Detour to Southwestern Pennsylvania -- March 26th -- Day 14

The most direct way to drive from Buffalo to Indianapolis is to go back along the south shore of Lake Erie to Cleveland, and then head southwest to Columbus and then due west to Indianapolis.  Naturally we didn't go via that route.  Instead, when Robyn reminded us that we were within striking distance of Fallingwater, Wright's most famous design, we decided to take a detour to try to take it in.  Our initial thought was to have a leisurely drive on Tuesday, and then tour the house on Wednesday morning; however when we called ahead to make a reservation we discovered that it is closed on Wednesdays.  As a result, we had to make a hurried trip to catch the last tour of the day,  which meant only a couple very brief stops for gas, lunch, and other necessities.  Built as a summer 'cabin' for a Pittsburgh department store magnate, the house is located in a very remote and hilly area southeast of that city, and of course as soon as we got close, it began snowing.  Notwithstanding the travails of getting there, and a not inconsiderable trek on foot to get to the house itself, the effort was well worth it.  The external views of the house, and especially the one shown here, are spectacular.  That said, my overall impression of the interior spaces was that the house is a nice place to visit but not a one in which we would want to live.  Not wanting the owners to disturb the views with furniture, Wright designed built-in seating along the lower exterior walls, which had the positive effect of allowing unobstructed views of the beautiful outside scenery.  On the other hand, the seats and chairs were so low that if we had been allowed to sit on them, I'm not sure I would have been able to get up.  There were many other interesting and in some instances ingenious design features, too numerous to mention here, and overall we were glad to have made the visit--thanks Robyn for the suggestion.  As we  made the one-hour trip to Pittsburgh the snow showers returned intermittently but didn't pose a real problem.  We checked into our hotel on the north shore of the Allegheny River, which joins with Monongahela to form the Ohio at Pittsburgh.  During the afternoon mad dash Max started to develop a cold, and by the time we got to the hotel it had settled fully in, so other than an unsuccessful trip to try to find an open drug store, we didn't venture out in the evening.