Postcrossing Blog

Zmrzlina, in Pennsylvania, kindly hosted the intrepid mail carriers on their adventures in Pittsburgh. And what exciting days they had, filled with zombies and Andy Warhol… read all about it below!

Little Ana and Paulo started their visit to Pittsburgh with a visit to Pamela’s Diner, in the Strip District. The pancakes here are quite good, as US President Obama will attest. Paulo would have liked a second helping, but we had lots to see, so he took one last bite and off we went.

We did some window shopping in the Strip District, a former warehouse area that is now the home to ethnic grocery stores, funky arts and lots of street vendors. We found one vendor selling tiny little journals, perfect for keeping track of journeys.

Pittsburgh is known as The City of Bridges. There 446 bridges in the city and some of them are beautiful works of steel and magic. Three of those bridges, sitting side-by-side, are called the Three Sisters Bridges. They are each named for a famous Pittsburgh resident: Rachel Carson, the early 20th century environmentalist whose writings started the worldwide environmental movement; Roberto Clemente, Puerto Rican-born baseball legend whose charity work helped millions; and Andy Warhol, pop art master.

We took a walk over the Andy Warhol Bridge and visited the museum dedicated to his art. It is the largest museum in the US dedicated to one artist. The postcard selection is quite wonderful, though a bit pricey, and Ana was quite taken with the Campbell Soup pen, though we convinced her it was a bit too weighty to travel the world. After a photo session with Andy, we were off to see more of the city.

Pittsburgh has three major league sports teams: Pittsburgh Pirates (baseball); Pittsburgh Steelers (American football); and Pittsburgh Penguins (hockey). A huge statue of Roberto Clemente is just outside the baseball stadium, PNC Park. Paula and Ana look even tinier sitting on his hand! We were also able to get right up close to the park for a glimpse inside.

On our way to the football stadium we visited another Pittsburgh legend, Mister Rogers. Fred Rogers was the creator and host of a long running children’s television series called Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. He was a very gentle man with a huge heart filled with love for everyone.

After all that walking we decided it was time to visit another area of town and drove over to Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Garden. Paulo and Ana were quite fascinated by the extensive bonsai collection and charming miniature railway displays. While posing for a photo, a train engine bumped Ana and she went for a tumble, but have no fear, we were right there and caught her.

For a final view of the city, we went up to Grandview Avenue, one of the best places to see Pittsburgh. Paula and Ana enjoyed the overlook, as well as the ride on one of the two remaining incline trams in Pittsburgh, the Duquesne Incline.

Our last stop was a bit outside the city. We went to the Monroeville Mall, famous for being the setting for George Romero's zombie movie, Dawn of the Dead. Paulo and Ana enjoyed the Zombie Museum at the mall very much. Quite kitschy, but fun.

Such a busy day, and lots of new adventures ahead. Paulo and Ana spent the evening helping Zmrzlina with her Orphaned Postcard Project, and the next morning they posed for a picture inside Zmrzlina’s cute mailbox.

Pittsburgh was so much fun! Where will the little mail carriers go next? :)

PS – Missed their previous adventures? You can follow their journey around the world here.