Pittsburgh, a city of neighborhoods

Story by Cindy O. Herman

It’s the terrain that separates Pittsburgh from other major cities. Jutting into the confluence of three rivers, Pittsburgh consists of 90 neighborhoods. Each adds its own community charm whether with parks and green spaces, bicycle trails and hills, views of the rivers, the 446 different bridges, or more ethereal qualities like art, ethnic cultures and that proud, steel-working history.

“I love how unique Pittsburgh truly is,” said Jerad Bachar, VisitPITTSBURGH’s president and CEO. “It’s a vibrant, goodsized city but it still has a small-town feel to it. There are a lot of surprises and unexpected experiences that people just don’t recognize unless they’re here.”

An avid cyclist, he enjoys exploring the hundreds of miles of bike paths going up into the hills, along the river and throughout the city. A big performance art fan, he recently attended a Bollywood dance festival, though he also enjoys the August Wilson African American Cultural Center and Liberty Magic, a theater in the downtown Cultural District.

“And then my favorite thing to do, too, is to go to a restaurant downtown called Con Alma, which has live jazz music every night of the week,” he said. “All these wonderful outdoor experiences, but then you have also so much depth and character to the city.”

Only have time to visit three places? Bachar recommends a ride on a 130-year-old incline up to Mount Washington.

“The views from Mount Washington onto downtown Pittsburgh are iconic,” he said. “It’s such a great experience.”

Families should check out the Children’s Museum, which is within walking distance of downtown and was voted one of the top 10 best children’s museums in the country by USA Today.

“But while you’re going, you’ll walk right by the Andy Warhol Museum and you cannot see Andy Warhol in such an amazing place as his own museum in his own hometown,” Bachar said, adding that baseball fans will delight in the Roberto Clemente Museum.

And while you’re downtown you have to sample Pittsburgh’s array of eateries.

“The food scene is a-mazing,” Bachar said. “So incline, museums, and food scene are the top three for me.”

A RECREATION AREA, BUILDING OR PARK POINT STATE PARK, 601 COMMONWEALTH PLACE

Where else can you dip your foot into three rivers at once? Point State Park exists because the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers unite there to form the Ohio River. What people may not realize is that Pittsburgh’s “Golden Triangle” was also the place where Fort Duquesne and Fort Pitt made their contributions to the American Revolution and the French and Indian War. At the Fort Pitt Museum, you can visit the Trader’s Cabin, study detailed dioramas and gain an appreciation of a slice of Pennsylvania history.

Managed by the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Point State Park offers hiking and walking paths on paved promenades that offer dramatic views of the city as well as scenic strolls around a 100-foot tall fountain in the center of the park.

The Three Rivers Heritage Trail covers 37 miles along both sides of the Allegheny, Monongahela and Ohio rivers and is open to cyclists, walkers, runners, and in some places rollerbladers. Boating, kayaking and fishing are available at the park, which is open every day of the year.

For more information: dcnr.pa.gov/StateParks or 412565-2850

A Historic Location

THE DUQUESNE INCLINE, 1197 W. CARSON ST.

Both the Duquesne Incline and the Monongahela Incline were built to carry workers up and down Coal Hill, now known as Mount Washington. Watching the restored cable cars steadily climbing and returning from the top of the steep hillside, it’s easy to imagine them filled with tired, sooty coal miners and steelworkers going about their dayto-day lives.

The Duquesne Incline, voted by USA Today as one of the top 10 sites in the world for viewing a cityscape, was opened to the public May 20, 1877.

“You get two treats,” said Tom Reinheimer, director of marketing and group tours at the Duquesne Incline. “You get to ride a 146-year-old museum piece, and when you get to the top you get the view of Pittsburgh that everybody comes to Mount Washington to see.”

A small museum and gift shop can be found at the top of the Incline, where visitors can see photos from Pittsburgh’s history and information on inclines from around the world. Though only the Duquesne and Monongahela Inclines now exist, almost two dozen once carried Pittsburgh residents and their vehicles up and down the steep hills of their city.

“You’re not going to find it in very many places in the country,” Reinheimer said of the Duquesne Incline. “It’s an original.”

For more information: duquesneincline.org or 412-3811665

AN INTERESTING SITE BICYCLE HEAVEN, 1800 PREBLE AVE.

In 2011, Craig and Mindy Morrow founded Bicycle Heaven. The project grew out of Craig's love of finding discarded bicycles in the junk. Recently, it was named the world’s largest bicycle museum and shop by the New York Times and Associated Press and features close to 6,000 bicycles, from vintage to new.

“One thing people like is, we’ve got Pee-Wee Herman’s bike (from ‘Pee-Wee's Big Adventure’),” Craig Morrow said. “People love to see that.”

Bicycle Heaven’s bikes can be seen in movies such as “A Beautiful Mind,” “Super 8,” “Fathers and Daughters,” “Fences” and many others.

“I think people like that they can find a bike here that they had when they were a kid,” Morrow said. “Everyone remembers the freedom they had riding their bikes around. They always tell us, ‘My mom never knew where I was going on my bike.’”

For more information: bicycleheaven.org or 412-734-4034

A Place For Kids Of All Ages

SEN. JOHN HEINZ HISTORY CENTER, 1212 SMALLMAN ST.

The Heinz History Center is Pittsburgh’s museum. Guests can delve into stories of regional people and places, from the women in white hats who packed jars of pickles at H.J. Heinz Co. in the late 1800s, “Kaufmann’s Clock” on the side of the former department store, exhibits of Pittsburgh’s Super Bowl, World Series and Stanley Cup championships, to the evergrowing catalog of iconic paintings by Pittsburgh artist Ron Donoughe.

“As a Smithsonian affiliate and the largest history museum in Pennsylvania, the Heinz History Center features iconic exhibitions and artifacts throughout its six floors,” said Brady M. Smith, director of marketing and communications. "The museum’s flagship exhibit, ‘Pittsburgh: A Tradition of Innovation,’ is where you can flex like Rosie the Riveter, learn about the region’s contributions to the Apollo 11 moon landing mission ...”

For more information: heinzhistorycenter.org or 412-454-6000

A QUIRKY/UNUSUAL PLACE

BAYERNHOF MUSEUM, 225 ST. CHARLES PLACE

To best appreciate the surprises awaiting visitors at this unusual site, Jim Mousseau, curator of the Bayernhof Museum, prefers to say little about it and let guests experience it for themselves.

“The less they know, the more fun they can have,” he said. “We encourage people, when they bring guests back, not to tell them a thing about the place. It’s really unique.”

The 19,000-square-foot museum (former residence of Charles B. Brown III, the museum’s founder) offers a oneof-a-kind collection of music boxes, antique automatic music machines and other items. Even the building, with its south wall made almost entirely of glass, entices guests as they stroll from room to room, sometimes through hidden doors and secret passageways.

For more information: bayernhofmuseum.com or 412782-4231

A MEMORIAL OR MONUMENT CARNEGIE MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY, 4400 FORBES AVE.

Stand next to the reconstructed skeleton of a dinosaur and you’ll share Pittsburgh steel tycoon Andrew Carnegie’s fascination with the ancient animals. And thanks to that fascination, you’ll have the chance to gaze at a dinosaur at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, a monument to amazing artifacts and accomplishments from around the world.

Opened in 1895, the museum’s mission from the start was to “exhibit the wonders of nature to everyone from mill workers to affluent society members,” as stated on the museum’s website. Its early collections included artifacts from ancient Egypt, beautiful minerals, exotic wildlife taxidermy and, of course, dinosaurs.

Today the Carnegie Museum of Natural History showcases everything from animals, plants and artifacts to dioramas on Native American cultures. Among many other experiences, guests can watch paleontologists analyze fossils, look closely at the coarseness of an African lion’s mane and marvel at the sparkling beauty of 500 gems, crystals and pieces of jewelry

For more information: carnegiemnh.org or 412-6223131