City: Pittsburgh, PA
Distance travelled: 1096 miles
Total distance: 12,945 miles
Theatre: Heinz Hall

Pittsburgh was a treat for us as we got to sit down for a week.  We all tried to make the most of it as the next two or three weeks would be full of one nighters!

I was so impressed by the city.  I had no idea what a cool town Pittsburgh is.  There is such a support for the arts there and the food was great! It was voted the top food city in 2015 by Zagat and lives up to that reputation.  We were even lucky enough to have some pretty warm weather which meant I could get out and about and walk around.

 

Pittsburgh is famous for it’s bright yellow bridges which cross the river that cuts through the city, I walked over one of these to see one of the best museums I have ever been to;  The Warhol Museum.  I had no idea that Any Warhol was even from Pittsburgh, actually I didn’t know much about him beyond the big screen prints and Campbell’s Soup cans.  The museum was so interesting and I really enjoyed learning about how he started and developed his techniques.

In fact, that was the thing that most impressed me about the museum; They took great care to show you exactly how he created his work and by doing so I felt so much more connected to the pieces I saw throughout the exhibitions as I could see how it was done.  The do a screen printing demonstration every day in the lobby and then you are able to go to their studio and actually screen print your own posters and t-shirts and things.  We spent ages down there, in fact, I could have gone and spent the entire day there if I was able!

Along side the screen printing in the studio you have the opportunity to emulate Warhol by creating ink blot pictures like the kind he was famous for as well.  This all gave me a new appreciation of how he created his work.

Apparently, no trip to Pittsburgh is complete without getting a sandwich from Primanti Bros.  My friend Pete, who lives in the city, took me there and I was not disappointed, although if I was to eat one of them too often I would probably be the size of a house!