Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Hello all! So sorry that this is so late! I meant to post this weeks ago… seeing that I did visit Pennsylvania in October. Unfortunately, life got in the way, with college prep and everything else. and the loss of a classmate and childhood friend got me in gear and inspired me to do what I love, which is writing about my life and the things I love and being able to share pieces of yourself through the things you love is so special. So here I am, after a long week of reflecting on the life of someone who truly took life by the horns and didn’t waste a second of it, ready to take control of my life and do what I love before I can’t do it anymore. So your exclusive viewing of my trip to Pittsburgh, PA begins now!

Day One:

This is how I felt being at the airport at five in the morning to catch a 6AM flight to the Burgh. 

I caught the earliest flight I could out of Boston, because I wanted to see my best friend as soon as I possibly could. I didn’t realize the difficulty I would face until I woke up at 3:30AM that morning, having gone to bed at 1AM.. It was poor planning on my part; I’m a terrible packer, it takes me ages. Looking on the bright side: I got to watch the sunrise while I was in the air and I sat next to a fierce business lady who I talked with about life and the future. Some people on airplanes are smelly and enjoy leaning on you.. but occasionally you find an interesting and considerate person who wants to chat with you and those people are a special and beautiful breed of human. 

After chatting with my businesswoman friend, I took to completing my Friday Favorites of that week and it was nice to have this woman next to me and getting her take on the items I had selected. FYI: SHE LOVED THE HAREM PANTS. SHE’S A STAR. So yeah, I felt pretty legit, sipping my Starbucks and typing up my blog. haha I’m so lame..

I got off the plane a little after eight and headed from the plane to my next method of transportation: the bus. It was slightly difficult to navigate the bus with my ginormous suitcase (ugh. Overpacking probs) and it took serious leg strength to keep from jolting across the bus every time my suitcase felt obligated to shift its position. The ride from the airport to Point Park University was about half an hour, which wasn't too bad considering it was $3.75 to cover the long ride. Once I got into the city I got off and had to walk a few blocks in my harem pants and jelly sandals.. this sounds super fabulous and exciting…and it would have been if I hadn’t been lugging around a forty pound suit case and it wasn’t snowing an hour earlier. Let’s just say I thought I was either going to slip and rip my pants or get raped. Luckily, I strutted it and walked it like I was on the Paris runway, therefore no stumbles or sexual assaults were had. 

Finally, I made it to the University and I was reunited with my best friend of over seven years. We embraced in the lobby and I felt whole again.. missing your other half for a few months is kind of difficult no matter how many Google Hangouts you have or texts you send. My beautiful best friend’s name is Jared, he’s going to Point Park for his BFA in musical theatre.. so he’s basically living my dream while I sit here rotting in high school. Oh well! He’s tall, handsome, gay, and has the most incredible dancer-boy legs you will ever lay your eyes on.

He ushered my up to his dorm to drop my things and had to rush off to class but he didn’t leave without snapping this candid.

I was so happy to be reunited with my gay husband and clearly that photo says it all. So he headed off to class and I decided to take some time and explore Pittsburgh. I had been to the city before when I toured Point Park and Carnegie Mellon but I had never explored it on my own, so I was really excited! 

First thing’s first, the coffee. I wanted to search for a cute little coffee shop where I could get something that wasn't branded and sold by the millions everyday. So I found this little coffee shop that was hidden in the alley between a department store and an office building. It was called 21st Street Coffee and Tea and I’m so glad I went in! It's a super small business, the kind where they run your debit through an attachment on their iPad. I was excited to support a small business and keep the community growing so I was more than willing to pay $6 for a drink. I walked in dreaming of a carmel macchiato because I had only had them at Starbucks and they were so wonderful that I was wondering what they might taste like somewhere else. Unfortunately but fortunately, they didn’t have the macchiato I was looking for so I asked her what her favorite/ the most popular drink was. She responded saying it was the mocha. I had heard of mochas before and sipped one from Dunkin’ Dounuts but had never had one. She went on to explain that they make their mochas with a mix of espresso, chocolate milk, and a bunch of other typical coffee things. As soon as she said chocolate milk I was sold! I’m so glad I got this drink! The mocha was warm and frothy and she even made a design on the top, like you see on Tumblr. 

So with this frothy masterpiece in my hands, I set off to go around the city to explore and  take pictures with my vintage camera. I talked about this camera in my Friday Favorites in October and I love it because I can take awesome black and white photos and I know that no matter how they come out, it’s all my doing.

I found a little brick park between two office buildings and I couldn’t help but capture the two stone structures that were frozen in a moment. I was really intrigued by the two and loved sitting there and contemplating the situations that could have been happening. I decided that the two scenes are related and the man is looking back on his love that doesn't love him back. She’s telling her best friend about the conversation she just had with the man in which he ran onto the stage during her viola solo concert at Carnegie Hall and confessed his love for her. He expected it to be like the movies and that the two would embrace and live happily ever after, but no such luck… She was in love with the conductor of the Boston Pops. It’s all so scandalous. 

I proceeded to discover a super old theatre that was so beautiful and antique on the outside and tried to get in. I wasn't able to.. but I imagine the inside was as beautiful and ancient as the outside was. I also came across a park that was real… but it wasn’t. It was made out of real trees, but the rest was fake. It was really really interesting and added a beauty to the city during fall that is usually only seen during the spring/summer. I also got to see a running fountain, which was awesome because I figured it would be closed considering the Washington Square Park fountain was closed. It was running and I soon caught on that it was some kind of wishing fountain. I grabbed sixteen cents (my lucky number) from my wallet and made a wish about my future plans. Here’s hoping that everything works out!!

The fake/natural park

Casually in the middle of the city

The Wishing Fountain

After walking around for a little bit I had seen a lot on the Point Park side of the city I decided to go across the Andy Warhol Bridge and see what was on the other side of the city. I was pretty content on my walk over the bridge because there was a beautifully dressed businessman walking in front of me and I admired his leather oxfords and Burberry coat more than he will ever know…though I do think he saw me taking photos of him. The following pictures you are about to see are a series of common tourist shots that, though obnoxious, were totally necessary. 

After spending about twenty minutes on the bridge, just taking it in and appreciating the beauty of Pittsburgh, I headed to the other side for some exploring. I eventually came across the Andy Warhol Museum which was a complete coincidence! A work of fate, if you will. I was SO excited and though I was alone, I figured that might be the best way to experience a new place. I believe there were six floors in the museum, which seems like a lot, but each floor was so different and each embodied a different vibe, so it’s literally impossible to get bored while going through. The museum had a mix of different works. The top floors were dedicated to Yasumasa Morimura’s Theater of the Self which was so amazing and kind of haunting. Below you’ll find the work that really bothered/inspired/captivated me.

I realize that it doesn’t seem like much, looking back on it now, but in the moment I was so taken back by this work that I could not stop looking at it for like ten minutes. I don’t know if the same effect can be felt by just looking at it on your computer screen but there was something about seeing it in person that intrigued me. I mean, I was surprised by how much it affected me, it’s not something I’m going to hang on the wall of my apartment but I’m just connected to it in some weird out-of-body way. 

So now that you think I’m a weirdo… here are some pictures I secretly took at the museum:

MY fave.

She looks like Diana Agron! Right?!

It's Katy Perry. I swear.

After tramping through the museum, I found myself in the bookshop where I wanted to buy EVERYTHING. Instead I drooled over the Karlie Kloss i-D Magazine and bought presents for my friends. I also discovered this gem, casually sitting on a shelf. 

The FAB RuPual

After I left the museum I was feeling emotionally drained but really optimistic about life so I walked on the waterfront path and just enjoyed the slight chill in the air and the view of the beautiful city across the water. I ended up in front of a baseball stadium and laughed because I’m not the most athletically inclined and the path would lead to something sports related. Then my phone died and I figured I should find a Starbucks to charge it and write my Friday Favorites!  I had walked a lot further than I had remembered and finding that Starbucks was like finding the last m&m in a bag of trail mix. If that comparison doesn’t make sense to you…let’s just say I was the happiest. I was feeling awesome and inspired and for some reason, seeing this on my hazelnut macchiato made everything so much better. 

Apparently, my name is Tara. God bless this barista. 

I sat in Starbs for a good two hours and finished up my blog while scarfing down two hot drinks and eavesdropping on the conversations that were going on around me (my favorite game to play in coffee shops). I was having a great time on my own, but I was there to see my fabulous best friend so when I got the text that he was out of class I was so excited! 

On my walk from Starbucks to his dorm I discovered these really interesting sculptures that were so bizarre but definitely worth sharing. One is a disco ball dinosaur and the  other is a ketchup bottle dinosaur. It’s safe to say that I had never seen anything like them before.

After arriving at his dorm we decided to go into an art exhibition I walked by earlier and grab a bite to eat. We found the art exhibit and were truly surprised by what we had gotten ourselves into. The work was to be viewed with 3D glasses and you basically had to walk through a pitch black maze of a hall to find it. When we got inside we couldn’t help but laugh. The “work of art” was basically a projection on a white sheet of bodies. Straight up bodies. They were computer animated and they moved around to create shapes and images. Jared and I were laughing so hard and I don’t think I’ll every be the same after seeing such a graphic display. We wanted to show respect for the artist so we felt that we had to stay in the room for an “I just thoughtfully observed an artistic and creative masterpiece” amount of time. This proved to be more difficult than expected but we survived. When we left I complimented the artist on his work, he didn’t even look up, just pompously said “Thank you.” As if he knew that he was the next big thing in fine art. I was astonished.  

After we recovered from the horrendous life-changing experience we had, we went to see the musical Oklahoma! It was being put on by Point Park and I was excited to see it because I applied and I was very interested in the types of shows they put up.

We really enjoyed it and were brought to tears by the Oklahoma ballet. An evening well spent. 

Day Two:

Woke up bright and early and headed out for a run around the city. It's seriously beautiful. A lot of people don't know much about Pittsburgh and don't realize how much of a city it is and I wish people knew more about it. It's known as the "City of Bridges" and it really is. It's so gorgeous. So here's a little look into my running experience. I came across a variety of things:

It was quite the run and despite it being super cold, it was incredibly beautiful. I figured it was the best option because my muffin of a best friend was sick in bed with mono and his roommate was asleep. By the time I got back, neither had moved, but it was getting late and I had to get some food in Jared. I pulled him out of bed, got some meds in him and we walked to Market Square for breakfast. We went to Bruegger's Bagels and got bagels with pumpkin cream cheese. It was awesome. Actually delicious. I urge you to try this cream cheese. I think Philadelphia has a version you can buy at supermarkets actually!

Not gonna lie.. after this we pretty much vegged for the day in his dorm room. Holla.

After taking a nap and regaining consciousness, we had to get ready to go see The Rocky Horror Picture Show! WE were planning on dressing up as Brad and Janet.. and do to the cold weather, we had to improvise thusly.

Of course we looked fabulous.. but the production we saw was less than spectacular. I have never witnessed such a raunchy performance in my life. Like too raunchy for Rocky Horror.. That's saying something! The show sounded SO cool though. The description said that we would follow the cast through the production.. so we thought we were going to be in a haunted mansion and it was going to be an amazing production because the tickets were expensive. Unfortunately, the production was low budget and was in a warehouse space above a sex shop. Not ideal.. but these fab photos came out of it..

The production was so weird. That's the only way I can describe it. Legit. The most weird. Even Jared was taken back and he's seen it all. Not kidding (Don't kill me, Jared). We got stranded for like half an hour outside of this place and did dances from CATS and A Chorus Line to keep us warm. It was absurd. After that traumatic experience, we some how made it back to Point Park and hung out with the beautiful people there. We got midnight pizza to end our last night together and it was seriously one for the books. 

The next morning was less than ideal. Let me sum it up.. I slept through my alarm, missed my bus, chased it down, Jared fell in the street, I cried. Somehow... after this dramatic movie moment, chasing a bus, I got on the bus and made it to the airport in time. It will forever be one of my favorite memories and it definitely went into my memory jar. :) 

I got a milkshake, a bagel, and juice for this plane ride. Oh the stress..

So that was my amazing trip to Pittsburgh! It's a gorgeous city to visit and I encourage everyone to check it out at some point in their life!

Hope you enjoyed! 

Much love! <3