It's November already and has been for over a day now. How did that happen? I've been marking the time by my travel plans (September was Poland, October was GodBlogCon, and November (which was "next month" until yesterday) is Indianapolis), but now those plans are rushing up at me.
In less than two weeks, I'll go to Indianapolis for my non-denominational denomination's National Missionary Convention. I'm not ready yet. I haven't been thinking about it much, beyond getting my plane ticket and making hotel reservations. And now time is short.
I'll be getting there the day before it starts and leaving the day after it ends, so I can get in a little sight-seeing. I don't think I've ever been to Indiana, and the last time I was in the Midwest was 1976, when my family visited relatives in Cleveland and Dearborn.
When I was at GodBlogCon, I learned that John Schroeder of Blogotional was from Indiana, so I grilled him on what I could see while I'm there. He said there's the Indianapolis Zoo, which I'll probably skip in the interest of time and because I was spoiled growing up with the San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park. He mentioned the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum, the Museum of Art and Eiteljorg Museum of Western Art, with both art museums downtown. And he said I should definitely consider having some steak at St. Elmo's Steak House, which is deliciously close to the Convention Center, where I'll be spending most of my time. It all sounds great. I'll even bet that looking at western art, with all those cows, will stir up an appetite for for a nice thick steak. Mmmm...
Since some of my readers are in the Greater Kokomo area, I asked John what there is to see in Kokomo. He said there's some manufacturing. The staff at Malott's Blog has indicated in the past that the area also has corn. Okaaayyy...
Obviously, John is an Indy-phile, and Malott's Blog is a humble blog (in this regard, anyway), because the Kokomo Indiana Visitors Bureau says, "Kokomo is Loaded With Options! " It Probably Is! They list the Elwood Haynes Museum (inventor of the first horseless carriage in America), the Automotive Heritage Museum, and the Seiberling Mansion. Plus dining out (though I see that a Texas establishment has become lost and has settled there in Kokomo).
I'd like to see Kokomo. The name has a ring to it, and I'd like to be able to say I've been there. More than that, I'd like to meet some of my readers and/or fellow bloggers who live within driving distance of Kokomo. What I enjoyed most about GodBlogCon was meeting other bloggers. The rest of it--the panel discussions, the breakout sessions, and even Hugh Hewitt's radio show broadcast--was just the icing on the cake for me. I'd like to have some more of that cake again.
If you can come to Kokomo Sunday afternoon, November 19, email me (skyepuppy at cox dot net). Bring the family too. We can meet where? Cracker Barrel (we don't have those in California)? Someplace else where we can drag some tables together if we need to? A park?
Please let me know. I need to start making some plans.
4 comments:
I believe I might have gone to the Elwood Haynes Museum when I was in grade school, but I don't think it was a memorable outing.
Do you know just how intimidating it is for a Hoosier - to have a person from California coming to visit Indiana and expecting to be entertained or impressed in any way whatsoever? There is a good reason - no, a very good reason why nobody dreams of visiting Indiana on their vacation.
Nope, I am confident that the best part of your trip India-no-place will be your National Missionary Convention.
However... It is an undeniable fact that Indianapolis has a first-rate Children's Museum. I've been there twice, and loved it every bit as much as the little Philippina that was with me.
May I make a suggestion here? My dear husband took me to Indy for an early birthday present about 2 weeks ago. We stayed downtown in the Radisson (on Monument Circle), watched a Colts game, shopped in Circle Center Mall, and ate at St. Elmo's Steakhouse as our "fancy" dinner.
Skip St. Elmo's. We both came away thinking that it was WAY too expensive and just so-so. There are not many dining options on the menu (particularly if you don't like red meat...though that wasn't a problem here.) We joked on the way there that we could go to Ruths Chris Steakhouse (Way expensive as well), but we didn't want to go home broke. Well, after eating at St. Elmo's, we walked back past Ruths Chris (I might be spelling that wrong) and just looked at the menu posted outside. The prices were almost identical, with tons more choices and probably better food. My vote is to try there, but be forewarned that either place is outrageously expensive. (Think around $50 per person, on average, probably not including dessert or appetizer.)
Oh, also, you can take a horse-drawn carriage ride around downtown, which is fun, but definitely bring your warmest coat. It's cold....really cold, sometimes. Downtown is very quaint and pretty safe to walk around in, and it may be lit up for Christmas by then. The carriage ride is nice.
There is also an Ice-skating rink, if that is something you enjoy. If I think of anything else, I'll pass it along, but that's all that comes to mind right now.
As for Kokomo, well, as Chris said, there really isn't much there that you can't find elsewhere, except for Crackerbarrel, which is one of my very favorites. I would love to get together with you, but on that particular day, I've got to play the piano for church, and considering that we are 2 hours north of Kokomo, it would be somewhat difficult to make it in time, but I'll keep my options open. It would be fun to put a face with your blog, so to speak.
My dear Chris,
I would hope I'm not intimidating. I'm not really a Californian. I just live here. Montana is home to me.
I'm sure you're right that the Missionary Convention will be the highlight of my trip, but that leaves me with almost two days to fill, and sitting in my hotel room staring at the walls is not an option. Even a visit to the unmemorable Elwood Haynes Museum is much better than that.
In the end, I've found that when I travel, it's the people who give meaning to the trip. Te best part of our trip to Poland was the time spent with the people there--conversations over dinner, David's enthusiasm as he had us try the mushroom-filled pierogi-like things that no doubt have an unpronounceable Polish name, or basking in the sunlight on our boat ride around a couple lakes while we talked with David about his plans for the future.
It always comes back not to places and attractions, but to people. And last I heard, Indiana still has a few of them, the heart of our country. I'd like to meet them.
Christina,
You have some great ideas. That "really cold" part reminded me that I haven't checked the weather forecast yet. I should probably bring my heavy wool coat with me.
I've been hoping that maybe, just maybe, you and Andrew (and Miss Em) could come (I know it's quite a drive). If nothing else, I'd love to see the two of you and Chris together (especially after his latest anti-cat post).
On Sunday I'll have to get to the airport to rent a car, then drive up to Kokomo, so I was looking at 2:00ish up there, depending on car rental lines and traffic. I hate to beg, but I'm not above groveling. Let me know what you decide.
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