Downtown from the North Side

Chunks of ice drift by in the Ohio in this view of downtown Pittsburgh from the Carnegie Science Center.

Flowers in Winter

An unusually mild and wet winter so far: though January has come, there are still flowers blooming here and there, as these pot marigolds (Calendula officinalis) in Bellevue. That will probably change as cold weather moves in over the next few days.

Nutcrackers at Phipps

The Winter Flower Show at Phipps Conservatory has a Nutcracker theme this year. But, as usual, it’s just an excuse to show off mounds of Poinsettias and countless other flowers. After you’ve taken in the Poinsettias, you might want to look out for the various other species of Euphorbia that the gardeners have sprinkled through the displays as a sort of botanical in-joke.

This delightful miniature Victorian conservatory can be found in the Orchid Room.

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Sometimes the scenes in the garden railroad (in the South Conservatory) repay a closer look.

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This is the first time old Pa Pitt has seen a clock with a frame made of succulents.

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In the Broderie.

Tenth Street Bridge

The Tenth Street Bridge reflected in the unusually placid Monongahela.

Duquesne University

“Built on a bluff and operated on the same principle”—that was the slogan Peter Leo proposed for Duquesne University. Here we see the campus from the twenty-third floor of the Grant Building downtown.