The City of Steel

So after DC, we headed northwest for the semi-annual International Quilt Market, held in Pittsburgh PA this time. (Just in case you didn't know it, Quilt Market is the "big daddy" trade show for the quilting industry.)


We took the Pa Turnpike across Pennsylvania and the rolling hillside of PA is lovely. I wasn't prepared for the tunnels though. No one told me about the tunnels. I really don't do tunnels too good. The lack of emergency lanes and the close proximity of the tunnel walls kinda freak me out. There really are no tunnels in North Carolina, and gosh I was glad to get out of each one! Am I wierd or does anyone else feel this way?

But all was forgotten once we got to Pittsburgh. I
gotta tell ya, I was told some "not so nice" things
about Pittsburgh before we left, and let me just say loud and clear... Pittsburgh is Fantastic!
First of all, it's nestled between not one, not two, but THREE rivers and some bigtime hills (mountains). As a matter of fact, Pittsburgh has a functioning 'Incline Train' that goes almost straight up the mountainside! I've seen these trains in Europe & also on the Amazing Race, but have never had the chance to ride one, and it was AWESOME! The ride to the top of Mt Washington is totally worth it too, because there are some cool restaurants up there as well as a spectacular view of the unique architecture of the Pittsburgh skyline.

We stayed at the DoubleTree Hilton, right across the street from where the Pittsburgh Penguins are currently facing off against our beloved Carolina Hurricanes! The Hilton was only a few blocks from the Convention Center and seemingly everything else we wanted to do. Pittsburgh has a vibrant downtown area, and also boasts lots of fun things to do & delicious places to eat! We made sure we visited Primanti Brothers, a Pittsburgh institution that has been featured on several TV shows, because of its feature item, a whopping big sandwich complete with french fries and coleslaw tucked INSIDE the bread walls. This is definitely NOT my thing, but that's OK, because Bubba enjoyed it enough for BOTH of us!

Pittsburgh's PNC Park is one of the newest and best baseball parks in the country and on Thursday night we walked on over to the park and took in a game. And get this... we sat in the "All-U-Can-Eat" seats!! I had no idea there was such a thing, but let me just say that we took FULL advantage of this! One hamburger, three hotdogs, a plate of nachos, a box of popcorn, a bag of peanuts, two ice cream sandwiches, washed down by FIVE sodas later, we called the Hilton shuttle to take us back to our room. (Not because we were nervous to walk back home thru downtown... OH NOoooo... it was simply because it wouldve taken WAY too long for us to waddle up that long hill to the hotel! )

But if you are looking for the ultimate in dining, look no further than the Grand Concourse, Pittsburgh's premier waterfront seafood restaurant. The impeccable service & awesome interior make the Grand Concourse a MUST see experience. It's another of Pittsburgh's architectural treasures and a Historic Landmark. Dinner was just fabulous! I can honestly say, I have never eaten a better meal in my life, and that doesn't even begin to describe the dessert, a chocolate truffle cake that was to die for!

Pittsburgh was definitely a wonderfully surprising place, one I wouldn't hesitate to go back to!

Stay tuned for comments and pictures about the Quilt market itself in my next blog entry!