40-Foot Ducky, You're The One....

If you're from around Pittsburgh, then you know the crazy amounts of buzz surrounding The Rubber Duck Project. If you're not, to sum it up for you, about three weeks ago, a giant duck came floating down the Allegheny River and into the heart of downtown, and the hearts of Pittsburghers. How about that for a sappy line.

While I did not get a chance to see this guy up close, just another reason why I'm sad about moving out of downtown, I did get to see him while driving through multiple parts of the city. Here are some of my favorite pictures of him, captured by some of my favorite Pittsburghers. Enjoy!

Photo provided by Tina Richey.

Photo provided by Laura Greenawalt

Photo provided by Lindsay Nicholson

More than likely my favorite picture with the duck, fabulous job, Katie! Photo provided by Katie Funaki

Thanks to The Cultural Trust, this cutie has been in the city and gathering thousands of visitors for about a month, which all started with a huge kickoff party on the Clemente Bridge on September 27th to welcome him. He is part of an art installation by Dutch artist, Florentijn Hofman, and was created "to bring joy to the world and connect people." And I'm pretty certain he's done that here in Pittsburgh.

As of Sunday night, the duck has left The Point, but I'm sure the tons of people who visited him or even heard about him will not forget the joy of that experience. Pittsburgh, the fabulous city that it is, was the first in the United States to host this big guy and I'm sure will miss him the most. After all, he was here with us to celebrate the first Pittsburgh Pirates playoff experience in two decades. 

I'm Finally Writing a Review of Red Beard's

Hey there. About a month ago I mentioned how some friends and I checked out a new restaurant downtown and that I would write a review of it soon. Well, this isn't what I'd consider "soon" but here it is. Red Beard's is now downtown. It is wonderful and you should check it out.

Red Beard's Logo

Red Beard's has another location in Mt. Washington and now that they are located in downtown, around the block from my apartment, I am in love with them. When I went there for the first time, everything was so very new and I was overly excited just because it was a different choice to the downtown options. It was the second day that this location was open, so it still smelled new and the staff was still learning the menu and specials and getting into their flow, so I didn't want to blog about them right away. So I have gone back a couple times now and it is clearly one of my favorite spots for easy dining and late drinks with friends.

The atmosphere downstairs, of course, is very mid-priced bar and upstairs has the more restaurant feel. While the menu is pretty much the typical cuisine you'd expect for a what would be served at a bar, it also has a vibe that is more chic or "clean" in my opinion. Bar food isn't what I normally go for but Red Beard's is able to give you the simplicity of typical bar food with the added ingredients of a local bistro. Since that first visit, the staff seems like a now well-oiled machine, but a machine that is still personable and friendly and welcomes you at the door. Red Beard's in this new location is a great place to be able to get a quick, yet delicious, meal before seeing a show in the Cultural District and the perfect place to celebrate a Pirates or Penguins win after the game. Or if your in the area for any of those things, or just roaming downtown (or Mt. Washington) during the day, stop in and experience it for yourself - I'm sure you'll enjoy it!

So Many Arts!

Well for the past week, downtown has been invaded by people coming to and from the Three Rivers Arts Festival. The festival, which boasts of being one of the biggest of it's kind started on June 1st and will wrap up tomorrow night.

The festival sponsored by Dollar Bank.

All of Point State Park and the Hertz Gateway Center have been taken over by vendors for food and art booths and a great creativity zone for the kids, all while tours are being given of the entire Cultural District. To say the least - this event has entirely taken over my main stomping grounds and is showing the greatest side to downtown.

Ashley Hodder working on "The Catch of the Day." Photo by CityPaper.

The festival which is "Celebrating creativity and promoting environmental responsibility," is doing a great job of keeping people entertained and well fed, all while making sure that everyone in attendance is making conscience efforts to be "green." All throughout the festival, there are trash and recycling containers that are greatly decorated and show how things can be reused, called the 3R's: Reuse, Recycle and Repurpose. As well as a tent dedicated to collecting ideas about how to better Pittsburgh and polling to see how people got to the festival via "The Green Machine" hoping it will all make people more aware of how to be more green! My favorite art was actually not for sale and was a giant fish made out of a bunch of trash that was found in the rivers. It was super cool, but kind of annoying to see the kinds of things people throw in the river without thinking of how it could effect the environment.

Since it's opening, I have been to the festival about three times. The first time was solely to eat, while on Tuesday afternoon it was to see my friends Caleb and Shawn play on the Dollar Bank Stage, which was an awesome experience for them and a great entertainment session for everyone stopping by and then on Thursday to actually take in the whole festival with Eric, who found an awesome digital art print of one of his music idols, Johnny Cash. Although I probably won't be heading down anymore this weekend - if you have yet to head down or just need a bit more family fun in your week, tonight and tomorrow are you last chances to experience it all. Have fun!