Niagara Falls

There was nothing to keep me in Youngstown besides I feel the need to rescue my wife from Ohio. The good thing about Youngstown however was the proximity to Niagara Falls and Buffalo.

I just happened to rent a Cadillac this weekend, because of all the points I get from my travels, I try to see if I can use them on my weekends specially for road trips.. this weekend it was a DTS, V8 gas guzzler but a sweet ride. It was the complete opposite of the camaro's and the tahoe's that I had been renting, this one actually doesnt make you feel like you are going fast at all.. its like driving a sofa!

The ride to Buffalo was uneventful, though you are driving around the lake most of the time, you can barely see it except for at Erie. The only Marriott in Buffalo that I had booked with my points ended up having a renovation so we moved right across the street to candlewood suites.. nothing fancy about that place. But it worked.

We went that night to Hard Rock and then walked over to the park to see the night lights over the falls, quite a view but the lights from the Ontario side of all the restaurants and big hotels overshadows anything from the NY side. Its kind of a sad feeling of being away from the action!



Next day we did the Maid of the Mist, walked around goose island and got the most spectacular views of the falls.. it was worth the trouble of driving there.

Dinner at Erie, cute restaurant with California cuisine, a little too much oil/butter to my taste.. my food ended up looking like Chipotle ;-)

Next day we headed over back to Pittsburgh to complete my visit with the duquesne incline from Station Square. For 2 bucks you can go up in the cable car and see a beautiful night view of the pitt skyline..

We also enjoyed staying in a jacuzzi suite at the local holiday inn express and eating some PF changs.. a true suburban experience! 

Pittsburgh, the steel city

So I had to spend last weekend visiting my wife in Youngstown, Ohio. I flew into Pittsburgh early in the day and since she was working nights, I wouldnt see her till next morning.. I decided to reach out to few of my friends who happened to be working at University of Pittsburgh and do some sight-seeing.

here's the wiki:

Pittsburgh ( /ˈpɪtsbərɡ/, pits-burg) is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat ofAllegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia^[7] and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States.^[8][9] The population of the city in 2010 was 305,704, while that of the seven-county metropolitan area stood at 2,356,285.^[10] Downtown Pittsburgh retains substantial economic influence, ranking at 25th in the nation for jobs within the urban core and 6th in job density.^[11] The characteristic shape of Pittsburgh's central business district is a triangular tract carved by the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers, which form the Ohio River. The city features 151 high-rise buildings,^[12] 446 bridges,^[13] two inclined railways, and a pre-revolutionary fortification. Pittsburgh is known colloquially as "The City of Bridges" and "The Steel City" for its many bridges and former steel manufacturing base.

I had been to the burg once before, attended the Three Rivers Arts Festival and the Andy Warhol Museum. This time I decided to spend the afternoon at Carnegie Art Museum/Natural History Museum, which are really nice buildings on the UPITT campus, here's a few things I learnt:



How many holes do we have in our scull?
5 - 2 for eyes, 2 for ears and 1 for nose... the mouth is considered a different jaw bone and doesnt count.

How many holes does an ostrich have?
14!

How many arms does an ostrich have?
1 - that is used for nothing and covered with feathers!

I saw a ton of dinosaur exhibits and a movie on the sinking of the titanic. It was more informational than the entire 3 hour hollywood movie!

Visited with my friends who made a wonderful vegan meal for me and then we went for a cruise down the ohio river looking at all the high rises and important Pittsburgh architecture from the Heinz football field, Alcoa headquarters to the new convention center, casino and all the different bridges including the Warhol bridge that I had walked on before to get to the museum.




UPMC pretty much owns all the healthcare facilities - hospitals, clinics, offices... they have been buying up everything in the area. They even have their name on the tallest building in the skyline, originally the steel building.. which shows their significance in Pitt, no longer a steel capital!

The administrative headquarters for UPMC are located at the top of the U.S. Steel Tower, Pittsburgh's tallest building

The Wiki:
The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) is an $9 billion integrated global nonprofit health enterprise that has 54,000 employees, 20 hospitals, 4,200 licensed beds, 400 outpatient sites and doctors’ offices, a 1.5 million-member health insurance division, as well as commercial and international ventures.^[3] UPMC is closely affiliated with its academic partner, the University of Pittsburgh.^[4]