US VISIT 3 - PITTSBURGH - 774

               US VISIT 3 - PITTSBURGH 

Long Weekend for both my Son and DIL and the kids Adhvay and Akshatha had us all heading for Pittsburgh from Ajax in Toronto. Pittsburgh is  the of Pennsylvania State of The US which involved going through the State of New York on entering the US .


On Our way in an  Odyssey 

The distance involved covering of  600 Kms with Pitstops for you know what at 2 or 3 places was what we had planned so as to make it around 2.30 pm at Pittsburgh - Washington  . Americans like to refer to the distance in Miles . All their Billboards mention the distance along the Highways in Miles and speed limits are also in MPH only . 

In case you are wondering as to why Pittsburgh as a place of visit  ? It has the largest Balaji Temple in The US and Devotees from both the US and Canada Visit this place in large numbers regularly .

We started from Ajax at 6.30 am and  headed for the Border Cross Over Check Post near the Niagara Falls .

Being Canadian Citizens my Son and family had  no problems but we both holding Indian Passports  but  Canadian Permanent Residents with Valid US Visas had our own apprehensions . The stories of Traveller's from our part of the World facing many a problem at the Border Checkpost  kept doing the rounds in our minds .

Surprisingly , the Lady Officer on Duty was most Courteous and after looking at our Passports and enquiring about the purpose of our Visit wished us a Happy Time and waved us through . ( This was in Sharp Contrast to my last experience at the same place while on a visit to New York ;  where documents were checked and in person identification was done and many questions asked  before the visa was stamped and entry allowed ) The whole process this time took less than 5 Minutes and we were in the New York State in less than 2 Hours from the time we had started from Ajax which included a Half our halt at the Duty Free Shop on the Canadian Side of the Border , RAINBOW BRIDGE , QUEENSTON -LEWISTON  BRIDGE .




The Drive around the countryside was quite pleasant as it was not a particularly hot day, We had soon crossed over into the Pennsylvania State and headed for Pittsburgh .

 The stop for Breakfast at Angola Service Center with its unique elevated Glass Panelled Pathway  across both sides of the Highway with Eateries in the Middle was a Welcome Break . The Stink  from the place earmarked for our specially for our Canine Friends accompanying their masters was discomforting though .



View from Glass Pathway of the Highway Below 



       Angola Service Center near Buffalo 

The kids had a great time watching Madagascar 1 and 2 and Harry Potter on the Car Screen with Cookies and Biscuits doing the rounds often , 

We reached our place of stay at  Marriott Springfield at Pittsburgh - Washington at 2.30 PM as planned . Our visit to the Balaji Temple was slated  for later in  the evening . More about it soon .



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