Evansville Blog » Places

Evansville Arena Photos

Christopher Davidson — Fri, 07 May 2010 13:50:13 +0000

I haven't had an opportunity to get down and take any pictures of the Evansville Arena yet, but someone has uploaded 8 images of the construction from January. It's amazing how fast these people really work and the undertaking that must be done to build such a structure. Whether you disagree with the development or not, it's truly a sight to behold.

Below are photos of construction of the Evansville Arena from January. These photos were uploaded to the Picasa web album by a user named evansvillearena. There are some other great photos of the blue prints for the new downtown Arena, along with before images of what the location looked like before the bulldozers moved in.

Healthier Holiday World Food

Lynn — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 18:15:21 +0000

What comes to mind when you hear strawberry feta cheese sunflower seed salad with raspberry vinaigrette dressing? Is it a healthy food option at a nice restaurant? I bet the first thing that came to mind wasn't theme park food! I was as surprised as you probably are to hear this new addition to Holiday World's food menu.

When you think about it, theme park food is part of the whole experience. We want a day of fun and out of the ordinary experiences which include burgers, ice cream, cotton candy, fudge, french fries and corn dogs. Stereotypically similar to really bad for you fast food or even closer to carnival food. So when I stumbled upon the new food options on their website I did a double take and smiled with delight at the new additions. Besides the new salad were other options such as black bean chipotle veggie burger, pasta salad, baked pasta, five new soups and a no sugar added butter pecan ice cream. An added benefit is the ability to purchase many of these healthier foods in multiple restaurants within Holiday World and also in Splashin' Safari.

Oh there are also other new items to the menu for those believing that calories don't count while on vacation. Funnel cake fries, fried brownie bites, apple stuffed bosco breadsticks and churros have been added to the menu to tempt us all. Don't get me wrong. I am pumped for more variety and will probably by the end of the summer have tried them all (just typing fried brownie bites makes my mouth water). For me, a frequent (weekly) Holiday World visitor, the addition of healthy food options helps me balance out the fun food intake without wrecking my diet.

Jaguar Mommy and Babies At Mesker Zoo

Christopher Davidson — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 19:04:32 +0000

This video of the mommy and baby Jaguar's is from March 5th 2010, filmed at Mesker Zoo in Evansville, IN. The video does a good job of showing just how close patrons can get to the animals and the ingenuity put into the design of the Jaguar cage.

Complete with concrete foot prints and glass cage, it's truly an experience for adults and kids. I'd also like to mention that it's best to visit the Zoo as early in the morning as possible, it seems that this is the most active time for the animals. On this particular day the Jaguar was even more active, since it was the first warm sunny day of the year.

Enjoy the Mesker Zoo Jaguar video below:

New Rhino At Mesker Zoo

Christopher Davidson — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 19:02:19 +0000

My wife and daughter were able to go check out the latest addition to Mesker Zoo in Evansville, Indiana. They were also nice enough to record some video of the Rhino, complete with his punching bag.

Video Of Cold Geese At Garvin Park

Christopher Davidson — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 14:44:48 +0000

Spent my lunch break walking around Garvin Park yesterday. I'll head over there on a regular basis to eat my lunch in peace in my truck, but yesterday I wanted to get some video of the ducks and geese walking on ice. I also shot some footage of kids that instructed me that they were the only ones that fed the hungry animals, so it was their job to take care of them.

Without question, I know the cold animals appreciated the fresh bread.

I hope that I can film more events and locations in Evansville, as time allows. If you have any recommendations or things you would like to see, please let me know.

Wal-Mart Newburgh Made My Day

Lynn — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 19:56:58 +0000

Wal-Mart made my day! Yes, Wal-Mart. I have been anxiously awaiting the grand opening of the new Wal-Mart in Newburgh for months. Our family shops at Wal-Mart at least once a week and that shopping is mainly done by me. For the past 6 years I have been driving to the west side and Boonville Wal-Marts in order to avoid the east side at all cost. I live on the east side but the closest Wal-Mart is always dirty, understocked, and loud. I have to add 30 minutes to my shopping trip because of the long lines. My hopes were extremely high during my recent trip to the new store. They did not disappoint me!

Upon entering, I was given a map and a shiny, brand-new, clean shopping cart to fill up. I didn't think I needed a map for Wal-Mart but I ended up using it more than once. The store was set up in a completely different arrangement than I have ever seen. The shoes were on display just like a department store would showcase each style. The aisles were at odd angles but in a good way. The sporting goods area rivaled more expensive specialty stores. Perhaps it was because of the fact that the store has only been open a few weeks but everything I looked at was well stocked. The difference between this Wal-Mart and others that I have shopped at was the way in which they actually displayed their products instead of just stocking as many as they could onto generic shelves and racks. The clothing area for women and children was very well stocked and appealing.

We didn't wait in line longer than 5 minutes but we were in the store for over an hour even though my list wasn't very long. I couldn't help wandering around and browsing each department. I left happy and extremely satisfied. I am looking forward to future grocery shopping there. It makes my life and shopping a little easier and much more enjoyable.

Back From Chicago Trip

Christopher Davidson — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 17:10:52 +0000

Back in Evansville after an extended weekend to Chicago. While in the Chicago area I attended the NMRA show at Joliet Route 66 Raceway, visited Navy Pier, and partaked of some adult beverages. All in all it was a great weekend with absolutely beautiful weather. Hard to believe that in the middle of July it got down into the 50's shortly after dark, but I'll take it over the 105 degree days we've been having here in Southern Indiana.

On Saturday I visited down town Chicago near the Navy Pier and I was astounded at how many things there were to do. Obviously a much bigger city, but Evansville has a lot they could learn from such a busy downtown area. An example of things I missed out on doing, but will make plans for next trip are:

2 Hour Segway Tour $75
Sea Hog Boat Ride
Go Up in The Sears Tower

Ok, maybe not that last one since I'm afraid of heights. But at any rate there are a ton of things to do, besides just eat, drink, and be merry. Also, if you can get past the construction, traffic wasn't that bad and zipping in and out of Chicago was just a small annoyance instead of a chore.

I look forward to another trip in the not so distant future when I can take my wife and daughter along.

Bruno At Showplace East

Christopher Davidson — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 02:31:53 +0000

Met with some friends out at Showplace East last night for the new Sacha Cohen movie Bruno. Now, this typically isn't the type of movie I'd be interested in seeing, but I needed a distraction and nothing is better at that than watching people in uncomfortable situations. This movie did not fail to deliver.

Don't see this movie if you don't have a perverted sense of humor. It's raunchy, full of male nudity, and enough absurd situations to make you cover your face in a dark movie theater.

As stated it does deliver a great distraction to day to day life. I mustered a handful of laugh out louds and my friends also appreciated the slapstick actions of the flamboyant Bruno. This being said I'm not quite sure it earned the full $10 price of admission. But that's for a different discussion and no doubt the very reason the theater was less than a 1/4 of the way full on the second day of release.

July Mesker Zoo Trip

Christopher Davidson — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 23:06:28 +0000

My family and I ended up going to the Zoo today and it was an exceptionally good trip. Now, we always go several times a year and are proud owners of season passes, but today was something special. We went earlier in the morning than usual and apparently it's true, the animals are more active in the morning.

Amazonia was really a treat, since the monkeys were running all over their exhibit. They managed to play intently the entire time we were there or at least until my 2 year old daughter lost interest. The large pig looking thing in the bottom was also active. It (sorry can't remember what it's called) was swimming, walking around and generally just looking weird. Also in Amazonia were some very colorful ducks that we normally enjoy. However, this trip we had trouble finding them and for good reason. As you walk out the bottom of Amazonia they could be found perched on a limb, much like a bird would. Adorable.

Only a few downsides were that Mesker is remodeling the nocturnal animals exhibit, so it was closed off. Also, the pride and joy of the Amazon exhibit, the Jaguar, was no where to be seen. There were however in it's place some rare zoo workers scrubbing down it's glass walls.

Just like every zoo visit we had to stop long enough at the entrance for my daughter Emma to play in the fountains. Today she was not alone, there were at least 4 kids at any time running through the 4 ft spraying fountains. We shall return at least a few more times this year, but for now my daughter is content and soaking wet.

Mesker Park Zoo Fountains