On the Road Again: East to Ohio

Eric and I had a nice visit in Indianapolis.  The downtown area is very walkable and it's very photographic.  The architecture is wonderful!  Monument Circle is the pride of the city.  There are sky walks connecting hotels, malls and convention centers.

We are headed north to Grand Rapids and will follow Lake Erie across Ohio.  The lake side climate should be a little warmer than the middle of the state.

Gas prices are low in the Indianapolis area.    Because we are using the Flying J Credit Card and are Good Sam Lifetime Members, we get a discount on the price charged for tractor trailers and RVs.  It's interesting that the price for trucks and RVs is not displayed.... $4.09 per gallon.  We paid $4.01 per gallon.

Eric and I filled the water tank and dumped gray and black tanks before fueling up.  We also got LP, at a discount.   Water is free and there was a $5.00 charge to dump the tanks.

Because we are driving about five hours today, we decided to do laundry on the road.  Eric started the generator, I waited a few minutes and turned the Splendide Washer/Dryer on.  I am currently washing clothing of color, Adam.  Our son insists I call the wash clothing of color instead of colored clothes.  I emptied the washer/dryer when the dryer cycle started and hung laundry where I could.  The cabinet handles are handy.

 The Nestle Plant in Anderson, IN

 This pumpkin patch went on and on.  

We wonder ifit's a pumpkin pie patch.

I saw a very large bird while I was driving.  It turned and opened it's wings to float on the wind as it flew toward the motor home.  My God, it's a Bald Eagle!  I'm driving so I can't take a picture.  Sigh... What a majestic sight.!

 

 Back in Ohio

 

I like this bridge.

McAlister's Deli in Indianapolis, Indiana

 Eric and I stopped at McAlister's Deli.  We wanted to try 

something different and this caught our eye.  

 McAlister's is a chain, with locations in 23 states.  Retired dentist, Dr.Don Newcomb, started the business in Oxford, Mississippi.

The company prides itself on freshly made food.  

The menu includes wide variety of sandwiches, large baked potatoes, salads, soups and desserts.  According to the company website, fried and greasy foods are not served.

 The decor reminds me of Grandma's house.

The McAlister's Club Sandwich is a super duper BLT with Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato, Black Forest Ham, Turkey, Swiss, American Cheese and Honey Mustard.  Yum!  I tried the Chicken Tortilla Soup, and was disappointed.  This is the second time I've tried Chicken Tortilla Soup while we have been traveling.  I won't do that again.  The Point in Schenectady makes the best Chicken Tortilla Soup I've ever eaten.  

Architecture in Downtown Indianapolis, Indiana

Skyscraper

dwarfs a

statue at the

State Capitol

Indiana Repertory
Theater

Moorish Influence

@ The Repertory Theater

Underground parking
@ the PNC Center

New buildings fit

in amongst the

old in downtown

Indianapolis.

Arches & Corinthian
columns decorate
the building.

 Beautiful awning, cornice
& balustrade

L. S. Ayres
Department Store

 Step Backs on the 

 building on the right

 Cornice work adorns

 the building in the middle.

 

Grecian Pediment 

above the doorway

Birch Bayh

Federal Building

& Courthouse

Indiana War Memorial

 

Griffith Block

1873

Arched doorway

of the Guaranty Building

I love

cornice work.

The Monument Circle Area in Indianapolis, Indiana

Just two blocks from the Indiana State Capitol

 is Monument Circle.

This towering statue 

commemorates the sacrifices

 of soldiers and sailors in the

 Revolutionary War, 

War of 1812,

 Mexican American War

 and Civil War.

 "Peace" presides
over "The Dying Soldier"
& "The Return Home."

Civil War Memorial

The Museum & Gift Shop

  are closed Monday

& Tuesday.

Building adjacent to
Monument Circle
with curved
facade

Christ Church Cathedral

at Monument Circle

The Indiana State House, Indianapolis, Indiana

State Capitols, or State Houses have been the highlight of our easterly tour.   The Indiana State House has a metal detector at the Visitor's Entrance.  I make it beep and was wanded..... My belt buckle set the machine off.  After showing my socks past the ankles, I was allowed to proceed.

We arrived at 12:30 pm and waited for Nicholas to return from lunch for a 1 pm tour.  

It was worth the wait. 

The Capitol is Grecian Doric with the exception of the

Italian Renaissance Dome.

The Rotunda

Interior Gallery with skylight

The interior is Modern

Renaissance

Phone Booth with a phone
and it's handicap accessible

The Senate Chamber

The podium is in the corner

of the room. 

The Senate was made

smaller to accomodate

offices for the senators.

Office just outside the
Senate Chamber

The General Assembly Chamber

was also made smaller to

accommodate offices for

Assembly Members.

The mural was pained in

the 1960s.

Stairway, ceiling
and marble work

Indiana has the only

State Capitol that continues

to house the State

Supreme Court.

The "eyes" in the stain

glass windows represent the 

owl and the wisdom this bird

symbolizes.

The Supreme Court is the room

least changed since the

 Capitol was completed

in 1887.

It is the most ornate
room in the Capitol.

The Law Library

A meeting was in
progress.

This is all I could see

from the doorway.

 

We thanked Nicholas for
the tour.  Off to explore
downtown Indianapolis.

Staying Warm in the Motorhome

Our motorhome comes with two ways to heat it:  Heat Pump and two LP (Liquid Propane) furnaces.

One way to get warm and stay warm is to use the Heat Pump, or to run the air conditioner backwards, with an electric hook up. This is from eHow.com:  During the winter, the heat pump extracts heat from outside air and transports it inside the house (RV) where the ductwork distributes the heat throughout the home.

When we are using the Heat Pump, the warm air blows out through our ceiling vents, just as cooler air from the air conditioner blows out of the ceiling vents.

Heat pump does not work when the outside temperature goes below 40 degrees Fahrenheit.  Because we are boondocking, we are not hooked to electricity at night and don't want to run the generator so we are not using our Heat Pump.

On to LP heat.  We have an LP tank with 30 gallon capacity.  According to specs, it is to be filled to 80 percent or 24 gallons.  Because of the size of our motorhome, 40 feet, we have two LP furnaces.  One heats the entire rig and one in the back that heats only the bedroom and bathroom.  The LP furnaces are vented so they are not very efficient. they blow some of the heated air to the outside. We can keep all the windows shut tight when heating this way. 

We don't use both furnaces together.  It makes no sense to heat the bedroom when no one is there. Eric runs the furnace in the bedroom to warm up the room just before we go to bed.  He's concerned that running this furnace during the night would wake us because it's louder than the other one.  The living area furnace runs off and on during the night but this one is located where we cannot hear it running very much. 

We have portable LP heaters.  Eric bought a Camco Olympian Wave 8 Catalytic Propane Heater. 

This heater requires no electricity.  It works well at higher altitudes.  The gas source is our LP tank.  Eric had some alterations make to our LP line to run it. We have to crack a window when we use this heater. It is safe to use and is rated for indoor use but it needs oxygen from a window opened a small amount to run. If the oxygen gets too low it will shut itself down. Some people think it's not safe but that's mostly because people are not familiar with it. It is a proven safe technology that is great for boondocking since it uses no electricity.

The Mr. Heater Buddy Heater is about the same thing except it uses disposable one pound propane cylinders. 

Propane cylinders can get costly.  We use no electricity when we heat with this.  The motorhome is vented when we use this heater by cracking a window same as the Olympian wave does. It also has a low oxygen shutdown safety sensor. 

The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum

The Abraham Lincoln 
Library & Museum

 As an avid history lover

 I can't wait to see

what's inside.

The museum has educational films about Abraham Lincoln's presidency and the research work done on this president and the Civil War.  There's just a few areas where photos are permitted.

Recreation of Lincoln's

boyhood home

There are displays showing Lincoln's early life, business success and failure, romances 

and his life with Mary Todd Lincoln.  His sons' legendary unruliness is presented as well.

Weapons used in the Civil War are on display and the causes of death in the war are listed and explained.  About two thirds of the soldiers who died were victims of disease.... malaria, typhoid, dysentery, small pox, measles.  Treatments given during the war are listed, as well as current cures. 

Medical care is on display including how the wounded were moved from the battlefield 

to hospitals.  For any wounded soldier, it was a bumpy ride.

Public reaction to Lincoln's governance is on display.... A lot of it is very unflattering.  

This section of the museum reminded me of current editorials and political shows.

 

Many get a photo with

President Lincoln, Mary,

 sons Robert,Tad and Willie.

There are displays of family artifacts. Lincoln's rise to power and the presidency 

are well documented.  

Civil War combatants are included at the start of the war and later what 

happened to each man....  Did he survive?  What was life for him like after the war?

Displays of the assassination, death room and funeral procession complete the museum tour.

Abraham Lincoln's life, presidency and death were  presented carefully. 

It was worth the $24.00 in admission fees for us.