Pittsburgh Favorites

Favorite thing: First known as the Pittsburgh Academy in 1787, then as the Western University of Pittsburgh in 1819 and finally as The University of Pittsburgh in 1908 is noted for being one of the top public research universities in the nation.

The School of Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacy, Engineering, Arts and Sciences, Health and Rehabilitation Sciences and Informational Sciences are an example of the programs the University of Pittsburgh offers.

The 132 acre campus has approximately 100 residence halls, academic, research and administration buildings. It serves 27,000 students with a faculty of 4100. It is located in the rich cultural district of Oakland, an area of Pittsburgh accented by museums and art galleries. For more information call 412-624-4141.

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Favorite thing: Carnegie Mellon, 5000 Forbes Avenue, is one of the premier Engineering schools in the nation and top in robotics! There have been some who say they have successfully competed with the techno-savvy Japanese in that area.

The University was conceived by Industrialist, Andrew Carnegie, who wanted to build a first class technological school for the sons of his mill workers. His dream was finalized in 1905 with the opening of the school.

CMU is known for its Engineering, Science, Drama and Fine Arts programs. It merged with Mellon Institute in 1967 to create a successful and diversified program of education. For more information call 412-268-2479.

Favorite thing: This is one big library! It holds approximately 1,500,000 volumes of material which focuses expressly on the humanities and social sciences. Hours vary depending on the terms and testing periods, but is often open until 2 am to allow for research since it is part of the University of Pittsburgh.

Parking meters are available in the front of the building, but there are also parking lots with hourly rates located at Schenley Plaza,Panther Hollow and at the Soldiers and Sailors Hall parking lot--all within walking distance.

This facility is across the street from the Cathedral of Learning and within walking distance to the Carnegie Natural History Museum in the Oakland area of Pittsburgh. The address is 3960 Forbes Avenue. For more information call 412-648-3330.

Favorite thing: Duquesne University is well thought of in the world of academics! It was founded in 1878 by a group of Catholic priests and brothers of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit who were referred to as The Spiritans. This group was first established in France in 1703.

The Tamburitzens, a multicultural academy dedicated to the preservation and presentation of folk songs and dance are established here and travel all over the world introducing ethnic culture to a wide audience.

Duquesne was rated as one of the safest campuses in the nation by USA Today. For more information call 412-396-6000 or toll fee 800-456-0590.

Favorite thing: This building is part of the University of Pittsburgh. It sits at 230 South Bouquet Street between the Hillman Library and Mervis Hall. Carnegie Museum is within walking distance of this location, as well as the Cathedral of Learning.

Wesley Posvar Hall is the largest classroom building on the campus of The University of Pittsburgh (74,695 sq. ft.). It houses the School of Education, the Social Science Departments, the University Center for International Studies, Undergraduate College of Business and Administration and the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs.

It is located on the former site of Old Forbes Field, home to the Pittsburgh Pirates. A portion of Forbes Field wall remains nearby.

Favorite thing: Mervis Hall is located to the rear of Hillman Library and is part of the University of Pittsburgh. The Joseph Katz Graduate School of Business and other related offices such as the Dean´s office, MBA Programs office, Career Services and the Office of Enrollment Management and classrooms are located here.

Mervis Hall is within walking distance of the Univ. of Pgh. campus, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Carnegie Library, Hillman Library and the Cathedral of Learning.

Favorite thing: Duquesne offers a 40 acre campus complete with tree-lined walkways in a park-like, hilltop setting. This is a Catholic university whose mission is ¨to serve God by serving students, by committing to excellence in liberal and professional educations, upholding moral and spiritual values in the church and in its commitment to the community and the world´´.

The residence halls, academic buildings and recreation areas are all within easy walking distance. The McNulty College and Graduate School of Liberal Arts, School of Nursing, School of Law, Mylan School of Pharmacy and Cyril H. Wecht Institute of Forensic Science and Law are only a few of the schools comprising the university.

Fondest memory: Since we would be staying with friends, we wanted to take them out for dinner but the brewery I wanted most to visit, The Church Brew Works, was quite pricey. As chance would have it, our friends wanted to take us out for dinner, to one of my favorite US lager producers, Penn Brewing. It was a tough choice for me as I had always wanted to go to The Church Brew Works and their beers are not available outside of the brewpub. Penn Brewing beers, on the other hand, are readily available even in my home state of Florida. Since going to both brewpubs would have been greedy on my part and they insisted on taking us to dinner, we went with their second choice, Primanti Brothers. This great Pittsburgh institution is the best pizza parlor in town. We are lucky to have two of them in our native hometown of Fort Lauderdale, the only place outside of Pittsburgh to have any outposts.

The evening went really well and we hit if off grandly even though D had only met my old friends once at a wedding a few years earlier. Unfortunately, my buddy from high school is a pilot and was flying that night so could not have a beer and had to leave after dinner but his wife was more than happy to drive us to The Church Brew Works. This brewpub turned out to be disappointing and we actually passed by Penn Brewing with a sign for its Oktoberfest. Our friend explained it's the best time of year to visit the brewery and if there fine Germanic beers are any indication, I'm sure the food is great, hardy, and they put on a great Fest. I silently kicked myself for not choosing the old standby rather than exploring new uncharted territory. She offered to stop in for a beer but I knew I had pushed the limits of my beer loving as far as I could or should with my very understanding wife. But next time, I go with the tried and true. I go with Penn Brewing. I go with the German. After all, that's who I came with