Welcome Back, Point State Park fountain!

Invitation to the reopening ceremony on Friday night. 

I think it's fair to say that all of Pittsburgh is rejoicing now that the Point State Park fountain is finally complete! After a project that went into the planning stages in 2001, yesterday brought to close a highly anticipated and historical event. The fountain is not only fully renovated, but it's bigger and better than ever. The water from the fountain rises in a column up to 150-feet with smaller columns on the sides. A ceremony, dedication and the first 'official' flip of the switch happened last night to mark the beginning of the Three Rivers Arts Festival and the beginning of a new Pittsburgh.

Although the ceremony started about a half hour late and then at least seven people were asked to speak on behalf of the organizations who made this restoration happen, the fountain went off without any difficulty and made quite the splash on said speakers and other dignitaries thanks to a big gust of wind. Clearly the fountain was just showing them all who everyone really came to see. Good show, fountain.

Entrance way to the Point.

Brass band playing during the beginning of the ceremony.

Color guard during the National Anthem, sung by the CLO Mini-Stars.

In case you wondered what 150 feet of water looks like.

After the ceremony, the Arts Fest, also being held through the rest of the week at Point State Park, officially started. More to come about that on Tuesday. And as the sun went down over the city, a light show on the fountain began.

The Pittsburgh-based company, Lightwave International, debuted "Pittsburgh: Spectral Ascending" a collaboration with artist, Yvette Mattern. The light installation consists of six laser projectors on the top of PPG Place, aimed right to the center column of the fountain. The light installation will be show again tonight and Sunday night, so you still have a chance to make it out and see the new plaza area around the fountain, as well as the fountain itself and the light show, all while enjoying all of the fun that comes with the Arts Fest as well.

Photo by my beautiful friend, Breanna Elison.

Waiting for the light show to begin. Photo by Breanna Elison.

Isn't this such a fantastic photo? Lights on top of PPG Place beaming down to the fountain. Photo by Breanna Elison.

Lights on the fountain. Perfect ending to a beautiful night. Photo by Breanna Elison.

For my out of town readers, you may be asking why a fountain is so important. But it's not just any old fountain. Point State Park, and this fountain specifically, are the point were the three iconic rivers of Pittsburgh meet. Basically, where all the rivers merge into each other is the spot where the fountain is placed. The layout of Pittsburgh is obvious because of this point and the scenery of the city just didn't look complete for the past few years without the fountain adding to the view. It's a tourist attraction and a local favorite.

And as one of the speakers said, Pittsburgh is no longer a city in transformation, it is a city transformed. Or something close to that. The rebuilding and unveiling of the Point fountain just brings that idea home. We've waited for this to be back and now we can enjoy it for many years to come. It is as iconic as our bridges and adds that missing element to our landscape. Welcome back, fountain!

Fashion Forward Fridays: Highway Robbery!

Fear not about me not doing Fashion Forward Fridays anymore just because I don't live downtown anymore, I planned ahead for you guys. Like a real blogger! Anyway, today I am featuring a little vintage shop on Carson Street that I've had a crush on for awhile. Highway Robbery.

Highway Robbery features both women's and men's vintage items and while the women's collection is more expansive, the men's seem to hold the attention of a male just long enough before the "I'm bored of shopping" nerve kicks into their system. This is a proven fact, since I've only ever gone in there with a guy friend with me and they all start to wander aimlessly at about the same time.

Kate Colussy, the owner of Highway Robbery calls this, and her style, Vintage Casual, and Kate has the fashion background to know what's up. She's worked in everything from retail to styling for movies and now, Highway Robbery. This store is just what you're looking for if current trends with bold vintage statements is your style. Or you could wear vintage all over, but the pieces in this store make a statement, so wear them with confidence!

Highway Robbery

Price:

$$

(Moderate & up)

Location:

1411 E. Carson Street, Pittsburgh

Store Hours:

Monday - Saturday: 12pm - 8pm

Sunday : 12pm - 5pm

Il Pizzaiolo in Market Square

As I mentioned in my "last" Pittsburgh weekend post, MJ took me to the newest restaurant in Market Square that weekend, Il Pizzaiolo. While Il Pizzaiolo has another location in Mt. Lebanon, this new location downtown fits in perfectly with the revival of Market Square and should be on your list of places to try in Pittsburgh.

Il Pizzaiolo is a traditional Neapolitan restaurant that uses high-quality, fresh ingredients and uses the "old-world" techniques of cooking. Simply meaning that if you order a pizza, you'll have it in front of you in 90 seconds and it will be better than any typical pizza place. Trust me on this, MJ is a pizza connoisseur and he was melting over this dish. I, of course, got a dish that took more time to prepare, so we waiting about a minute longer than had we both ordered pizzas.

Outside Il Pizzaiolo in Market Square - between Moe's and Starbucks.

Now, don't think this restaurant is just another pizza place. Far from it. It's just that they cook it, along with everything else, in the Neapolitan ways. They have an extensive, and sometimes hard to pronounce, menu that is sure to please the youngest to the oldest in your family. Also, the wait staff is well versed in everything that the menu has on it and they will pronounce it all beautifully for you. And while MJ knew how to say everything on the menu...that's what you get when your boyfriend has a music degree...if he can sing in ten different languages, he can certainly tell you what a menu item is. But, in case you don't have an MJ within your reach, don't worry, the staff is very pleasant and will help you make the right decisions based on your taste.

In the downtown location, there is a small outdoor seating area, typical to the Market Square vibe, and inside, a full bar and seating areas on two floors. But if you're closer to the Mt. Lebanon location, not to worry. The outside dining area there is actually bigger and they also have what they call the Enoteca, which is an intimate wine bar above the patio with romantic and relaxing fireside seating. I know the atmosphere alone just sold you, so stop into one of these locations and I promise you will have a truly wonderful and unique dining experience.

Goodbye 7000B

Now that I am no longer living in the previously mentioned "perfect apartment" I feel like I can talk about it, without, you know, feeling like a stalker might come and find me. Paranoia is real you guys. Said apartment was located in Penn Commons, right in the heart of downtown Pittsburgh, and I loved it.

Closet and bed area of my room

To be honest, leading up to me moving in there two years ago, I was nervous as hell. On their website, as you'd be able to easily find out, they have no closets, all of the apartments are shared and they only rent to students. I knew for one, it was going to be hard for me to live without a closet; but also that I really wanted my own space and not feel like I was a child. Well. The no closet business, I got over pretty easily, as you can see what I did instead. However, this is definitely a place for students.

While I knew that this was considered "student housing" before moving in, I didn't realize and wasn't told about some of the strict rules surrounding alcohol and visitation, which if you're interested in those rules, feel free to let me know and I'll let you in on it all. However, despite the rules, this place was still amazing. Management actually cared and knew each tenant, maintenance was fast and very knowledgeable and helpful and the 24-hour security seemed to genuinely care about our well-being. The lead security guard will forever remind me of Ice-T so trust me, you're safe.

Monday Nights at Club Cafe

Club Cafe - located at 56 South 12th Street in the South Side

If you've been reading my blog for awhile, you know that my brother, Eric, is a music man. Last Tuesday, he talked me into joining him at one of his weekly outings and we went to Club Cafe (one of my favorite Pittsburgh bars) for AcoustiCafe. Which is a weekly open mic for local musicians. And although, I like to sing and am considered the more extroverted sibling, I could never, ever, ever see myself participating in an open mic night, but Eric does it pretty much every week! Guts, man.

We stayed for almost all of the acts last Tuesday, only heading home early because I was still deep into packing mode, and I have to say, as always, I am so impressed by the talented people of this city. Although AcoustiCafe is usually on Monday nights, because it was Memorial Day last Monday, they moved it to Tuesday and had the theme of "Things that make Jocelyn happy" since Jocelyn is one of the main bartenders and it was her birthday.

Eric singing & supporting the Pirates at the same time!

Broken Fences just back from their European tour.

Jimbo Jackson & the house band. Love me a soulful male singer. (Why do you think I date MJ?)

Overall, great event. Great vibe and drinks as always at Club Cafe and I suggest you check it out, since what do you have better to do on a Monday night? Although I will warn you, if you are not participating, you will possibly more than likely feel like an American Idol judge. Or, at least I did. With Eric, of course being the clear winner and Broken Fences and Jimbo Jackson coming in super close runner-up positions.