Circle City

This weekend my friend Liz and I drove out to visit Madeline, who is the best pastor I’ve ever had even though she wasn’t technically a pastor when I was in her small group.  It was a very encouraging weekend after a pretty rocky two weeks.  I’m still processing the spiritual, emotional, and mental ramifications, but here at least is a quick recap of our trip in pictures.

We left Saturday morning and arrived at our first stop, the Indianapolis Museum of Art.  I must say I was extremely impressed by the scope of IMA’s collection as well as the building’s design and the expansive grounds surrounding the museum.  We probably got through 3/4s of the main exhibition floor before the extreme air-conditioning blasted us out to the gardens to dethaw.  By the time we finished roaming the grounds, there was only half and hour left before closing.  But since the museum is free, you can go back any time to enjoy it all!

This was my favorite painting in the whole museum. It's called The Two Sisters or the Serruys Sisters, by Georges Lemmen. (And no, this is not my shot. I sleuthed around for the artist's name and a better image!)

I have to agree with Jeffrey that it’s not easy or particularly rewarding to photograph other people’s art, especially 2D works.  The artist has an intended way of viewing the work, and glossing my point of view on top of that seems superfluous if not counterproductive.  The sculptures and gardens outside were a lot more fun.

I saw this fountain from inside while we were eating lunch and immediately started plotting ways to shoot it. Had fun experimenting with f-stop and shutter speed.

Liz loves formal English gardens!

I like jumping in front of statues!

After leaving the museum, we tried to find the restaurant on our own, which necessitated sitting a shady McDonald’s to use their free Wi-fi and asking a random man where we were.  We finally met up with Madeline at a Scottish restaurant called MacNivens and learned that neeps are actually rutabagas.

Saturday night we stayed up much too late talking about boys and weddings.

Sunday morning we went to Madeline’s church, which I will try to describe in more detail later.  After making lunch at home, we went to visit our former campus pastor Jeff and his family in Fishers, which apparently is like the New Albany of Indianapolis.  Jeff is…possibly the most gregarious person I have ever met even though he is very intense about his ministry.  I actually felt very slightly tired trying to keep up with his conversational tacks (notice the lack of pictures from this slightly frenetic afternoon), but it was just really nice to see them all again.  The children, of course, have grown like weeds since I last saw them.  The big people snuck out for ice cream in the afternoon, where we saw a dog the size of a small horse.

Then the girls went to The Fashion Mall (yes, that’s what it’s called) for about an hour and a half before it closed, where we had a very fun conversation with one of the guys working at Tiffany&Co. and saw a pair of $62,000 diamond stud earrings (3.75 TW, not that I was paying attention).  After the mall closed, we met the Jeffs again for dinner at Mackenzie River Pizza Company, which is based out of Montana where the family used to live.

Sunday night we stayed up not quite as late doing our nails, getting at-home facials, and talking about weddings.

Monday after breakfast and some make-up, we went to the Indianapolis Children’s Museum.  Because all of us are approximately four years old at heart, it was really fun!

There were lots of costumes for us to try on! Here we are dinosaurs.

The amazing Persian ceiling by Dale Chihuly

Faux terra cotta warriors

Barbie says, "No need for gifts, I have my own toys!"

Which one is real?