Hoofin' It in Indy--TRIP 3 (2012)

As we walked along the White River State Park trails, the
high rises of Indianapolis reflected in the river.

Oh, the irony!  All the set-up activity in Shiller Park yesterday was in preparation for today's 3:00 p.m. visit by President Barack Obama. That was just about the time we strolled there yesterday. Visitors were invited to enter the park at 2 p.m. today, but we could only imagine the excitement.
And, last night three dorms on the Ohio State University campus had to be evacuated for an underground water main break. We had driven past them in the afternoon.
And, a truck drove full speed into the front of the Board of Education building in a town adjoining Columbus. We had passed nearby in the early afternoon.
Guess we are just magnets for action!
It's Monday, a work day, and the semi-trucks have taken to the road.

An American bison made of barbed
wire stood guard outside the zoo.

Unusual sculptures graced
the plazas in
White River State Park.

The drought is somewhat more evident in Indiana, where corn has already been harvested or fields of corn stalks stand dry and undernourished. Otherwise, the farmland seems healthy and fertile with bright green patches of soy beans and huge expanses of yellow goldenrod.
We parked in the garage across from the National Institute for Fitness and Sports near the Canal Walk and the NCAA national headquarters in Indianapolis.
For the next three and a half hours, we walked the city of Indianapolis, stopping to browse, read the signs on sculptures and art, and sip coffee at Starbucks across from the 1861 Indiana War Memorial downtown.

A bustling downtown Indianapolis
centers around the State Capitol.

Sights included the Capitol Building, the White River State Park, the Eiteljorg American Indian Museum native gardens, the Veterans Memorial Monument Circle, the path along the Indianapolis City Zoo and the Indiana Convention Center.
At Monument Circle downtown, employees from the Engledon Group handed out free indoor plants to passersby. Men in business suits and women in high heels, some carrying three or four pots of healthy ivy plants and lush green dracenas, dashed in every direction.  "Use them to brighten your office," called out one of the Engledon volunteers.
"So what are you going to do with these?" Andy wanted to know.
"They should keep," I told him, "and they were free. You can't pass up free!"
For several miles we followed the Canal Walk as it wound through the downtown. "This reminds me of San Antonio," said Andy, "but without the restaurants and the palm trees."  Then we headed back to the car.
"We're going to explore here," said Andy, pulling to the curb at Veterans Memorial Plaza with its Indiana War Memorial

  The Indiana Civil War Memorial marks
the heart of the city.

"You mean, we aren't going to sit for a minute?" I begged.
"Okay, a minute," he agree. "We'll walk here an hour or so, and then we'll go to the motel."
We put two quarters in a meter on North Street and walked a couple blocks in each direction to the American Legion Mall and national headquarters and the Scottish Rite Cathedral on one side and Veterans Memorial Park, the Indiana World War Memorial and University Park on the other side of North Street.
At the top of the 91 stairs of the Soldiers and Sailors Monument, Andy said, "Take a picture from way up here, send it to Drew and Tara and tell them, 'This is what your father is making me do!'" We had climbed 91 stairs to the first outdoor landing. The top of the monument was 333 stairs, but the entrance was closed.
No sooner had I sent out the text, but Drew wrote back, "No sympathy from me!"

River Walk provides an asset to the Indianapolis community.

I should sleep well tonight. We walked at least nine miles. At 3:20 p.m., when we climbed back into Little Red and had just turned the key in the ignition, rain drops dotted the windshield. Exhaustion had set in, and it was perfect timing.