The sights and sounds of Christmas Eve in downtown Indianapolis

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — ‘Twas the night before Christmas when all through downtown, news crews searched for a story, and here’s what we found.

At first, it was quiet. Except for one sound — carriage wheels and some horses trotting around.

“Hopefully it gets pretty busy here in the next couple of hours,” coachman James Linsmeyer said. “There’s lots of Christmas lights out this year, and it’s really nice and warm.”

Yes, he works Christmas Eve, just like we do. But a horse in the city? I asked, “is it hard?”

“We’re actually a lot more agile than you’d think we are,” Linsmeyer said.

What’s a tale without a villain? This one’s tall and he’s green. You might even know him. But we promise, he’s not mean.

“The presents that I stole,” a man dressed as the Grinch, named Christopher Thomas, said. “Nah, I’m just kidding.”

The Grinch on a bike, we’ll admit, was surprising. Good thing he brought no trouble — instead, only smiling.

“It’s entertainment and excitement for the kids,” Thomas said. “They see something like this, fully costumed. They’re like, ‘Look mom, there’s the Grinch.’ Just to get the joy out of Christmas.”

We then talked to children down at the circle. One wants a dress for Christmas, the color of purple.

Snowflakes danced off of buildings, but not on the street. While some kids were sad, for bikers, 50 degrees is a treat.

“This is my biker family,” Tim Trent said. “We’re spending time together on Christmas Eve and having a good time.”

We looked around at the colors — bright, luminescent. As kids said they’re anxious for none other than, “Presents,” they cheered.

We couldn’t help but ask what they all hope to see sparkling and wrapped underneath the tree. PS5s, Legos and nutcrackers were among the top answers.

But there’s more to the season than getting new stuff. Everyone’s got their own reason, and to some, family’s enough.

“Just make sure you tell your family members you love them and everything because family is always first,” Justin Thomas said.

Though the day began slow, some might say even boring, by night, crowds started to grow, and at last we had plenty of stories.

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