Notre Dame and Indianapolis

So when I pulled out of Machinaw City Friday morning the temperature was 19 degrees and the sky was slightly overcast, near perfect weather for a ride. As I headed south along US 31 which follows the east shore of Lake Michigan for a bit after Petrosky, the temperature dropped significantly.  At the point along the road closest to the lake the thermometer on my bike registered the "outside" temperature at 11 degrees.  For those who may have forgotten, the "outside" and "inside" temperature on a motorcycle are pretty much the same. Indeed one of the interesting aspects of riding a motorcycle, as I've noted in previous posts, is that, unlike in a car say, you experience the variations in temperature as you pass through them; one moment hot and humid, the next cold and crisp. It's neat, at least for a biker.

This picture is of part of the marina in Charlevoix, a lovely small city along US 31. As you can see the sky has nearly cleared by now and the temperature is continuing to climb. It reached 27 degrees by the time I arrived in South Bend after passing by thacres and acres of apple orchards that line both sides of the road for miles on end, quite an impressive sight with the early blooms on every tree.

Next stop, the Notre Dame University campus after having checked in and dropped my luggage at the Americas Best Value. The grounds and the buildings which I spent a number of hours visiting yesterday are impressive. Given that it's homecoming week I was not alone walking around the grounds and looking into buildings including the basilica, the arts gallery and the famous football stadium, the concourse of which was serving as the post marathon reception area Saturday.

Here are a few pictures from Notre Dame.

This is a painting in the art gallery of a famous July 2, 1863 scene at Gettysburg where FatherCorby, a  C.S.C order chaplain from Notre Dame University is giving a general absolution to the soldiers of the Irish Brigade who are about to go into battle. During the ensuing fight 27 were killed, 109 were wounded, and 62 went missing.

 All who follow college football will recognize the home of the Fighting Irish, a prominent feature of the Notre Dame landscape and the venue for many great victories.



The Basilica of the Sacred Heart which looks out onto one of the many green spaces of the campus is close to the main administration or gold domed building in the center of thhe campus and pictured next.



And now for some food news. Guided by the man at the desk of the hotel, not always a safe thing I hear you say, I went to an italien restaurant called Rocco's.  As it so happens Rocco's which is a family run institution and is South Bends first original pizza joint.  It was started as a 12 seat restaurant in 1951 and has since expanded to 200.  It is located very close to the university and as the many photos on its walls attest it has been dishing out pizza and pasta to Notre Dame students and others since then. The place was crowded and I can report that the large plate of spaghetti with olive oil and garlic heaped with sliced sauteed mushrooms was delicious.  The service was attentive, and the price very reasonable. Skipping ahead to last night's dinner, another italien experience at Buca de Beppe on Illinois Street in Indianapolis, I can say that the lemon chicken with capers and the side of spaghetti with a lovely fresh tomato sauce that I had there was lick-the-plate good. The two glasses of Clos du Bois Chardonnay probably added to the enjoyment of the meal that I took at the bar watching the tenders and waitresses and waiters rushing to serve customers who walked in continuously.

The short drive down US 31 from South Bend to Indianapolis under a blazing sun was uneventful. By the time I reached the La Quinta Inn and Suites on Washington Street the temperature had climbed to 34.5 and I was riding sans gloves and with my coat flapping in the breeze.  After changing into shorts and a clean shirt I left the motorcycle parked in a secure spot in the hotel lot and set out to explore the city on foot; more on this to follow in the next post.