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Monster truck rally participants, raucous football fans and the Pope don't usually frequent the same sorts of places, but as the largest fixed dome structure in the world and a sports/exhibition facility that can seat over 72,000 people, the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, formerly the Louisiana Superdome in downtown New Orleans can claim to have hosted all of the above.

Completed in 1975, the Mercedes-Benz Superdome quickly became a symbol of the city in its capacity as the home stadium for the NFL's New Orleans Saints and Tulane University's football team, the Green Wave. But its recognition goes far beyond that, since its mammoth size makes the Superdome one of the rare venues that can accommodate major national events such as a Super Bowl or a political convention. That is why six Super Bowls have been played in the Superdome (with the upcoming 2013 Super Bowl also returning), the Sugar Bowl has returned there every year since 1976, and why groups such as the Rolling Stones have staged their concerts there - a concert, by the way, which set a world record for an indoor concert, drawing 87,500 attendees.

The Superdome has also seen its share of saints and sinners, so to speak, with Pope John Paul II addressing 80,000 school children there in 1987, George H. Bush being nominated for reelection in the Superdome during the 1988 Republican National Convention, and Muhummad Ali and Sugar Ray Leonard defeating their respective opponents, Leon Spinks and Roberto Duran, under its distinctive roof. Basketball is no stranger either with the NCAA's Final Four being held in the Dome on more than one occasion, and returning in 2012 - along with another major event, the BCS Championship.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the levee failures, the Superdome, which had served as the refuge of last resort for an estimated 25,000 to 30,000 New Orleanians, looked for a time that it might become the city's symbol of despair, with its ravaged roof and tales of woe. But in an amazing story and a scant 11 months, the Superdome reopened Sept. 25, 2006, better than before, and became that night a symbol of pride and rebirth as the New Orleans Saints defeated their rivals, the Atlanta Falcons, in a highly emotional Monday Night Football game before a national audience.

And so the Superdome is back, hosting its exhibits and trade shows, Mardi Gras balls, concerts and sporting events, even as the echoes of the Who Dats cheering their beloved Saints on to their recent first national championship still linger. Boasting a new roof, a new bronze exterior, improved facilities, including additional suites, and the new Champions Square, an outdoor festival space, complete with a stage and its VIP club XLIV, the Mercedes-Benz Superdome is much more than a place where people gather, but a place where they have come to be reborn. It's well worth seeing and an easy visit to make, as it is in downtown New Orleans (unlike many such stadiums) and close to most things people want to see in this compact city, underlining yet another reason why this venue is so popular with everyone from Super Bowl committees to fans everywhere.