I never saw my hometown until I stayed away too long.

— Tom Waits, “San Diego Serenade”

What is it about the human condition that makes us think that the answers are always somewhere else? As the late humorist Jean Shepherd noted, for every American who believes that Australia is the place where he’ll finally find happiness, there’s a guy in Brisbane thinking that, “If only I could get to New York, I’d really have it made.”

Surely a little separation gives us a certain perspective on what we had — James Joyce did his best writing about Ireland while living in France, and August Wilson based most of his plays in Pittsburgh, despite living in Seattle. But what about making the most of things while you’re there?

We hope that this special travel and entertainment section will help you to do just that. Instead of looking around the globe for the usual travel destinations, we wanted to highlight places and activities you can enjoy with your significant other or your family right here in Western Pennsylvania.

Whether making an all-day date of a trip Downtown, taking a weekend getaway to a ski resort or bed and breakfast, or enjoying a drink at one of the coolest nightspots in Peters, we’re sure you’ll find something that catches your interest. And you might just walk away with a new appreciation for your hometown.

Falling For Fallingwater

Frank Lloyd Wright’s spectacular country house creation at Bear Run has been proclaimed the “Best all-time work of American architecture” by no less an authority than the American Institute of Architects. Built for the Edgar Kaufmann family in 1937, Wright located the house over a waterfall instead of beside it. Anywhere you stand in the house, you’ll hear the gurgling water. Glistening flagstone floors, nautical-inspired furnishings, cantilevered construction. Lloyd’s favorite color? Cherokee red. It even coats the massive kettle in the fireplace.

Tourists visit from around the world. Open throughout the summer and winter (weather permitting). Tickets to the grounds or house tours. Café and store at the visitors’ center.

Directions: Take I-76 E to exit 91 (Donegal). L on 31E, R on 381S. 19 miles. 1-724-329-8501

Noble Woodlands of Nemacolin

Built by the founder of 84 Lumber, Nemacolin Woodland is a luxury resort where you can golf, luxuriate in a Japanese spa, take a Hummer assault course drive, wander into car and airplane museums, or sit by an Olympic-scale pool modeled after the pools that graced the hotels on the Riviera. Then enjoy lunch at an American fusion restaurant or dinner at an award-winning French restaurant. Tip: Visit Falling Rock Lodge. Its scale will take your breath away.

Directions: 70 miles from Pittsburgh. Take route 51 South to route 40 East to Farmington. 1-800-422-2736

Oglebay’s Acres of Fun and Fantasy

Just an hour’s drive east of Pittsburgh is Oglebay, a magnificent resort nestled in West Virginia’s northern panhandle. Oglebay’s 1,750 acres of meadowland, forests, lodges and streams stretch over the outskirts of the town of Wheeling.

A recently completed renovation of the main lodge has heightened Oglebay’s attraction as both a center for business conventions (it is now fitted with high-speed internet access and wi-fi compatibility) and for families. With an almost unbelievable range of outdoor and indoor fun options, from several first-class golf courses to a children’s zoo, horse riding, numerous hiking trails, fitness centers and swimming pools, Oglebay has a little of everything to offer.

Oglebay’s renowned Winter Festival of Lights (November and December) will thrill the kids and the award-winning restaurants will attract the adults. Rooms, suites and lodges have been refurbished to provide a higher level of comfort (every room now offers a flat-screen TV) whether a family stays for a weekend or a week. Tip: Visit the amazing Glass Museum.

Enjoy the arboretums and flower exhibitions, swim in heated pools, read in the comfort of the library, have a drink in the bar. Even the deer are tame here. Directions: I-79 South to I-70 West. 1-800-624-6988

The Seven Sensual Sensations of Seven Springs

Magnificent skiing. From beginners’ hillocks to advanced slopes to double black diamond sheer gradients, Seven Springs offers Pittsburghers more skiing than an Olympic Village — 13 slopes in all (one with a 750-foot vertical drop). For the non-skier, the wealth of winter activities rewards the visitor. From snow-tubing to snow-boarding to sleigh rides to snow-shoeing, enjoying the crisp outdoors is a thrill in itself.

If your penchant is buffet-style dining or you prefer a quiet dinner in high style, Seven Springs caters to every culinary inclination. The seafood buffet is so popular it attracts diners from out-of-state (Tip: don’t wait to be seated. Go for the lobster immediately!). Helen’s restaurant has a wine cellar to rival Pittsburgh’s finest establishments.

Panoramic window, comfortable armchairs, roaring fire. A romantic evening spent watching the night skiing with a couple of frothy Irish coffees.

Rent a condominium for the weekend or a room in the lodge, either way we’re talking luxury. Plan ahead and you could ensure a breathtaking view of the mountains. 385 hotel rooms, 12 suites, 10 chalets.

Take a break and get into the shopping mode. Of course there’s every thing a skier needs (including very stylish outfits to suit every pocket), in addition to culinary delicacies and all manner of souvenirs. You’ll almost forget to hit the slopes.

If you still haven’t discovered how to relax at Seven Springs, there’s one last option. Massage. Deep muscle-relaxing, mood-changing massage. Along with pedicures, manicures, and hair-styling.

Directions: One hour’s drive southeast of Pittsburgh. Turnpike (I-76 East) to exit 91 (Donegal) or exit 110 (Somerset). 1-800-452-2223

Keeping Up with Kentuck Knob

Just 7 miles south of Fallingwater is another Frank Lloyd Wright house, a Laurel Highlands home now owned by British aristocrat, Lord Peter Palumbo. With its impressive sculpture garden, this is one of Wright’s most harmonious architectural designs. Huge horizontal living room, octagonal kitchen, unique recessed lighting. Tickets to house tours. Magnificent view of the Highlands from the grounds.

Directions: Take I-76 east to exit 91 (Donegal). Left on 31 East, right on 381 South through Ohio Pyle 4 miles. Right at State Park sign. 1-724-329-1901