Pittsburgh: Pitt, CMU, and Non-Foodie Things

Saturday

St Paul's beautiful organ, Pittsburgh

Friday night, February 18, my friend Megan and I drove out to see our friend Sarah, who is a junior at the University of Pittsburgh! Neither of us had ever been to this city before, so there was lots of ground to cover. We began our first day in Pittsburgh with a visit to the strip district, but that's the topic of another post. Let's talk about non-foodie things.

Upon returning from the Strip District we found ourselves in St. Paul's, a beautiful landmark. Impressive on the outside, it is far more so on the inside. Someday I'll learn some basic architectural terms so I may describe these spaces correctly. Suffice to say that the soaring ceilings were breathtaking, and the organ, which can be seen facing the rear of the cathedral, is a thing of beauty. I did feel a bit out of price in there, though, as I wandered around craning my neck upwards while multiple were praying, obviously very hard. What really struck me was that most of them seemed to be about my age. There is nothing wrong with that, of course; I just found it surprising.

Interior of Heinz Cathedral

After lunch at Sarah's, our tour of Pitt's campus began. First stop in Heinz Cathedral, and yes, it is named after the ketchup industry family, who sponsored it. I don't know if they were trying to be ironic when they painted the doors ketchup red, but it's a nice color just the same. The stained glass windows on either side of the cathedral portray religious figures but also historical ones, mostly humanitarians and men and women of learning. Some of the figures included Anne Hutchinson, Florence Nightingale, Benjamin Franklin, and so on. Also, I think taking pictures of cathedral ceilings is a new hobby of mine.

Directly across the green from Heinz Cathedral is The Cathedral of Learning, Pitt's crowning glory. Sarah wasn't kidding when she described its ground-floor interior as "Hogwarts." We entered through revolving doors and found ourselves in a stone-floored entryway. the wind blew leaves in behind us, and they scattered across the floor as though through a courtyard. We walked past an impressive set of six elevators and found ourselves on the main floor.
Yeah, Hogwarts. Cathedral-esque ceilings, massive pillars, stone everywhere. Surrounding this main area of the building are classrooms, offices and administration, but some of the classrooms are themed. The International Classrooms are decorated in the style of the country which sponsors them. On the ground floor we saw the Scottish Room, the Yugoslav Room, the England Room (a personal favorite, for obvious reasons; though I think my very favorite was the Czech room), the French Room, and many others. It was a bit like walking around Epcot, only without the constant, screaming commercialism. And everything was decorated tastefully.

Inside the Cathedral of Learing

Some classes are held in these classrooms, but not many. Not many of the professors, according to Sarah, even want to teach in these classrooms because they are either distracting or uncomfortable. For example, the Welsh room, a new addition to the international collection located on the third floor, is designed in the style of an 18-th century church, complete with pews. After last semester, a professor who taught in that room asked to move to another, as the church pews were so uncomfortable that his students preferred to sit on the floor. I tested the seating myself once we got up there, and I see his point.

The international rooms were a time-consuming adventure. Then we took the elevator up to the third-highest floor, where the honors college is located and where Sarah has some classes. There we took in one of the best views of the city. We also scrambled into an elevator that went up even further, one that Sarah had thought you needed a key to access. Once we got up there, however, we found that the views were much better from the floor we'd just left. Don't waste your time.

An academic building on the campus of Carnegie-Mellon

After the cathedral, we met up with Sarah's boyfriend, Sam, and walked the length of the Pitt campus, down past the bookstore and over to the hospital where they both work. Then we reversed direction and went on a tour of Carnegie Mellon, known in the city as CMU. It's a few blocks from Pitt, and by the time we'd made our way around the campus I felt frozen, more than ready to be inside somewhere. But the campus has a mix of beautiful classic and modern architecture, and the number garden is worth a look. Sarah says it's also a great place for late-night games of hide and seek.


Not much to report on Saturday night- there was dancing and there was strawberry vodka; in Sarah's apartment.


Sunday


We began our Sunday with a trip to the Andy Warhol Museum, which was quite a learning experience. The first thing I learned (after being told that there were no pictures, of course) was that the staff could be snotty and downright rude. Don't waste your time talking to these people; when I asked one staff member a question, she cut me off with a curt "no," before I even finished my sentence. But the museum is still worth a visit; in addition to some of Andy's most recognizable pieces of pop art, there are also collections of his photographs and early ink work, as well as representations of his television show (something I didn't realize he'd had) and his films, including some that could be described as "erotic"...a naked couple reclining on a couch, presumably post-coitus; a film of a couple just kissing, kissing, kissing; and a drag queen eating a banana. Among others.

 The gift shop is overpriced, of course, but some of Andy's stuff is worth the expense. I left with a magnet with a wonderful quote about love: "People should fall in love with their eyes closed. Just close your eyes and it's magic." Oh, Andy. It's worth $4 to see that on my fridge every day.

Going up in the Incline!

We traveled up the incline after lunch, which takes you from the riverfront up the cliffside to the Mount Washington neighborhood, courtesy of a vehicle a bit like a slow-motion amusement park ride. There are two tracks, each with three cars consisting of rear and forward-facing benches and large windows. Each track goes both ways, so that one set of cars is always traveling in either direction. You embark and disembark on either side of the car, in an enclosed space, and at the top you pay for it. It's public transport, run by Port Authority, just like buses. But a more scenic, enjoyable form of public transport.

Skyline and one of the rivers, from Mount Washington

Up in Mount Washington there are lookout points, and from there you can see why Pittsburgh is known as the city of bridges. There are some high-end apartment buildings and very desirable real estate up there, but not too much else. It's a nice place for a daily walk, I imagine.

Well, that about does it. Stay tuned for foodie things!