Welcome aboard. This is the first post ever for exploring Pittsburgh through the University of Pittsburgh's Freshman Programs. You will be assigned small groups and be required to go out on the town and see what the haps are. Here are the neighborhoods and areas of interest you can choose from: Squirrel Hill, Shadyside, The Strip, Mount Washington, The South Side (including Southside Works and Carson Street), Bloomfield (Pittsburgh's Little Italy), Lawrenceville, and downtown.
You and your group will need to find a good chunk of time together and take a journey. In order to urge you to get off the 'beaten path' we will brainstorm ways of doing that in class. Think of this as a way to get to know the city a bit, and also to bring back tasty information for the rest of us. Find a park and walk around it (Pittsburgh has the most green space of any major city in the U.S.! Talk to a shop owner about their history (Pittsburgh is an old city with plenty of ghosts and tall tales). Sit in a pizza shop and listen to the rhythms and ways people speak: Pittsburghese. Talk to people. Take pictures. Blog as you if you want. Tell us some stories, some amusing anecdotes and interesting facts. Post some pictures and links and have fun. We will discuss this further in class and it is my hope that we can generate a lively conversation about some of the sites and sounds of an up-and-coming city like Pittsburgh.
