No, you have not mistakenly picked up the sports page. This is not about the Indianapolis 500, the greatest spectacle in racing, a mecca each May for automobile enthusiasts and about the only reason many folks know anything about this city.
For a long time the race and the fact that the city is the state capital were just about all I knew about Indianapolis, too–and I’m a native Hoosier. Mostly it was just an oasis of blacktop amid central Indiana’s flat farmland, known by its less than affectionate nickname “Naptown”–it was sleepy and dull.
When I was a kid there just wasn’t much reason to visit. That was a few decades ago, but recently business and family have prompted me to make several visits. I found that Indy, as its fiercely proud residents call their hometown, had reinvented itself.
It is now the nation’s 12th largest city, bigger than San Francisco, Boston or Washington. I found wonderful museums, terrific hotels, a new downtown mall with fine shopping, and a steakhouse to rival anything in Chicago or Manhattan.
Remember Indiana’s state motto: “Crossroads of America.” Sooner or later you’re going to find yourself near here, and I offer this advice: Plan a couple of extra days for Indy.
Like a lot of American cities, Indianapolis’ downtown went into decline during the 1960s and 1970s. Like a lot of cities, Indy has tried to revitalize its downtown. Unlike a lot of cities, Indy actually appears to be succeeding.
About $3 billion in public and private money has been poured into downtown improvements in the last 20 years. New since any of my childhood visits are the RCA Dome, home to the thriving NFL Colts, and Union Station, the refurbished 1888 structure that was one of the nation’s first railway depots and now is brimming with shops and restaurants.
There’s the seven-year-old Eiteljorg Museum of American Indian and Western Art, one of the few museums of that sort this side of the Mississippi. Its collection, worth more than $40 million, includes works by such well-known artists as Georgia O’Keeffe and Frederic Remington.
And, because benefactor Harrison Eiteljorg, a local industrialist and philanthropist, so respected American Indians, there are no scenes of battles between Indians and white men; he always preferred to stress harmony among people. Which, incidentally, is a Hoosier trait.
Also downtown is a soon-to-open ballpark where Indy’s AAA team, the Indians, will play. It’s designed by the same folks who did Camden Yards in Baltimore and Jacobs Field in Cleveland.
There’s a collection of excellent hotels. I’ve used the Hyatt for several stays for several reasons, among them: It’s got a way cool fountain in its atrium lobby, it’s connected to a new downtown shopping mall, and it’s got a revolving restaurant on top.
I have a rule against eating in restaurants that move. I haven’t eaten at the Hyatt’s Eagle’s Nest, but I have spent a couple of lovely evenings enjoying the pianist and a nightcap and a terrific view. You’ve got to remember, this is the flatlands of Indiana–not far past the confines of downtown, the view stretches all the way to the horizon.
The best steakhouse in town is St. Elmo’s, only a couple of blocks from the Hyatt. It feels like an old-time Manhattan saloon with thick steaks and waiters in tuxedos. If you’ve got the dough, next door to St. Elmo’s is the 99-room Canterbury Hotel. Rooms are pricey, but the hotel has an elegant bar where the drinks are reasonable.
One recent night there was what appeared to be an English rock band in one corner, all its members in black with nose rings, chattering away. They definitely looked as if they didn’t belong in Indianapolis. And that got me thinking even more about just how much the city had changed.
It’s still got a classic grid layout designed by architect Alexander Ralston, who helped plan Washington, D.C. Four streets run like spokes from Monument Circle, a 210-foot war memorial that dates to 1927 and has an observation deck.
But the old Indiana Central Canal running through the city has been cleaned up. Sidewalks, fountains and antique-style street lamps have been installed along the water, too. Now the canal winds through 10 1/2 blocks of downtown, just a stone’s throw from the limestone statehouse, and is a perfect spot for a morning jog. There are pedal boats for rent April through October.
Also new downtown–it opened last fall–is the four-story Circle Centre mall, built by the same folks who did Minnesota’s Mall of America, anchored by Nordstrom’s and boasting a virtual reality theme park.
Connected to the mall is the dazzling Artsgarden, a modern maze of glass arching over a downtown intersection. It’s a new performing arts center, suspended above the traffic, that seats 400 and also will be home to festivals, lectures, dances and theater.
It’s really something to look at from the street: A dramatic series of glass arches that’s garnering lots of architectural interest and could become as much a symbol of Indianapolis as William Penn’s statue atop City Hall is of Philadelphia.
If Indianapolis seems to be moving ahead, there is one nearby attraction firmly planted in the past: Prairietown.
In this village, about a half-hour north of Indianapolis in Fishers, it will always be 1836. A re-creation of an Indiana settlement, the town looks, feels, sounds and even smells as if you’ve stepped back in time.
Costumed “villagers” go about their chores, cooking in cast-iron pots over open fires, teaching school lessons on slates, clanging new horseshoes at the blacksmith shop.
The village is one section of Conner Prairie, named for William Conner, who settled in this section of Indiana in the early 1800s and was a trader, farmer, business owner and middleman between white settlers and local American Indians.
Also open for tours is Conner’s old mansion and the Pioneer Adventure area, where you can try your hand at such crafts as soap-making and candle-dipping. It’s worth a day all to itself.
So, too, is the Indianapolis Art Museum. I’m no art expert, but I was impressed with its collection, which includes works by Rembrandt, Gauguin and Winslow Homer. And, since I’m no art expert, I was just as impressed by the museum’s lovely grounds, which include a 44-acre botanical garden.
Also worth a day if you have kids is the Children’s Museum, which boasts that it’s the largest museum of its kind. My son, nephews and niece had a ball on our visit.
There’s a carousel on the top floor (be prepared for long lines there), a re-creation of a French fur-trading post to wander through, and displays of antique children’s dolls and toys. But the most fun is when the kids can get their hands on stuff–such as in the dinosaur section, where they don goggles and brush sand away from an archeological dig just like, well, Indiana Jones.
And, since this is Indy, no visitor can leave without checking out the Speedway. The Sunday before every Memorial Day, tens of thousands of race fans stream into the arena surrounding the famous 2 1/2-mile oval. Thousands more return for the first weekend in August for the Brickyard 400, a newly added race to the schedule at the Speedway.
The track’s museum offers a leisurely look at speed. Dozens of cars from races as far back as 1911 and loads of pictures from previous 500s make for a fascinating tour. And, when the racers aren’t in town, you get to drive the track.
Well, you get to ride the track. A white bus laps the famous raceway, giving you the perspective that only the likes of such legends as A.J. Foyt and Mario Andretti usually get.
It really is a different view of Indy.
DETAILS ON INDIANAPOLIS
Where to stay: Two of the best places to stay in the heart of downtown are the Hyatt (1 S. Capitol Ave.; 800-233-1234 or 317-632-1234) and Canterbury (123 S. Illinois St.; 800-538-8186 or 317-634-3000) hotels. Rates for a double at the Hyatt are $170-$194 weekdays and $89-$170 on weekends; at the Canterbury, rates are $135-$325 weekdays and $115-$295 on weekends.
What you’ll pay: Admission to the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indian and Western Art is $5 for adults, $4 for seniors and $2 for students; to the Children’s Museum, $6 for adults, $5 for seniors and $3 for students; to Connor Prairie, $9 for adults, $8.50 for seniors and $6.50 for students; to the Speedway Museum, $2; and to the Art Museum, free, except for special exhibitions. Call 317-636-9378.
Information: You’ll find local tourism officials enormously helpful and ready to provide you with a wealth of information. Their toll-free number is 800-323-4639.
