Two Days Was Not Enough in "Surprising" Pittsburgh, Blogs Lonely Planet US Travel Editor

Pittsburgh has gained yet another fan in Robert Reid, U.S. Travel Editor of the Lonely Planet franchise and author of dozens of travel books, who writes in his "Reid on Travel" blog that a two-day visit to this "surprising" city was not long enough.

"We found a Pittsburgh that's outgrown its first syllable," he writes. "Curling about three rivers below forested hills, the surprising 251-year-old city has quietly prettied itself up the past decade. Gone are (most) of the smokestacks, replaced with shimmering new buildings, a slew of public art in the form of four-floor-high murals, 14-foot-fish-on-a-stick and heated water sculptures that trickle all year."

Reid and his family walked around the city, talked to the friendly denizens, crossed the bridges, ate in the restaurants, ventured to Fallingwater and watched boats cruising on the rivers.

"I live for moments like these -- complete surprises in unexpected places," Reid writes. "The essence of travel. I love going to towns and imagining myself a local. Scrolling classifieds for apartment rent rates, passing through neighborhoods to find one for myself, like Pittsburgh's gorgeous Georgetown-style townhouses on quiet shady lanes of the Mexican War Streets historic district (without a doubt my favorite neighborhood name in the USA)."

Thanks for the attention, Robert!

Read the full blog post at http://tinyurl.com/koawxs