Indianapolis, Indiana

Indianapolis, Indiana is known by most Speedway Capital, but its residents refer to it as the Circle City.  This is due to the huge monument to in the heart of downtown, which is basically an enormous round-about with no traffic lines, or rules as far as I could see.  I still thought that it was a pretty neat feature; it reminded me of a European city.   Did I mention that it was surrounded by cobblestones? 

Indianapolis is a great city, as far as Midwestern cities go.   The residents there told me that other large cities in the middle of the country often lock up at 5pm, but not Indianapolis.  I walked around there a few nights and there were lots of people eating in the trendy restaurants, walking around the clubs, and hanging out in the park.   There is a nice mall in the heart of downtown, called appropriately, Circle Centre, but I didn't find anything special inside.  Basically it had all the trappings of your typical suburban mall.   I was hoping for at least some fun to look through, but over-priced boutiques to browse, but no luck.  I ended up getting my nails done in the adjoining Embassy Suites.  

Indianapolis is doing some things right, but its shopping definitely needs some work.  I still would recommend the city if you're going to be in the area, but its not up to "tourist destination" designation by any means.