Christmas Lights at the Indianapolis Zoo A one-of-a-kind holiday: White River State Park offers singular sensations By Jen Schmits Thomas Like gifts, the most treasured holiday experiences are always the most rare - unique moments that fire the imagination and warm the spirit. With that in mind, White River State Park in downtown Indianapolis is inviting families throughout the Midwest to experience a collection of one-of-a-kind events and attractions that promise to make this holiday season truly memorable. A 250-acre mix of greenspaces and eye-catching architecture, White River State Park offers many of the Circle City's premier attractions and museums, all within walking distance of each other and all just blocks from the heart of downtown Indy. And this holiday season, the park is packed with events and attractions you won't find anywhere else. For more information and to check holiday hours and closings: White River State Park, 800-665-9056, www.inwhiteriver.com Eiteljorg Museum, 317-636-9378, www.eiteljorg.org Indianapolis Zoo, 317-630-2001, www.indyzoo.com IMAX Theater, 317-233-IMAX, www.imaxindy.com Medal of Honor Memorial, 317-261-6646, www.medalofhonormemorial.org NCAA Hall of Champions, 317-916-4255, www.ncaa.org National Institute for Fitness and Sport, 317-274-3432, www.nifs.org Victory Field, 317-269-2272 (gift shop), www.indyindians.com White River Gardens, 317-630-2001, www.whiterivergardens.org At the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art on Dec. 15, your family can step out of its modern Midwestern world to participate in another culture's holiday tradition, the Mexican celebration of Las Posadas. A dramatization of Mary's and Joseph's search for an inn (una posada) on the night of Jesus' birth, Las Posadas is an outdoor, singing procession accompanied by a live band. Children depict the holy couple, leading the procession through a series of stations where entry will be denied. When Joseph and Mary finally find refuge at a nativity inside the Eiteljorg Museum, the journey ends ... but the celebration continues, with traditional Mexican music and refreshments. Last year, more than 350 people participated in this event, which is co-sponsored by Indianapolis' St. Patrick Church. To make a reservation, call 317-636-WEST, ext. 150. The Eiteljorg offers other ways to share the holidays on the weekend of Dec. 1 and 2. On Dec. 1 and 2, Dr. Rita Yokoi - a national expert on Native American jewelry - will discuss "The Heart of Southwestern American Indian Jewelry" and display earrings, pendants and necklaces crafted from heishi, turquoise, stone and shell. Accompanying Dr. Yokoi is Martine Lovato, a master jeweler from new Mexico's Santo Domingo Pueblo. On Dec. 2, a storyteller from Indianapolis' Edyvean Repertory Theatre will recount the traditional Eskimo tale "King Island Christmas," and visitors can make a umiak - a Native Alaskan canoe - to take home. Or sign up for the Birch Bark Star Workshop, where you'll learn the basics of quilling by making a star for the Christmas tree out of birch bark, sweet grass and porcupine quills. Just down the street from the Eiteljorg (or across the pedestrian bridge over the White River), the 64-acre Indianapolis Zoo draws you into a brilliant winter wonderland where you can enjoy the holiday season with the animals. In what has become one of Indy's favorite traditions, Kroger Christmas at the Zoo glitters and glows from Nov. 24 to Dec. 30, with decorations and displays that include more than 700,000 twinkling lights. The Zoo extends its hours until 9 p.m. during this season so everyone can walk along the glittering pathways, visit some of the more than 4,000 animals, take in a dolphin show and even tell the resident Santa Claus what they want for Christmas. Adjacent to the Zoo is one of White River State Park's newest attractions, White River Gardens, a 3.3-acre facility that not only displays beautiful gardens but also serves as a resource center for area gardeners. The complex's 5,000-square-foot glass-enclosed conservatory features year-round exhibits, but from Nov. 24 to Jan. 2, it will also be home to Holiday Toyland. A giant jack-in-the-box will greet you when you enter this wonderland of toys and floral displays. Model airplanes will fly overhead and classic Lionel trains (new this year) will chug by as you and your family marvel at the many holiday plants (including every variety of poinsettia as well as holiday peppers, Jerusalem cherries, hollies, herb topiaries and more) decorating the Hilbert Conservatory. Need to take a breather? Stroll over to the IMAX Theater, where you can sit back and relax while you experience the wonders of Fantasia 2000, the nostalgia of Across the Sea of Time or the thrills of T-Rex: Back to the Cretaceous ... all on a screen that measures six stories tall by 80 feet wide. Showtimes vary, and some shows do sell out, so call or stop by the box office before the show you want to attend. Call 317-233-IMAX for more information. (As you approach the IMAX Theater, please pardon the mess: builders are working on the new Indiana State Museum, which will surround the IMAX Theater when it opens in 2002. Right now, the easiest way to get to the theater is via the underground parking garage off Washington Street.) Los Posadas entertains the crowds Behind the IMAX Theater, and across the Central Canal, you can visit the Congressional Medal of Honor Memorial, the nation's only monument honoring all recipients of the Medal of Honor. Twenty-seven curved walls of glass bear the names of medal recipients, and recorded voices tell stories about men and women who have earned the nation's highest military honor. A touch-screen monitor allows you to get more information about Medal of Honor recipients, and dramatic lighting makes the Memorial a stirring nighttime attraction. Just a few steps away from the memorial stands the NCAA Hall of Champions, which in less than a year has established itself as one of White River State Park's crown jewels. With 25,000 square feet of exhibit and theater space, the Hall honors not just the champions in sports governed by the National Collegiate Athletic Association, but also the very notion of what it is to be a champion. A building designed by world-renowned architect (and Indianapolis native) Michael Graves, interactive displays created by 1717 Design Group, and state-of-the-art video technology and multimedia presentations by Pyramid Studios make the Hall an unforgettable and moving experience. Among the favorite features is the area dedicated to the NCAA Men's and Women's Basketball Championships ... an area dubbed The March, The Madness Theater. If the passion of the Hall of Champions inspires you to break a sweat yourself, you can walk a short distance to the National Institute for Fitness and Sport. As part of its 65,000-square-foot fitness center, the facility better known as NIFS includes a 200-meter indoor running track, an NBA-caliber basketball floor (the Indiana Pacers used to practice here) and all the equipment and classes you need to whip yourself into shape. Although NIFS is a membership facility, guest passes are available for $12 a day. If you'll be staying overnight in Indy, check with your hotel before heading to NIFS; some hotels sell discounted passes. Of course, no holiday excursion would be complete without a little shopping, and White River State Park's shops have unique items you won't find everywhere else. The Eiteljorg Museum store, White River Trader, offers a variety of gifts inspired by or made by Native Americans, including prints from the Museum's collections, Western bronzes, cowboy hats, and even plush buffalo. The Indianapolis Zoo shop is packed with gifts for animal lovers, including educational games and toys as well as stuff that's just plain fun. The Gardener's Pride Gift Shop at White River Gardens has just about anything for the gardener on your list, including reproductions of the whimsical animal sculptures found in White River Gardens. You'll find something for the college sports fan on your list at the Hall of Champions' Campus Corner gift shop. Campus Corner's design blends bookstore and stadium features to create a collegiate atmosphere, and offers NCAA, Hall of Champions, and NCAA Championship licensed apparel and gifts. And, for that baseball fan, stop by Victory Field, home of Triple-A Baseball's Indianapolis Indians. Quickly designated the best minor league ballpark in America after it opened in 1996, it's the best place in town to pick up caps, jackets, sweatshirts and other merchandise bearing the logo of the team that won baseball's 2000 Triple-A Championship. During the off-season, the Indians gift shop is open Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. , and between Thanksgiving and Christmas, is open Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday, noon to 4 p.m.