3/06/2011

Adventures in Pittsburgh

A few years ago, I thought, what's the point of being young and single f you don't randomly decide to get up and travel somewhere just for the hell of it. Montreal was my first trip with that in mind. Last year, I went to Texas. I mean, why not go to Texas to watch hockey? This year, the destination was Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. A friend of mine had recently relocated to the Steel City, and with someone I know there, what better time to visit a new place... not to mention, catch a hockey game.

To save big long paragraphs, here are my usual bullet-point highlights of my latest adventure:
  • Got stuck on the highway for 6 hours in an unexpectedly heavy snowstorm.(It took as long to drive the 15 miles from the airport to my friend's house as it did to fly from California)
  • Brushed snow off of a car in the middle of a highway.
  • Shoveled snow from a driveway for the first time ever.
  • Built a lot of snow people.
  • Made snow angels

  • Rode the "T"
  • Went up the Duquene Incline to see the views of the city.
  • Walked across the Fort Pitt Bridge
  • Learned all about the city's (very) early history at the Fort Pitt Museum

  • Happened upon the San Jose Sharks' hotel, made obvious by the autograph hunters parked outside. We felt like creepers so we didn't stop.
  • Saw Jamal Mayers in a Starbucks (I wished him luck in the game, and he said thanks. Then he paused a second, and said "do you really mean that." I had to explain that, yes, I'm a Sharks fan from the Bay Area.)
  • Ate at Primanti Brothers.
  • Drank a lot of Yuengling.
  • Saw James Neal and Matt Niskanen play their first games as Penguins. (They were traded while we were laid over in Chicago; they're flight came after ors and was diverted by the storm that stranded us on the road)
  • Watched the Sharks win in overtime over the Penguins at the Console Energy Center. It is an amazing arena. The Igloo looks cool from outside, but I think the CEC is a vast improvement inside.

  • Met Mario, Suzi, and Adrienne, some awesome Twitter peeps!
  • Saw the many amazing dinosaur skeletons at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History.
  • Viewed some very interesting art and sculpture at the neighboring Museum of Art.

I'm really disappointed that both Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin were still out with their injuries. I would have loved to see them play live in their home arena (something I've yet to see anywhere). But I left a lot of things undone, so there will be a "next time" for me and Pittsburgh.

Note: There are not enough words to thank Corey and her family for EVERYTHING they did for us during our stay. Look up "amazing people" in the dictionary and you will see them. Just amazing. So thank you thank you thank you!!

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