Touring the University of Notre Dame Campus, South Bend, Indiana

Football, the Gold Dome and top academics were really the only things I knew about the University of Notre Dame before I toured the campus last month. Having been there only once, decades ago, I didn’t remember, or maybe didn’t appreciate at the time, the beauty of the campus, including the fascinating art and architecture, as much a draw for tourists as the school’s athletics programs.

I had the honor of taking a tour led by 1964 Notre Dame alumnus Jack Lafferty, who often conducts private group tours of the campus and is a wealth of information about the buildings, the artwork and the history of the university.

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There are so many different varieties of trees on the grounds, the campus can actually be considered an arboretum. From the beginning, Father Sorin, the university founder, brought a diverse variety of trees to the campus, and the tradition continued later. This sycamore is about 250 years old.

The Main Building, used mostly for administration today, was built in 1879 after the original building was destroyed in a fire. In the beginning the Main Building included classrooms, dining and living space.

The building, on the National Register of Historic Places, Is best known for its gold dome with a statue of Mary, Mother of God, atop of the dome. The dome has been regilded five times, the latest in 2005 at a cost of $300,000.

Inside the building, stand in the circle on the floor in the center of the building and look up to see the inside of the dome.

The Rosary Crown, on display in the Main Building was originally planned to be placed on the statue atop the dome. Commissioned in France by university benefactors, the Rosary Crown includes fifteen decades of crystal beads and fifteen plates depicting the mysteries of the rosary. The crown was never placed on the dome but instead was placed on another statue of Mary inside Sacred Heart Church, was stolen, recovered and repaired.

The Grotto at Notre Dame is a one-seventh size replica of the Grotto of Our Lady of the Lourdes in France, where the Virgin Mother appeared to St. Bernadette in 1858. The rosary is prayed at the grotto every day at 6:45 p.m.

The Basilica of the Sacred Heart may or may not be open to tour, depending on church events, but if you get the chance, do go in. The beauty will astound you. The basilica wasn’t open for tours on my visit, but I went to Sunday Mass there and was able to see it then.

Sculptures and other works of art are scattered throughout the campus, but a few of them stand out due to sheer size. The Stonehenge Fountain serves as a memorial to Notre Dame alumni who lost their lives in the military.

At the Hesburgh Library, a large mural, known as “Touchdown Jesus,” reflects in the Reflecting Pool, creating a double image.

Moving to the athletic side of Notre Dame, you can view seven Heisman trophies in the Sports Heritage Hall of Fame during the school year. Recipients are allowed to take them home during the summer months, so on my visit, only one Heisman trophy was on display.

The Sports Heritage Hall of Fame is located in the concourse of the Purcell Center, home to the Fighting Irish basketball and volleyball teams.

We didn’t get to tour the football stadium, but we did go past it and peek into the gates, which were under construction at the time.

A helmet for each All-American Notre Dame player is on the wall inside the gates.

Each of the stadium’s twelve gates is named after a winning coach. Notre Dame has had eleven national championships, so one gate has yet to be named.

The Notre Dame architecture, art and athletics are worth a visit to the university campus. As I mentioned, my tour guide, Jack Lafferty, conducts mostly private tours. However, free public campus tours are led Monday through Friday by Notre Dame students. Tours do not include the stadium. Check the Notre Dame web site for tour details.

Disclosure: My tour of the University of Notre Dame campus was hosted by Visit South Bend, but any opinions expressed in this post are my own.

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Kenosha Kingfish: Baseball in a Historic Stadium

Connie Attractions & Events, Wisconsin August 18, 2014June 19, 2018Kenisha Wisconsin, Kenosha attractions, Kenosha baseball, Kenosha Kingfish, kenosha wi, minor league baseball, Simmons Field, things to do in kenosha, what to do in kenosha 0 Comment

Major League Baseball has Wrigley Field, attracting fans as much for the old-time ballpark atmosphere as for the game itself, with its ivy covered brick walls and manual scoreboard. Likewise, summer collegiate Northwoods League baseball has Simmons Field, another historic ballpark, albeit on a much smaller scale. Simmons Field is home to the Kenosha Kingfish. Read more

Surf Ballroom, Clear Lake, Iowa: Remembering the Day the Music Died

Connie Attractions & Events, Iowa August 13, 2014February 3, 2017buddy holly, buddy holly crash, buddy holly crash site, buddy holly death, buddy holly plane crash, Clear Lake, clear lake iowa, clear lake surf ballroom, surf, surf ballroom, surf ballroom and museum, surf ballroom buddy holly, surf ballroom clear lake, surf ballroom ia, surf ballroom in clear lake, surf ballroom iowa, the day the music died, the surf ballroom 5 Comments

The 1940s-era L-shaped brick building in Clear Lake, Iowa, looks rather plain from the outside. The only indication of the building’s fame is a memorial marker noting the deaths of three 1950s rock-and-roll stars. The Surf Ballroom is the last place that Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson played before they lost their lives in a plane crash just a few miles from the ballroom. Read more

Traverse City Wineries Magnet for Wine Lovers

Connie Attractions & Events, Food & Drink, Michigan August 11, 2014May 25, 2017Leelanau wineries, Michigan wineries, old mission wineries, Traverse City wine, Traverse City wineries, wineries in Michigan 0 Comment

It’s not uncommon to see groups of young women, very often bachelorette parties, hopping from winery to winery via limousine along Midwest wine trails. Wine tasting is a popular date among couples, too, standing at the tasting bar, sipping a half dozen or so wines and then moving on to the next winery along the trail. In the past couple of decades the number of wineries in the Midwest has exploded. It seems the more wineries on a trail, the more popular the trail. Traverse City, Michigan, and nearby Leelanau and Old Mission Peninsulas are home to over 50 wineries. The area is a magnet for wine lovers. We visited some of the Traverse City wineries during our recent visit. Read more

Helping the Dragon Boat Race Team Sink

Connie Attractions & Events, Wisconsin August 1, 2014November 22, 2015Events in Wisconsin, Kenosha Dragon Boat Festival, Kenosha Dragon Boat Races 0 Comment

“Watch the person in front of you.” “Put your paddle all the way in the water, straight down.” “Lean forward and use your entire body.” These were some of the instructions our Lighthouse Lizards dragon boat team received just before racing–and as panic started to set in. Read more

Explore Three Gardens near Champaign, Ill.

Connie Attractions & Events, Illinois July 25, 2014July 25, 2014Allerton Park, Champaign, Champaign IL, Illinois attractions, Illinois gardens, Mabery Gelvin Botanical Garden, Mahomet Botanical Garden, U of I Arboretum, UI Arboretum, University of Illinois Arboretum 0 Comment

It was a perfect summer weekend, sunshine with a few puffy clouds dotting the azure sky, a slight breeze and low humidity, ideal for a summer stroll through gardens of colorful flowers, hedge-lined pathways, cascading waterfalls, and arbors with benches for relaxing and taking in the beauty. We visited three gardens in and near Champaign County, Illinois, on that weekend, all only 15 to 30 miles apart. Two of the gardens, Allerton Park and the UI Arboretum, are owned by the University of Illinois, and the Mabery Gelvin Botanical Garden is part of the Champaign County Forest Preserve District.

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Allerton Park & Retreat Center
Once the estate of Robert Henry Allerton, the property was donated to the University of Illinois, along with the income from the 1946 farm crops to establish operating funds. Today the 1500 acre park, one of the seven wonders of Illinois, includes the Georgian Manor house used for events, seven natural setting trails totaling 14 miles, and 14 formal gardens that include extensive plantings and over 100 sculptures and ornaments. Walk down paved pathways lined with Chinese musicians, stroll through the walled garden, or climb the spiral staircase in the House of the Golden Buddahs for a view of the gardens from above.

Allerton Park & Retreat Center is located at 515 Old Timber Road, Monticello, Illinois.

University of Illinois Arboretum
Considered a living laboratory, the UI Arboretum includes plant collections and facilities for teaching, research and public service programs. However, as a non-student, you can simply visit to enjoy the beauty, much of it made possible through donations by generous alumni. Bursts of color in the Idea Garden’s border annuals and the Children’s Garden create a cheerful atmosphere, while the calm serenity of the gardens surrounding the Japan House will leave you feeling tranquil . Development of the 160 acre arboretum property began in the early 1980s. Today 57 acres are developed, leaving plenty of room for further growth.

The University of Illinois Arboretum is located on Lincoln Avenue in Urbana, Illinois. Check the web site for detailed directions.

Mabery Gelvin Botanical Garden
This gem of a small eight-acre garden is tucked behind the Museum of the Grand Prairie in the Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve in Mahomet, Illinois. The garden includes a one-room schoolhouse and a Japanese garden with a waterfall backdrop and a bright red bridge crossing a pond filled with water lilies. Lots of flowers indigenous to Illinois, like the purple coneflower and the yellow daylily are displayed throughout the garden.

While you are there, be sure to visit the museum and the rest of the forest preserve. Our time was limited, but I would have loved to have rented a paddle boat to pedal around the lake. The Mabery Gelvin Botanical Garden is located at 650 N Lombard Street, Mahomet, Illinois.

See more photos of the gardens in the video slideshow:

You can easily visit all three gardens in one day, although we broke it into two days and visited area wineries, too. There is no admission fee for any of the three gardens.

Disclosure: Our visit to the Champaign area was hosted by the Champaign County CVB, but any opinions expressed in this post are my own. Our accommodations were at the Hyatt Place Champaign Hotel.

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