, by the way) but tonight I'll be heading over with my entire immediate family - four parents, four sisters, two brothers, in all - to celebrate.... drumroll please..... see below:

Event: Graduation Day

Book: Cover Her Face by P. D. James
Last November, when I was still in London, I went to her book signing at the Foyle's on Charing Cross Road. I am a big fan of Ms. James and her detective novels - I used to read them before heading to the UK because her writing is so quintessentially English. Cover Her Face is one of her earliest novels featuring Adam Dalgliesh.

Film: The Hunger Games!

The Porch at Schenley

One day, the Porch at Schenley just appeared. If you want to make the argument that the "one day" was my first day back on campus in seven months, be my guest, but I'm sticking to my story. 

So anyway, the Porch mysteriously appeared one day and caught me quite by surprise. I noticed it on my way to the Cathedral of Learning, when I casually glanced to my right and saw through enormous windows a chef dismantling a gigantic carcass of meat - what might once have been a cow. Well after that the Porch had my attention, and from the outside looking in through the glass exterior of this modern building I saw a pleasant little restaurant. 

The Porch at Schenley is a newcomer to Schenley Plaza but a welcome addition. The Plaza is arguably the closest thing Pitt has to a quad, and we students love to stretch out in the grass or meet friends at the cafe tables on the corner near the food kiosks. There is also a carousel and a permanent tent. Already the Porch is a popular place to spend happy hour on warm afternoons, and that it precisely what drew my friends and I there today. 

If you did not know, this semester I have been working as an intern at the University of Pittsburgh's Study Abroad Office. I adore the SAO staff and I love the work that I do - namely, advising undergraduate students and publishing a monthly newsletter to those abroad in the current term. There are four other interns who I now consider friends, and we decided to plan an "intern happy hour" to celebrate a great semester and a wonderful experience. 

We linked up around 5pm and the place was packed. From the six beers on tap I chose a Belgian white called White Lightning which was pretty decent. It was a nice way to unwind after the chaos of bomb threats (over 140 now) and finals week. I am still curious about the food - I might have to go back for the late night half price pizzas. Maybe the verdure al forno?

The Study Abroad Office crew: Moriah, Emily, Larissa, Bryan, Robyn, and yours truly

Looking forward to:

Event: Passion Pit concert at Carnegie Mellon's Carnival

Book: Booky Wook 2 by Russell Brand

Film: Alpha Dog
This movie is underrated. Rent it sometime!

I'll Be Up, Up, and Away

This weekend my friends Jill, Kristina, and I hosted a friend from out-of-town, giving us the perfect excuse to show him all of our favorite places and head to the top of the Monongahela Incline.

Pictures of the red cars perched on the Duquesne Incline or the Monongahela Incline are iconic Pittsburgh images. Both leave from Carson Street and climb Mount Washington up to Grandview Avenue. They are located about a mile and a half apart on the southern shore of the Monongahela River.

I have visited the Duquesne Incline several times but I had never ridden the older Monongahela Incline, and I was happy to cross it off of my Pittsburgh Bucket List - the deadline is graduation day!

We chose a route through the South Side so that we could show our friend the row houses, boutiques, and plentiful bars that we love before setting our car down in the Station Square parking garage.

The funicular ride up the side of "Coal Hill" was free for us because we are University of Pittsburgh students. [The incline is operated by Port Authority and unlimited access to Port Authority Transit is included in our tuition.] Usually the fare is $4.50 round trip and the operators at the top require exact change. The Inclines are convenient to visit because they open early and close late - I believe they operate from 5:45am to 12:45am almost every day.

From the observation deck, you can see the stadiums on the north shore, the entire city, and all the way to the Cathedral of Learning (Cathy is a beloved Pitt landmark).

In the end, I still prefer the Duquesne Incline because it has great historic photos of Pittsburgh in its industrial heyday, the air choked and clogged with pollution from the steel mills. It's like a mini museum.

Sorry for the poor photo quality - I took these photos using my iPhone on an overcast day with light rain.

This Week I'm Loving

Food: Tonic Bar and Grill, Pittsburgh
Before heading to the theater on Thursday I'll be filling up at this restaurant on Liberty Avenue downtown.

Events: Anoushka Shankar Sitar Performance at the Byham Theater and Cobra Starship Concert at the University of Pittsburgh

Anoushka Shankar will be performing traditional Indian sitar music at the Byham Theater downtown on Thursday, April 12th. Anoushka was trained by her famous father Ravi, who I am told introduced George Harrison to the sitar in the 1960s. According to her Bio on the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust website, she has performed on with artists such as Sting, Elton John, and half-sister Norah Jones.

It's sort of funny to plan for Anoushka and Cobra Starship in the same week because musically their genres are about as far apart as you could get - from classical Indian sitar to modern American synthpop.

Sunday April 15th is Bigelow Bash: a day-long spring festival held annually in the center of Pitt's campus. In the afternoon, the winner of Battle of the Bands will open for a big name in music - last year we saw Ke$ha, this year we will see Cobra Starship. There is always surplus energy bouncing around the crowd, and it's a great excuse to spend the entire day with your friends. If the bomb threats end, if the terrorist is caught, it the issue is resolved (the count reached 31 when four dorm buildings were evacuated between 4:30 and 6:00a.m.) then this concert could become a good venue for stress relief and celebration.

Book: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

Film: Faces International Film Festival at Carnegie Mellon University, Final Weekend

Thirty Bomb Threats

At Pamela's Diner in Oakland, I was maneuvering my fork across the table to steal some of Dave's crêpe-style pancakes when my phone beeped.

"A bomb threat has been received for the Hillman library, Sennott Square and Benedum Hall. Please evacuate. If safe to do so please tell others of this message."

This morning, the bomb threat count reached thirty. 

For several weeks now the University of Pittsburgh's campus has been routinely terrorized by anonymous bomb threats. At first only academic buildings had been threatened, and it was easy to attribute their cause to an irresponsible student who would rather sunbathe in Schenley Plaza than sit through an exam. Then bomb threat #12 was found, and for the first time a residence building was the target. Litchfield Towers A, B, and C were evacuated in the early hours of the morning, leaving nearly 2,000 students (mostly freshmen) drowsy and homeless. The reward for information was raised from $10,000 to $50,000 and the student body became very uneasy. The FBI arrived. The person(s) responsible switched from leaving warnings scrawled on bathroom stalls or slips of paper to bouncing emails to journalists containing threats off of European servers.

I am upset that in my last semester as a Pitt student I am threatened with violence at least once each day. I love Pittsburgh and Pitt's campus, and I genuinely want to attend my classes. In the last three and a half years I have always felt secure here, and it's a shame to mar that happy record now. It just doesn't feel fair.

The university has been forced to adopt new security measures. Faculty have been asked to give students the option of finishing their courses online from home. We are all trying to be as flexible and calm as possible. My roommates and I have offered our couch to frightened freshmen friends, and this is beginning to happen on a larger scale. An ad hoc campus couch surfing community has been established in the form of a Facebook group called the Pitt ENS Couch Surfing Network. Through this network underclassmen who are afraid to sleep in their dorm can connect with upperclassmen who have apartments nearby and an available sofa.

I hope that the local police, campus security, handwriting experts, FBI, and whoever else can finally locate the source of the threats and end the terrorism. I hope to bring you smiling photos of my graduation day in three weeks with the Cathedral of Learning in the background.

Until then: 

This Week I'm Loving

Food: La Casa Wine & Tapas Bar, Pittsburgh
This week I'm taking Amanda out for a belated birthday dinner in Shadyside at this Moroccan and Spanish tapas restaurant. Back in 2006 Amanda and I went on a girls only vacation to Barcelona with our Mom and our Nana, and we loved patatas bravas. We probably ate them once a day on that trip! I see them on the menu, so we'll definitely have to try Omar Mediouni's rendition of our favorite Spanish small plate.

Event: Phillies-Pirates Baseball Game (and Tailgate)
I was raised on baseball, and I love a chance to root for my home team - Go Phils!!

Books: The Tiger's Wife by Tea Obreht

Film: It's Complicated
This is a movie I can watch over and over again. Meryl Streep is a wonderful actress, and I get such a kick out of that line: "Turns out, I'm a bit of a slut!" I'd also love to have her life - beautiful house in Santa Barbara, successful bakery and chocolate croissants at midnight.

This Week I'm Loving

Food: Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes

Events: Campus Superstar at the Carnegie Music Hall, Pittsburgh
Campus Superstar is an annual event that's like our own mini-American Idol singing competition. The finalists this year are students from Pitt, CMU, and Point Park. I love going and it's always entertaining!

Something I love about going to school in Pittsburgh is that although we live in a city, it has the feeling of a college campus. There are so many students living and working here. Besides the University of Pittsburgh, there are private universities, colleges, and technical schools. There's Carnegie Mellon University, Robert Morris University, Point Park College, La Roche College, Chatham University, Duquesne University, and Carlow University - not to mention smaller institutions like the Art Institute or Pittsburgh Filmmakers School, and other technical institutes. Campus Superstar is one of the few ways that the universities can compete :)

Book: The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak

Film: Lords of Dogtown