Field of Dreams

Last Friday night I got to go to one of my favorite places on this Earth, PNC Park in Pittsburgh, PA.  I've been around the world twice and there aren't a lot of other places where I feel so happy.  A beautiful summer night in Western Pennsylvania, when you can smell the grass, hear the crack of the bat, feel the energy of the crowd, well...it's just heaven. 

I went to the game with my Sister and a few of my friends.  My sister and I spent the first few innings in our third base side seats but then wandered the ballpark taking the game in from different vantage points. 

The view from the upper deck is probably the best.  The city comes alive rising above the outfield wall with the Clemente Bridge drawing your eye to the skyline perfectly.  It was while taking pictures there that we met a young Japanese fan who we asked to take our picture.  He then asked if we'd take his and we had a nice chat.  Our conversation then went something like this:

Me: Where are you from?
Him: Japan.
Me: Ah, yeah, but where in Japan?
Him: Oh this town called Yokohama.

Me: Oh cool, I've been there twice.
Him: What?! Really?
Me: Yeah, I was there back in 2006 and in 2013.  I even got to go to a baseball game there in 2006 to see the Orix Buffalo.
Him: Oh my godness ...

He then pulled out his Orix Buffalo jersey.  It really is a small world sometimes.  He was in town because he was traveling across the USA going to different ballparks.  PNC was his 19th and according to him, "The most beautiful of them all."  So I guess it's not just me who knows that truth.

We chatted for a few minutes longer and then told him to go eat at Primanti Brothers sandwich.  If Pittsburgh has a flavor it has coleslaw and french fries piled onto whatever it is.  We wrote it down for him to go and visit and then went on our way.

Funny how when I was traveling in the foreign countries I did the same thing where I had locals write down places to go eat.  You get sent to some really good places that way.  And when you are lost you can just show someone the piece of paper and then can help get you there because the place is usually a point of pride for the city.

While walking through the outfield section of the stadium during the 6th inning break tragedy almost occurred.  We almost missed the pirogi race!  We darted into the closest seating section in the right field bleachers and we just happened to be at the finish line for the race.  It's such a Pittsburgh thing to have pirogies race around the outfield I can only imagine what our Japanese friend must have been thinking while seeing it. 

Have Towel, Will Travel

The Great Wall of China

I'm excited for the start of another football season this week.  I'll spend many of the upcoming Sundays sitting on my couch, swinging my Terrible Towel in the air cheering on the Steelers.  It's like my security blanket and it's well traveled.

It still pains me that I temporarily left it on the tour bus at the Taj Mahal in India and didn't get a picture with it there.  It has seen just as much of the world as I have:

Tian Tan Buddha outside Hong Kong. 2013

On top of Table Mountain, Cape Town, South Africa in 2006.

On top of Lion Head Mnt, Cape Town, South Africa. 2013

Sumo championship match in Tokyo, Japan. 2013.

Pittsburgh in Summer

This is Pittsburgh in the summer.  I love this photo.  It's got everything I think of when I remember my hometown.  From the steel mill on the right, the small brick house in the center to the rollercoasters of Kennywood on the right and it's all framed by the puffy clouds of the blue sky and rolling green hills.  If only it was like this all year round.

I've been in a pattern the last few years of only making it home in the winter months.  It's a real shame because Western Pennsylvania really is one of the prettiest places you can visit during the summer, even with the God-awful roads.

A few other shots from the trip home:

Trying to get as much Burgh as possible in this photo.

Libby enjoyed the view but not the pool.

Highlights from my drive up.

The Church of Baseball

An impromptu trip to Pittsburgh last week brought many ups and downs.  After spending a few days worrying in a hospital waiting room began to take it's toll and I needed an escape.  Enter the Church of Baseball.

A Sunday afternoon baseball game was the perfect escape from the worrying.  Getting lost in the crowd, hearing the crack of the bat and feeling the sunshine on my face is a cure only baseball can provide.  And all for less than $20.

I decided late Sunday morning to head down to PNC Park and watch my Buccos take on the Colorado Rockies.  I found a ticket on StubHub for $8, drove down and parked for $5 and even splurged and spend $3 on a water and some peanuts outside the stadium.   

When the final out was recorded the good guys won 5-3 and I left a happy boy.  Next to Mom getting better and out of the hospital, the afternoon was the highlight of my trip back to PA.

Best view in baseball.

Pretty good seats for $8.

Root for the Pirates.

I always tip the sax player on the Clemente bridge.

A Taste of The Burgh

If a city can have a taste, Primanti Brothers would be what Pittsburgh tastes like.  The often imitated, never duplicated Primanti sandwich is as synonymous with Pittsburgh as Iron City Beer or the Steelers.

The Primanti sandwich consists of some type of grilled meat, an Italian dressing-based coleslaw, tomato slices, and French fries between two pieces of Italian bread.  The original location opened in the Strip District of Pittsburgh in 1933 and has since expanded to 17 different locations throughout Pittsburgh and 3 locations in Florida.

About ten years ago they even turned the McDonalds I worked at throughout high school into a Primanti's but I've never felt comfortable going to a suburban location.  Yesterday I went down to the South Side location for my sandwich fix and it was everything I hoped for and more.

Why is everything piled onto on sandwich?  Simple, when the first location opened in the warehouse and produce district, people had to eat fast and often with one hand.  Simple solution, pile it high, wrap it in sandwich paper and out the door you go.

The menu is full of different types of sandwiches, from the Capicola ham to the "#2 Best Seller" Pitts-Burgher Cheese Steak, every one is delicious and worth the roughly six bucks.

And if you are wondering, the #1 seller on the menu is the beer.