A month ago, my husband, middle child, and I traveled to Indianapolis for a mini-vacation. I had told my daughter she could choose where to go (within driving distance) and after a little online research, she discovered that Indianapolis has one of the top-rated zoos in the country. Who knew? Well, now we know what a great American city it is. So walkable! We stayed right downtown and only had to get into our car one day to visit the art museum, which was so fantastic, I will do a separate post just for that. For now, here are some views on foot:
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| This area is called White River State Park. There are sculptures all along the walkway and there is a large green space for outdoor concerts. Jason Mraz was performing one of the nights we were there. |
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| We walked along the pedestrian bridge in the park to get to the zoo. Looking back was a great view of Lucas Oil Stadium. |
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| There is also a 3 mile walk along the canal from the river headed north. See the skywalk? We were impressed that there were skywalks connecting most of the major hotels downtown to the convention center and other government buildings. We had beautiful weather while we were there, but did try the skywalks one evening on our way to dinner. Walked a mile and never had to take a step outside! |
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| More canal walk. There were office buildings and a few museums along the way, but further north, it was all condos and apartments. The only thing that was missing were restaurants/coffee shops along the canal. We only saw two, which was surprising. Tons of joggers passed us on our evening walks. |
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| State Capitol |
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| Pedal boats on the canal |
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| We did not visit the Eiteljorg (Native American) museum, or the Indiana State Museum, but I loved this sculpture. |
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| We spent an entire day at the zoo. These macaws flew over us during a show in the pavilion. |
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| There is a 15 minute dolphin presentation that you get a free pass to attend with admission to the zoo. The zoo makes a very big deal about conservation and sustainability. Many of the animals in the zoo have been rescued. |
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| The zoo also has a huge butterfly conservatory/garden. I loved these frogs! |
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| I learned that Indianapolis is also called 'Circle City.' In the center of the city is Monument Circle, which we visited on our last evening. It was impressive! |
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| This is the fountain on the other side of the monument. It was a truly enjoyable Midwest trip! |
I am very familiar with Indianapolis, having visited there many times while working for a company whose U.S. headquarters were there. I have to admit, I did not think much of the city then, but this was quite a while ago (20 years now) and judging by your pics, either a lot has changed or I just never went to the right places! Other than the Indy 500 track, I don't think I did much exploring while there. Looks like I might have missed out!
ReplyDeleteI think Indy has reinvented itself in the last 20 years, like many Midwestern cities. The younger crowd wants to live in the city, not the suburbs. If you build it, they will come!
DeleteLooks like a nice city, the canal is really cool.
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone else still say cool? My age is showing...make that awesome.
ReplyDeleteYou're good, Joe! It was a cool city!
Delete"So walkable! We stayed right downtown and only had to get into our car one day to visit the art museum, which was so fantastic."
ReplyDeleteYes, and that's what I love about living in a city. I love not having car and being able to walk everywhere. Not only is it convenient, but it's also healthier!
LOVE the photographs you shared! How cool is that skywalk over the canal!!!! What a fantastic shot of the State Capitol! Your photo of the dolphin presentation is wonderful. It actually looks like a painting!
Monument Circle looks amazing!
Okay, now you've got me SO curious to visit Indianapolis because it looks like such a COOL city!
Thanks so much for sharing, my friend!
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P.S. Again, great photographs!!!!!
Thanks, Ron! It's so nice to be able to walk everywhere, especially when you are unfamiliar with the area. Less stressful than driving, plus you can see more on foot.
DeleteYou remind me of the time (10 years ago; yeef!) a bunch of midwestern blogger-types got together in Indy for a weekend. My reaction was very similar to yours - I had no idea that it was such a clean, modern, cosmopolitan city. Our hotel was right downtown (we could see the capitol from our window), and we walked around Monument Circle at midnight! Not many big cities where you could do that!
ReplyDeleteBefore that trip, all I thought about Indy was the speedway and the 500 (which I went to back in '84, but that's a different story. . .)
I think that was around the time I started blogging. Was FADKOG and FTN there? I could totally see walking around that area at midnight with no issue! As a kid, all I knew was the Indy 500 took place there. I think we might have driven through or around the area once or twice, but that was it.
DeleteFTN and his wife were there; FADKOG couldn't make it, but we did get her on the phone over dinner. Tajalude, 2amsomewhere (who's actually from Indianapolis), RS (Recovering Soul) and his wife, who blogged as Therese in Heaven, and a couple others whom I can't recall. . .
DeleteThat was a good turn out! I recognize Therese and Tajalude's names.
DeleteWow, that was impressive that so much was accessible to see without having to drive to it! Looked like a great place to visit with lots to do too! I wouldn't have thought of Indianapolis this way based on what little research I did of the area based on someone that had an extended visit here from there. I was led to believe that it was not a thriving place with not much to do there. I'm glad you visited and blogged about it to change my perspective.
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Hi Betty! Did the person live there a while ago? There was definitely plenty for tourists to do and a thriving downtown with a huge convention center and restaurants. I don't know what is headquartered there or what the suburbs are like. I did a college visit about 30 minutes north of there with my oldest back in 2007 and thought it was a lovely area.
Deletehaha oh those frogs would be fun to have indeed. A mile and not go outdoors is very impressive. Sounds like the zoo lived up to the expectation and you found a lot along the way. Win indeed.
ReplyDeleteThe frog fountain was fabulous! Every place we visited was neat and clean, which is not always the case in a downtown location.
DeleteNice! Sure looks like a good time. I love the statues and all the different places to go see there.
ReplyDeleteIt was fun to discover a new city!
DeleteWish i would have seen this sooner, Queenie and Sensible just stayed the night there on their way to Colorado .... they're on an epic adventure for Sensible's 30th and hitting sites along the way ......
ReplyDeleteWell, I hope you post about their adventures!
DeleteI would if I knew what they was. As it is I'm just the guy who stayed home to make the money and feed the varmints. ;-)
DeleteHopefully they'll post some to Facebook when they get back, maybe I can copy from there!!
That is a very cool sculpture of the deer. They really look like they are splashing through the water.
ReplyDeleteI did not know about the canals in Indianapolis. If I lived there, I'd want to walk along them all the time.
Aren't the deer majestic? I loved that. And for sure, I'd take advantage of that canal walk all the time.
DeleteJenny and I are fond of zoos as well, even though the animals are sometimes kept in very restrictive and unnatural conditions. Good to know a lot of the animals at Indianapolis Zoo are rescued.
ReplyDeleteI love the sculpture (I discovered it's Whitetail Deer by Kenneth R Bunn). I love the sense of energy and movement, with the deer leaping in all directions. Indianapolis looks like an interesting place.
Zoos have not had good reputations, but it's good to find some whose goal is education and conservancy. That's great that you found the artist online!
DeleteGreat photos, Bijoux. I was in Indianapolis briefly but only to go and from the airport. These pictures showed me just how much I missed and how much I need to go back soon.
ReplyDeleteIf you ever make it back, you will be impressed!
DeleteThat's really pretty along the canal, and the skywalks are brilliant. That has to make it so much more pleasant to get around downtown when the weather is bad. The zoo looks great. I love that so many of the animals are rescues.
ReplyDeleteNice photos. It looks like a wonderful place to visit. Sky walk, canal, monuments...etc. And dolphins... love! The art museum must have been amazing too.
ReplyDeleteThat's really beautiful. Like you said, who knew? There's something about the Midwest that's so wholesome and appealing.
ReplyDeleteI love walkable cities with nice downtowns. Great pictures! And I bet those skywalks are great in the wintertime!
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