Big 10 Football Tour

For the 4th time this season, the weekend road trip would pass through Indiana.  Luckily, this week's excursion began in the morning, so we didn't have as much of a battle with Chicago traffic.  According the the welcome sign, Indiana is the "Crossroads of America."

So as we were driving through northern Indiana, we passed through the town of Roselawn.  Always on the hunt for unique sights, I had heard of a Giant Lady's Leg sundial.  It is apparently 63 feet long.  What I wasn't aware of was that it was housed inside of a nudist colongy.  Naturally, I decided to pass on stopping in to see some of the rural Indiana members.  I took a photo from afar, but you're probably better off just clicking on the link.  Wes and Jeff took a photo with the sign out front.

To the left is Wes preparing to throw a dart at "The Pub" in downtown Indianpolis.  Below, you can see me blocking a shot from going completely threw the net.

At the center of Indianapolis is the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument.  This is definitely a sight to see as it is so tall that it only falls 21 feet short of the Statue of Liberty.  Surronding the monument are fountains, statues, and a large traffic circle.   At the base of the monument is a museum of Indiana history during the Civil War.

While my photos didn't turn out too well, here you see the Sample Gates at Indiana University in Bloomington, IN.  Even in November, the gates were surronded with all sorts of flowers.  These gates act as the entrance to the oldest part of Indiana campus, known as the Old Crescent.

We were fortunate enough to be hosted by the DiSalvo family during our stay in Indiana.  With a home nested on Lemon Lake, we had some phenomenal views both morning. 

On another note, as I was searching for a blanket, I stumbled upon a Spirograph - another memorable toy from the 80's.  So memorable that it was even mentioned in a Simpsons episode in 1995.

Apparently Indiana won't be spared from the awesome truckstop merchandise!  While this merchandise didn't have the religious feel that we saw in Iowa, there was more of a focus on rednecks and trucks.  Also for sale were lion and tiger heads above the register ... just in case you don't actually kill one on your hunting trips, you can pretend by mounting these on your wall!

During the roadtrip, we saw a lot of other great sights including a large jalapeno pepper and Cheese Castle in Wisconsin. 

Probably one of the most memorable for me however was when we parked at the Circle Center Mall parking lot in downtown Indianapolis.  As we were driving through the lots wondering if the Acura would fit in a compact car spot, we saw this truck parked in a compact car spot.  Notice where the line ends and where the truck ends.  If this person can park here, then we certainly could.