Day 13 - Pittsburgh, PA - Cincinnati, OH

After re-packing our very full car (gift shops, people!) we headed off to the South Shore of Pittsburgh to ride the Duquesne Incline up Mt. Washington.  It's an inclined plane railroad that whisks people up 400 feet to the top of the ridge at a 30 degree angle.  It was built in 1877 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  When you step inside, you can tell it's antique, which adds to its charm.  It looks like a mini San Francisco trolley with carved wood, colored glass, and a swinging lantern hung from the ceiling.  The views of downtown Pittsburgh from Mt. Washington are quite wonderful.  It was hazy today, but the city still shined brightly.  We also walked to a recently installed sculpture called "Points of View" which depicts a moment in time between Guyasuta, a Seneca tribe leader, and George Washington.  Both men played pivotal roles in Pittsburgh and southwestern Pennsylvania's history before and after the Revolutionary War.  I admit that Pittsburgh has never made my "to-visit" list, but after being there, I've decided that I must return.  It's got gorgeous architecture, fascinating history, and tons of things to see and do.

Our next destination was a place we found 10 years ago when we went white water rafting in West Virginia.  The Blenko Glass Company has operated in Milton, WV since 1921 and they make hand-blown glass vases, pitchers, glasses, even architectural bricks.  It was even recently featured on a PBS special.  10 years ago we kind of stumbled upon it, but fell in love when we did.  Even thought it was a bit out of our way, we knew we had to visit on this trip too.  All of us found treasures we wanted to take home and due to our current amount of items in the car, we opted to have them shipped home, where we'll get to gawk at them again when they arrive.  We also wandered over into their factory where we saw artisans working on two different types of molds.  Even though we were a good distance back from the factory floor, the heat was still very noticeable and I marveled that the artists only wore protective gloves, t-shirts, and shorts.  If you're ever in western West Virginia, be sure to stop by, even if just to look at their amazing works of art!

After a really nice dinner stop in Portsmouth, OH, we've now settled into our Hampton Inn in northeast Cincinnati.  We are going to the Cincinnati Reds vs. San Diego Padres game tomorrow afternoon before we buzz down to Louisville.  As we near the end of our journey, we've come across a gem of a hotel.  The room is exquisite as is the hotel itself, even if the 4th floor was a little eerily quiet earlier when I went to the vending machine.