Super Bowl XLVI | twenty-something

Super Bowl XLVI, Monument Circle (See all of my Super Bowl pics below!)

It’s been more than a week since the Super Bowl hub-bub in Indy, and things are back to normal — or should I say, back to boring.

It was a miracle that Indy won the bid for this year’s Super Bowl in the first place. I don’t know that anyone really expected it. When Indy won the bid, I was not a resident. And I have to admit that I have never been particularly impressed with this city. Don’t get me wrong, now that I live here, I have discovered that it has plenty to keep me busy and has been a great place to start out as a twenty-something, but let’s just say it’s no Chicago.

Super Bowl week totally changed my perspective of the the so-called Nap-Town. Maybe it’s because it was suddenly infiltrated with Hollywood visitors (yes, I was on Ryan Gosling watch), or maybe it was how flawlessly the city was able to adapt to such a major event, the likes of which it has never seen before. But something changed with this city last week, and the nation saw it. I didn’t hear one negative comment or read one bad review of our humble Indianapolis, with celebrities, athletes and culture critics all impressed by the convenience downtown offered and what a surprisingly enjoyable (and unseasonably warm) backdrop the capital and people of Indiana provided for this American tradition.

Before SB XLVI arrived, I had made absolutely no plans for the week. I wasn’t even sure I would make it downtown to see the Village (Georgia St. and the Circle were transformed for the various SB festivities; and they dubbed it “Super Bowl Village”). But somehow, my Super Bowl week turned out to be more eventful and exciting than I would have ever expected. Things just kept falling into my lap, and the week turned out to be a great experience thanks to my totally hooked-up friends.

THE PLAY-BY-PLAY — pics are at the bottom of this post

Friday January 29 was the first day of the official Super Bowl week. A co-worker of mine’s boyfriend had opened up a temporary club in the old Nordstrom building downtown called The Huddle, so I went to check it out. I was impressed with what they did with the place; it was chic and very clubby, with blue mood lighting and white couches, tables and curtains. The drinks were more than I would have liked to pay, but it was a cool place. I bet it got pretty crazy there later in the week.

Saturday, I ventured downtown during the day to check out Super Bowl Village. It was pretty nippy, but with beer in hand, Steven and I walked Georgia street end to end, stopping to warm up in the heated enclosed beer garden, down to the zip line and back around to the Circle, complete with ginormous XLVI (which have a screen projected on them when lit up at night). I was really impressed with how they had revamped Georgia, which was completely pedestrian friendly, decked out with heat lamps and speckled with outdoor bars (all serving varieties of Budweiser, the ubiquitous sponsor of everything Super Bowl).

I wasn’t planning on heading back downtown until the next Saturday when I would be hitting up the Pitbull and 50 Cent concert, but Wednesday unexpectedly proved to be one of the best days of my Super Bowl week. One of my co-workers scored tickets to the first of Jimmy Fallon‘s Indy SB tapings of Late Nite and asked me to go along. As a celeb-stalker, this was a dream come true. To my dismay, the night we had tickets to the show, Tim Tebow and Tracy Morgan were guests. Snooze. And imagine my frustration when I found out that Adam Levine (swoon) and Taylor Lautner would be on the following day. Although I was bummed at this predicament, it didn’t diminish my excitement to see Jimmy. And he was everything I expected: adorable, genuine and a riot. And since I had band tickets (All American Rejects), I got to go on stage at the end of the show. So, naturally, I decided to chat up Jimmy, who was chillin’ in the corner of the stage. I was sort of at a loss for words, so our conversation consisted of me asking what he liked most about Indy. His answer was sort of bland and typical, with him citing the welcoming people of Indy and their numerous dining suggestions as his favorite thing. I also may have almost spit on him, but it was totally worth it! Too bad I couldn’t get a picture of him

When I was just getting over my lucky Wendesday, my Thursday continued with surprises. While in line buying dinner at Walmart, I got a call from Alyssa telling me to be ready ASAP to go with her to the Pepsi Fan Jam at the Pepsi Colosseum at the Fairgrounds. And who would be there? Yep, Adam Levine. I didn’t miss my chance after all! What would have been a regular night watching Vampire Diaries at home ended up being a big party with B.o.B., Gym Class Heroes, Adam, and All American Rejects (again). Not too shabby.

Friday, I passed on trying to fight the mob (literally – police were calling the Village a “human gridlock”) to see LMFAO; but I got my fill waiting more than two hours in the cold and rain outside the Bud Light Hotel tent on Saturday to see 50 Cent, Lil Jon, Pitbull (so awesome!) and a surprise performance by Far East Movement. We also caught a glimpse of Nelly, who decided to pay a visit to Lil Jon on stage. Thanks to Alyssa for hooking us all up with the tix from Hot 96.3!

After a hectic week I hardly expected, watching the actual game on the couch with frozen pizza was more than welcome. But who cares about the Super Bowl anyway? Not me 😉