One Forth Pittsburgher

I consider myself about one forth Pittsburghish. My mom was raised in Pittsburgh and moved to Erie to go to college. She married my dad (who is from Erie) and stayed in Erie -- the spot of many family vacations for her growing up.

My mom lost her "Pittsburgheese" before I was born. Yet every-so-often (mostly after she gets off the phone with her brothers and sisters), she slurs some words together. Luckily, I did not inherit any strange words (although, admittedly I am convinced Jimmies are a type of sprinkle) or accent.

I do make several trips to Pittsburgh every year. Mostly because now KT and Nikkie live there, along with my mom's family. Because of these trips I really feel like I have experience much of Pittsburgh.

Below are some pictures of some things I have done.

I LOVE HEINZ KETCHUP! You know those two giant, 35-foot ketchup bottles atop the Steelers' stadium sign? If they were real, they would contain 1,664,000 fluid ounces of Heinz ketchup --enough for 3.2 million hot dogs.

I toured Heinz stadium as a Behrend student for an events marketing class. There are 64,450 mustard-colored seats in the stadium.
Oh yea, during our tour we were taken into the Steelers' locker room. But the Steelers were done playing for the season (This was 2006, so they were Super Bowl XL Champions), so we didn't get a chance to see them.

It's bad luck to step on the locker room's emblem on the ground. So they cover it with plastic to guarantee good luck (I guess it has worked this season and last).

Some of the other trips down included hitting clubs, restaurants, boutiques, and stores with the girls.

It seems we've been to most of the fun neighborhoods. Downtown, Southside, North Hills, Robinson, Squirrel Hill, and Shadyside (to name a few). And we certainly have done our fair share of shopping at stores Erie doesn't have, like Trader Joes, IKEA, Nine West, White House Black Market, BCBG, Apple, H&M, and many bridal dress shops.

The girls and I have even done touristy things like go to the Pittsburgh Zoo and make sandwiches for Rocky the Grisly Bear (using grape leaves with peanut butter, nuts, berries, and fruit).

While at the zoo, we also watched the elephants take their bath.

Yet some how, one experience escaped me until last weekend. I had never eaten at Primanti Brothers. KT and I split a pastrami and cheese (I never had pastrami before either). I thought the sandwich was yummy and it hit the spot on a cold winter day.

Sure I've done a lot in Pittsburgh, but there definitely is a lot more to do. Any suggestions?

P.S. Thanks for all the memories, Pittsburgh (and the friends that made it special)!