We recently visited the 9/11 memorial in New York and, returning to Pittsburgh, decided to stop off…read morehere. Visiting the memorials affects everyone differently but anyone who has the chance should visit to learn more about, and in particular, to experience the emotions that accompany this important, tragic, and world-changing point in history.

I had no idea how vast this memorial was before visiting. Of course, it was a very sad visit, but…read moreI'm glad I went. I thought visiting around the 25th anniversary was a good idea. It was nice to see the chalk artist portraits. Apparently, they do that every anniversary, but just the big ones. You're able to walk the entire flight path, which is pretty remarkable. They really did a good job honoring the brave people on Flight 93.

I recently photographed a wedding at the Scenic View. The grounds are really beautiful and the…read morelookout trumps all. There's a tower up a long, winding road, but you don't even need to go up into the tower to see the gorgeous mountain view. The landscape is breathtaking, I'm sure, during any time of the day. But we went up at sunset after a storm and it was nothing short of spectacular. I cannot wait to get back to Penn's Scenic View for the view alone!

Penn's Scenic View is such a beautiful place. My large family would go up every year and rent out…read morethe Stable Lodge there. Of course, I loved being with my family. However, I loved going for walks in the area. It's such an amazing experience. Peace, quiet, utter bliss... what more could you ask for? If you walk up this dirt road, you'll encounter a wooden tower on a hill. If you walk up the tower, you can take in the breathtaking view. A full 360° of trees. It's all picture-worthy. You truly won't be disappointed. You can continue to walk around to discover new things. There's a lake next to the Lakeside Lodge. I would always see weddings take place at the lake from the Stable Lodge. It was really nice to see something like that. Unfortunately, this place is private property. You can't just walk in willy-nilly. We rented out a cabin, that's the only reason we were granted access. The place is being sold. It's up for around $1.3 million dollars. Therefore, we can't rent out the Stable Lodge anymore. The whole place is gated off. I wish I could go back up there, just one last time. It's truly amazing. That place means a lot to me. My family has been going up there since I was a baby, and I'm 17. A lot of memories are kept there. It's also the place where I found myself. I would do whatever I could to go up there just one last time. I want to share the experience with my girlfriend. I would pay that $1.3 million to go back up there. If you're lucky enough to visit the 18 acres of pure scenery, you won't be disappointed for even a second.

Borrowed from the below site:…read more www.mdmountainside.com/listing/george-washingtons-headquarters/2042/#:~:text=The%20Headquarters%20of%20George%20Washington,the%20United%20States%20of%20America. "The Headquarters of George Washington is a historic site, located at 38 Greene Street, in the historic downtown district of Cumberland, Maryland. The centerpiece and primary attraction at the site is a historic log cabin twice occupied by George Washington, the first President of the United States of America. The cabin resides in an area known today as Riverside Park but was originally built about 2 blocks away. The original site is located nearby at 16 Washington Street. The cabin was originally built by General Edward Braddock's men, between 1755 and 1758, for then Colonel George Washington's use during his service in the French and Indian War. He later returned and used it briefly during 1794, then as the Commander in Chief, in order to review the troops gathered to put down the Whiskey Rebellion. This site is notable, as it signifies Washington's first military command. The original site lies on a hill that overlooks Wills Creek and the Potomac River. It was once the location of Fort Cumberland (Maryland) and today, The Emmanuel Episcopal Church (Cumberland, Maryland). The headquarters was part of Fort Cumberland during the French and Indian War, and it is the only building to survive from the original Fort. Though closed to the public, the cabin has windows visitors can peer into and see historical displays and artifacts of what the cabin may have looked like including a bed, desk, and fireplace as well as a life-size wax replica of Washington." If you come here, parking in the area is somewhat tight. During our visit, Greene and Baltimore Streets were under a lot of construction so we parked two blocks away for a buck in a pay lot near Basecamp Coffee. If you're so inclined, you could also park on the other side of the creek at the visitor center and walk over the bridge to get here. We came, read the placards, took a few pictures, walked a short distance to read a few more of the placards that go under 68 but then saw a few loud locals (i.e. homeless-hobo-vagrant) and thought better of going any further. With that said, this is by no means a stop that you're going out of your way for. At best, this is a few minutes passing curiosity just to say that you saw it. If you want something more substantive about Washington's time in the general area as a British officer, the NPS site Fort Necessity is the place. Tons of stuff there that George did including surrendering to the French. www.nps.gov/fone/index.htm

History is worth looking at. This is an interesting spot if you're a Washington fan. Get to know…read morehis early days.

We came on a Sunday and walked the grounds since the museum wasn't open…read more The grounds have a variety of things used during the rescue and descriptions to explain what they are. This was a unique place to visit, and worth the stop if in the area!

I has been a few years since I stopped here last. I guess you could say that a few things have…read morechanged. From the humble beginnings of this site it has grown into a much bigger thing. Yes, for those that will gripe about this, there is now a fee to enter. $7 is not a bad price to visit. This is now a foundation that oversees the care of the site and all the artifacts housed within. $7 is a decent price to pay in order to help maintain everything. I actually enjoyed the museum part of this very much. So much better than before when you showed up and just saw some outside areas with sparse descriptions. Inside there is an ongoing expansion of artifacts that are still trying to find their spots. Yes, it does feel a bit small in here, that is until you realize there is more downstairs as well. Upstairs you will go through a bunch of stuff. Some interactive exhibits, one in particular sticks out. One where you get pick up a telephone receiver and listen to the newscast from the day. It's a bit from a documentary, so it's not the whole thing, you get a snippet. The display cases are many in here, thoughtfully put together. There are uniforms worn on that day. Lunch pails that washed away underground. Tools. Newspaper articles from across the country. Photos. The most notable item upstairs is the capsule used that day to rescue the miners. And then you go downstairs. If you want you can take in a presentation. I did not do this, I did go through the area and look at the artifacts. The most awesome thing is the news van. This news van from WPXI Pittsburgh that covered the story as it was happening. This van wasn't only at the mine rescue site, it also covered the Flight 93 crash. (A little aside here, travel the few miles and visit the Flight 93 Memorial) Then go outside, if you haven't already. Not much has changed outside. The nine trees that were planted for the miners have gotten bigger, kind of overshadowing the nine boulders. It's quite beautiful.

Needed to update some info about my son in relation to his survivor benefits (from his mother's…read morepassing). I was in and out within 15 minutes after a very courteous and professional representative took care of the paperwork. Nice clean building, security guard was very professional...everything went off without a hitch. A great experience dealing with this government agency! Bravo SSA Monroeville!

I found the people that I spoke with to be very nice and helpful. However there is no picture of…read moreour President Trump in the office. All government offices display a picture of the current president in the office! Mr. Obama was prominently displayed when I was there during his administration.

Nice little post office, but the hours are limited (closes at 5pm) and there's no machine available…read moreto buy postage after hours. Priority boxes and shipping labels are all well stocked. The clerks are very serious about credit cards--yours has to be signed or they won't take it. Kind of a pointless rule since you can sign it on the spot and suddenly it's valid. One clerk asked me for two forms of ID since my card wasn't signed--seriously? Is there that much credit card fraud at post offices? Oh well--no other choice here unless you want to go to the next town over!

Absolutely the most personable clerks I've encountered at a Post Office in years!! Most helpful…read moreand courteous. Bedford has a lot to be proud of with it's Postal Service, staff and stocked items!

Located in the Town of Somerset, Somerset Co., PA on the corner of Centre and Union Streets. Built…read more1904-1906 architect was JC Fulton. Sits on 1 acre of land measures 146 ft x 112 ft and 135 ft tall. Made of Indiana Limestone, sits on Sandstone with terra cotta roof and copper dome on center tower. Gorgeous and free to go inside and look around. Beautiful building

I had recently heard that the Somerset County Courthouse is the highest court in all of…read morePennsylvania, elevation speaking. Makes sense as Mt. Davis, highest point in Pennsylvania, lies within Somerset County as well. It is quite the beautiful building, one of the first things you see when you drive into the area, proudly sitting on top of Somerset. Listed on National Registry of Historic Places and part of the Uptown Somerset Historic District basically tells you about the age of the structure. Inside you are greeted by security guards and metal detectors like you find in every government building today. Once you pass the checkpoints you are greeted then by the grand staircase that takes to exactly where you need to be. Three courthouses are housed within; one on the first floor and two on the second floor. All three are grandly ornate and distinct from one another. The biggest of the three is magnificent. I'm no architect, but I can respect the beauty of a nicely laid out building. The staircase is made of marble and splits at mid-level. If you cannot traverse stairs, you will be able to use the elevator in the building. Bathrooms are spread throughout with the main one being on the bottom floor. Also located on the bottom floor is a room with some vending machines, if you are here for an extended period of time that is a good thing to know. Many offices are located here that you would expect to find in a county courthouse. What you can't find in here they do have an annex building located across the street. The county jail is also located across the street. Everything from criminal and civil cases to jury selection happen here. I just so happen to have had the pleasure of serving jury duty and being able to do that here made my civic duty that much easier.

Ok... so at one point everyone will need to go to the DMV... I recently did and I think I figured…read moreit out... wait in line a half hour before the doors open and get an employee to help you before they've dealt with a dozen other people. If you are reading this, good luck to you!!!

I've never been here and had it be slow. This is a huge busy DMV. However, they go relatively…read morequickly considering. It took about an hour to renew my Real ID but only because of the initial wait. Once I was called, the rest of the process was incredibly quick. Staff was mostly friendly and efficient. Clean facility as well with ample parking.

On the way back to Pittsburgh from a trip to Philadelphia, we stopped at the North Midway Travel…read morePlaza along the PA Turnpike for a quick break. It was a brief stop, but overall a positive experience. The North Midway Tavel Plaza is a 24-hour service plaza, located along the PA Turnpike near the town of Bedford. Specifically, it is around mile marker 147, and only accessible from the westbound lanes. There is a sister location, South Midway Service Plaza, located across the road and accessible from the eastbound lanes. This is a smaller plaza, and it has a Starbucks, Subway, 7-Eleven MTO Food Counter, 7-Eleven Convenience Store, and a Sunoco Gas Station. The 7-Eleven and Sunoco operate 24 hours, but the Starbucks and Subway do close overnight. The building itself is open all hours, meaning facilities and other amenities are available at any time. The interior has a center area with a lot of different tables and seating options. The skylights give the seating area an elevated and spacious feel, as they are positioned higher than the rest of the ceiling throughout the space. There are also some massage chairs located near the restrooms. Throughout the space, there are odes to the Turnpike's past with photographs and information on all the walls. There is also the usual free informational booklets and papers on the area, the state, and the offerings of the plaza. We stopped here just before midnight on a Saturday, so only the 7-Eleven and the Sunoco were open. This was fine though, as we were only there to take a quick stop and use the facilities. Given the time of day, it was not at all crowded during our visit. I found the restrooms and space inside to be presentable and clean. Since this was what you would call the "off time" for travelers, I assume the crew cleaned for the day around the time I was visiting. I was overall pleased with the cleanliness of the building. Since it was essentially overnight, the seating area presented like it was closed. I assume tables got moved and flipped in order for proper cleaning, but there were still patrons utilizing tables. So, I am not sure if this area actually closes, or if it was just the way it appeared to my eyes on this particular trip. Everyone we encountered during this stop was kind, friendly, and welcoming. The only true staff we saw were those in the 7-Eleven, but they were pleasant to interact with. We were able to be in and out of the plaza rather quickly, and continue our journey back to Pittsburgh. This was a nice place to take a few minutes and reset for the rest of our travels. I would not recommend stopping here with an extremely large group, or a group that needs a lot of different options for a rest stop, as the size of this plaza is not ideal for that. However, if you need a small snack or just a place to use the restroom, this is a great in-and-out-type stop to do just that. I would recommend stopping at the North Midway Travel Plaza during your next trip along the PA Turnpike!

We stopped here enroute pittsburgh. The car parking line markings are little crazy here. Well…read moremaintained reatrooms and have limited food options subway, 7-Eleven and Starbucks.

Great place... if you don't need to read, study, take out a physical book or do anything that…read morerequires the least bit of concentration. This place is basically a children's playground. Constant running around, screaming, hollering, toddlers putting their hands all over your property, parents not even paying attention. Hardly any books, (what do you think this is, a library??) but plenty of toys and DVDs! Things sure have changed, and nobody seems to know library etiquette anymore. Sure you can reserve a (not sound proof) study room-- kids will continually open the door, people will make loud, obnoxious speaker phone calls right outside the door, the librarians will repeatedly open the door to see if the room is empty- why, because it's quiet? Sorry for trying to work in a quiet space. Sadly, this is the case with most of the libraries in the area. Won't bother anymore. Hopefully this review will save someone the annoyance.

We love the library system! My son is 10 and I have been bringing him to library activities since…read morehe was a toddler. First it was story time, then it was reading to Marvel and Lego club and now he goes to steam activities and much more! We are at the library usually once a week. I love to be able to get audio books to listen to on my commute to and from work.We get movies for free without having to rent them at Redbox and can keep them a whole week! Such a wonderful resource! Thank you so much!