Walking from Lawrenceville to Target: What We Saw

Since becoming friends with Allie, I've been pleased to be going on more meandering walks on the weekends. We tend to meet up at Espresso a Mano on Butler and aimlessly wander. I stop to take a lot of pictures along the way. Here are some things we saw last Saturday morning while we made our way from Lawrenceville to Target.

Espresso a Mano

Cute poster that's sprung up in my neighborhood for a new book.

New on the building on Penn after Matilda or Millvale.

Warhol flowers on that same building.

More of that building. I love all the color it adds to my day.

I'm very excited to introduce you to the wonder that is the Community Preschool & Nursery mural/sign that I can't believe I hadn't looked at closely yet. When you get right up in front of the sign, these are the wonderful things you'll see:

Malkamania: Penguins 8, Tampa Bay 1

On Saturday, I joined my dad at the Consol Energy Center for an afternoon Pens game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. My dad has season tickets to the Pens; right in the very last row of Section 227. We love it - a great view, we can stand the whole time, and direct access to the upper concourse. It's the kind of place where a small community can form, and that is exactly what has happened. We don't just stand there alone during the game. We have "hockey friends" come and go throughout the game. Sometimes they stay for just the intermission. Other times they join us for whole periods; in some cases they've stayed for entire games. Our beer guy - the same beer vendor who has been selling my dad beer at Steelers and Pens games since my dad was MY AGE - knows us by name, calls at us from halfway around the arena, and has even once given me a beer on credit and another time left his case with me while he ran a quick errand. I've learned a lot about hockey from listening to my dad talk to these "hockey friends," to the point where I can even hang in there a little myself in those conversations. This is all to say that going to Pens games frequently because of these season tickets, has made a hockey game less of an event, and more of a gathering for me.

But every now and then you see an explosively awesome game. And it is once again an event. That's what Saturday's game was like. Explosively awesome. It wasn't dramatic or suspenseful; the Pens were never in the hole against Carolina and the final score was 8-1. Malkin scored three goals - A HAT TRICK! - in stunning displays of hockey ability. Staal got a short-hander and a power play goal. This was a fun game to watch, and I'm really glad that on one of the only crappy winter days we've had in this city, I was up there in the last row of the arena, cheering with my dad and our "hockey friends."

Awesome Sign: Hat Trick!

Awesome Building; Sad Sight: The deconstruction of the Igloo.
(We sat in the last row of that building, too.)

60 and Sunny at November's End: Biking to Deutschtown

When I saw the Thanksgiving weekend forecast, I almost jumped for joy. We'd been having the rainiest week. I'd already biked to or from work three times in a downpour. The chilly, "man I think this rain might actually be little ice chips" kinda rain. It was gross. And I was grumpy.

But 60 and sunny? That is something I am never grumpy about. That is perfect adventuring weather. And, so, on Friday afternoon, Carrie, Corey and I hopped on our bikes and made our way to the North Side. We got to the beginning of Deutschtown's business district and locked up our bikes, ready to explore some new streets.

Facts to Know about Deutschtown:

• Its proper neighborhood name is "East Allegheny"
• It's actually pronounced "Dutchtown" (wow, do I feel dumb...)

Deutschtown's main street, East Ohio, was pretty bustling for a holiday weekend afternoon. We were disappointed to find that the Park House wouldn't be opening until 6 p.m., as we had planned on eating there after our walk. But, we pushed onward and found some pretty great stuff.

In addition to t-shirts, I might have to start collecting awesomely artistic Pittsburgh postcards.

There were a string of photography shops crowded together on East Ohio. Apparently, the Museum of Photographic History is located in Deutschtown. This place sounds awesome, and definitely warrants a repeat trip to the neighborhood.

We crossed down onto a residential street to get a better feel for the neighborhood's residents and stumbled upon a gated garden across from a beautiful building with the label of Pittsburgh's Grand Hall.


The Grand Hall is a reception hall/event location that looks absolutely beautiful inside. I can't think of a better place for a reception than something called "Pittsburgh's Grand Hall."

Evidence of Pittsburgh's smoggy past: One house clean, one house still holding onto the grime.

I really, truly enjoy window decorations like these. They are so charming and honest.

Two very big and enthusiastic thumbs up for Priory Fine Pastries and the delicious treats we procured.

This cat. Pretty much the best.

When our adventures in Deutschtown were over, we got back on our bikes and coasted down W North Ave to the War Streets for beers and dinner at the Monterey Pub. More and more I'm convinced that in a few years I'm going to be ready to buy a home and the North Side is seriously looking better and better to me all the time. Which is crazy to think because I do love living in the East End, as it is very convenient to my current sensibilities. But, someday in the not-too-distant future, I am seriously going to start looking into real estate in the War Streets. And then start planning for the awesome front porch I absolutely must one day have.

Mexican War Streets Fantasies: Mullen Visits!

Oddly, the person who has visited me from Boston the most is also the person who has not yet had a real, honest-to-goodness Pittsburgh weekend. She'd come in for business trips, usually one-nighters good for dinner and drinks, and for my mom's funeral, which, well, wasn't the most fun reason to be in Pittsburgh. So, finally(!), Mullen came to town for her first official Pittsburgh weekend.

After taking her to breakfast at Coca Cafe and Wildcard and an adventure through the Strip where we bought assorted goods (beer, t-shirts, turkey carcass, artwork, donuts - you know, the usual), I brought her to the Mexican War Streets. Primarily because I knew she'd fall in love with the neighborhood. (And not so secretly because I truly believe this girl would flourish in Pittsburgh).

I wanted to walk from Downtown to the War Streets so we could pass Mullens. For obvious reasons.


Our walk took us through Allegheny Commons and North Park before hitting the War Streets. It was a beautifully mild Saturday afternoon - perfect for a long walk. Earlier in the week, I had attended an apartment-warming party in the War Streets. Just walking into the entryway of the building - not even the amazing apartment itself - gave me serious apartment envy. The War Streets are quickly creeping up my list of neighborhoods I want to investigate when it comes time to buy a home. The area is lovely. It is full of color. The Monterey Pub is awesome and perfectly neighborhoody. I knew Mullen would fall in love with it, and we started making (fantasy) plans for buying and flipping a house in the area. At first, I wanted to take Mullen past the Mattress Factory and show her the sunken garden, but the lightbulb went off over my head and I changed our route to get to Randyland.

We were taking pictures of the mural on the side of the building when Randy himself came out of nowhere in a faded Pitt sweatshirt welcoming us into his backyard, where the bulk of his creations reside. I'd never been past the gate to the backyard before, so this seemed like a really special occasion. What follows are pictures from outside and inside the backyard of Randyland.







After we made our way out of Randyland and down the street toward the Monterey Pub, I pointed out the firehouse catty-corner from Randyland. It's for sale. And it's hard to figure out a way that my life could continue without that somehow ending up in my possession one day. (So, if any of you want to chip in and buy me a firehouse in the War Streets: go. for. it.)

BY THE WAY.
This is my 100th post on Everything Better Pittsburgh.
Thank you for reading! I've been having a blast coming up with adventures and writing about my one true love. Here's to another 100 things to say about Pittsburgh.

Pittsburgh Legs: StepTrek 2011 - Gold Route

Halfway through StepTrek 2011 I knew I was going to have to split the event into two separate posts. The combination of several factors (a beautiful fall day, a neighborhood I'd never been to before, and the little Pittsburgh surprises that kept popping up) led to this becoming a series of posts. So, if you weren't around last week, make sure to check out the first post about StepTrek with pictures and stories from the Black Route. Today, we finish up with the second half of my adventure: the Gold Route.

The first thing I passed on the Gold Route was the field for the South Side Sabers. As I walked by, little kids were dressed in Steelers-esque jerseys tossing footballs back and forth. It was beyond adorable. Their signage was awesome.



From football to faith, the Gold Route next took me to St. Paul of the Cross Monastery, a beautiful church sitting on the edge of the slopes with a great view of downtown. On the side of the monastery was this beautiful and bright mosaic.

Graves in the monastery cemetery, on a slope like everything else in the neighborhood.

View of downtown from the monastery parking lot.

One of the monks was passing out water in a StepTrek tent and as I passed by he said hello. I said hello back and remarked that it was a beautiful day. He smiled and said to me, "Another day in paradise." I walked away smiling and thinking, "This is paradise."

St. Paul of the Cross Monastery as seen from the bottom of the hill.

The Gold Route brought me to several pedestrian bridges over the train tracks that run through the South Side. While crossing the first of these bridges, a train was barreling down the tracks under me.

At the end of another of the bridges I found this graffiti/street art. The South Side Slopes appeared to be a little lacking in the graffiti/street art department, which could be a consequence of location. It seemed to be the antithesis of a neighborhood like Polish Hill where you can't walk two feet without seeing something non-commissioned added to the landscape. But this find was charming enough to make up for the lack of it on both routes.


And, to balance out the sweet with something sinister, directly across from the thoughtful poem was this "Meanie Babies" sticker, which shows a lion eating his own leg. Of course it does.


In total, I walked close to 2,500 steps as part of the Trek. Stairs have never been my favorite form of exercise, but I am a thousand percent glad I took part in StepTrek 2011. It was a great way to see some new sights and get a feel for a Pittsburgh neighborhood that's new to me. I found my dream house. I saw the city from a new vantage point. And I did some intense work on my Pittsburgh legs, which were beyond sore in the days that followed. Well worth it, because (to me and my monk friend at least) every day in Pittsburgh is another day in paradise.