Picking up where we left off, I got out of Cincinnati early and made a beeline for Pittsburgh to celebrate the Fourth of July with Jill, Ali, Nick and the rest of the gang on Ali’s boat. Once again, it was an incredible day filled with laughs, fun in the sun, a trip to the local casino and enough fireworks to blow up a small country – cannot thank Ali enough for hosting what was one of the best days of the trip!
Over the next few days I finally had some time to regroup, relax and not worry about driving 5 hours to get to my next destination.
So I’ve been hanging out with everyone, watching the soccer world cup (I’ve got the fever), eating some great food and even got in a round of golf with Jill (shoutout Nick Hale), all whilst preparing for game 20/30 when the local favourite Pittsburgh Pirates would take on the Philadelphia Phillies in an ultimate showdown for Pennsylvania supremacy.
Oh yeah, there was also this bizarre “Furry” convention in town…. Still not 100% sure what it’s about, however it certainly wigged us out.
Nothing beats a Sunday afternoon baseball game with friends, except when that Sunday game is played in perfect weather, with the perfect people in what I consider a perfect city.
The city of Pittsburgh is based where three massive rivers (the Allegheny, Monongahela and Ohio) meet, creating a city with unique neighbourhoods and TONS of cool bridges connecting everything together. It makes for a picturesque setting and the local ballpark where the Pirates play – PNC Park – have taken advantage of this by designing what it arguably the best ballpark in Major League Baseball with unbelievable views of the city and bridges framed by the stadium.
Arriving at the stadium early for a few settlers, Jill, Ali, Nick and myself took our awesome seats and grabbed the giveaway for the day – a very cool baseball dartboard.
The game itself was a beauty, with Pittsburgh rocking their throwback uniforms and enough Philadelphia fans in the crowd to give the ballpark an exciting atmosphere.
The local Pirates would get the party started in the second inning with a strong base hit reeling in one run for the early 1-0 lead, however this lead would quickly be erased in the fourth with an absolute BOMB of a home run from the Phillies to tie it up at 1-1.
The Pirates would respond in the bottom of the fourth with a swashbuckling double to reel in two runs, then another single for a 4-1 lead that they would hold onto for the rest of the game for a triumphant victory.
It was such a great time it’s difficult to put into words. As I’ve said, I love both the ballpark and this city, so it would have been perfect had we just packed it in and called it right then.
Little did I know my day was about to get even better.
As Nick is a local Yinzer (someone from Pittsburgh) with Serbian background, he suggested we all check out the township where he grew up known as “Aliquippa”, grab a bite and check out the local Serbian VIP club.
Without hesitation we all agreed and our Uber driver (shoutout Jill), expertly guided us to a bar “Barney’s” where I enjoyed another Pittsburgh style salad (a salad with fries on top), and some of the best Moscow Mules I’ve ever had (in the spirit of World Cup fever).
We then made our way to the Serbian club, where Nick had to punch in a code to enter the establishment. Once inside the dimly lit bar, we enjoyed a couple of beers (costing about $1 each), and also Serbian favourite “Sokolova” (tasted a lot better than it sounds).
Again, this is a hard post to write because it’s tough to express how much fun I’ve had in Pittsburgh with the best people. Hopefully the pictures do it justice (they can’t), but like I said in my previous post, if you’re ever around the area I HIGHLY recommend a visit to this awesome town.
I’ve got another day to hangout before I make the long drive to the North East and another one of my favourite cities in the US Boston! I’m excited to get there and watch the RED HOT Red Sox take on their division rivals and friends from up North, the Toronto Blue Jays at historic “Fenway Park”.
Looking forward to sharing more of this crazy trip with you guys!
Thirty before 30 