A Visit to South Bend: Studebakers and the Golden Dome

In the heart of the industrial Midwest, just 90 miles east of Chicago, South Bend, Indiana serves as a Mecca for travelers, football fans and aficionados of chocolate, historic architecture, and antique cars. Once home to the manufacturing plant that produced the famous Studebaker automobile, South Bend is the destination of choice for college football fans from coast to coast.

The campus of the University of Notre Dame isn't just a college campus with a big football stadium, it's an architectural and historic wonder. After the big game, take some time to walk through this stately campus, and take a close look at the famous Golden Dome, high atop the school's administration building. Covered with pure gold, this landmark sparkles and shines for miles around, and is quite likely to be one of the first things you see from the airplane window as you circle around for a landing. Take a look inside the building and underneath the dome as well for a wonderful surprise. The building itself is home to marvelous murals, and the underside of the dome itself is a wonder to behold. Stand directly under the dome and look straight up. Reminiscent of the Sistine Chapel, the ceiling was painstakingly covered with a vast and heavenly painting that you won't soon forget.

But after you've enjoyed cheering on Notre Dame's Fighting Irish, your sports day isn't over yet. You can enjoy a visit to Covaleski Stadium to see the South Bend Silver Hawks, South Bend's minor league baseball team. The Silver Hawks, appropriately named after a sporty and popular Studebaker model, always put on an exciting game. And of course, every sports fan must pay a visit to the College Football Hall of Fame, located in downtown South Bend just a few miles from the Notre Dame campus.

While you're downtown, you won't be able to pass up a visit to the South Bend Chocolate Café, for a fabulous chocolate treat. While you're there, don't forget to check out the memorabilia on the walls, and enjoy a piping hot Chocolate LaSalle--named after the French explorer who made his famous portage across the St. Joseph River in South Bend. From the Chocolate Café, the next logical step is a tour of the South Bend Chocolate Factory on West Sample Street, where you can see where they make their fabulous chocolates, and also see a little bit of chocolate history in their entertaining chocolate museum.

Of course, no visit to South Bend would be complete without a stop at the Studebaker Museum just south of downtown. You can have an up-close look at mint condition Studebakers, and see the history of the company going all the way back to when the Studebaker brothers manufactured covered wagons. After the Studebaker Museum, a trip to the old Studebaker Mansion--now transformed into an elegant restaurant called Tippecanoe Place--is definitely in order. The stately and historic stone mansion is full of the original furnishings owned by the Studebaker family, and enjoying dinner there will make you feel like one of South Bend's elite who often attended Mrs. Studebaker's fabulous social events. After dinner in the Studebaker Mansion, take a brief tour of the city's west side historic district and see how the wealthy industrialists of the 1800s used to live.

South Bend is of course, a shopping Mecca. The massive University Park Mall in nearby Mishawaka is home to plenty of high-end stores and boutiques, but that's not all. To get the most out of your shopping dollar, take a trip to some of the quaint neighborhood shopping districts. The downtown/East Race area, near the city's man-made whitewater rafting site, is home to many excellent boutiques featuring one-of-a-kind items. Just up from Indiana University at South Bend, the scenic River Park neighborhood is also home to many small, family-owned shops and boutiques, offering everything from hand-made crafts to exotic imports.

While you're here, there are plenty of hotels and motels--but for a few dollars more you can enjoy staying in one of the city's fabulous homes in the historic district that have been converted to elegant B&Bs that cater to your every desire. This surprising jewel of the Midwest