Bumping this to say that my daughter and I spent the weekend in Tulsa and we had a blast (this was a bonding thing, not a BFP meetup, but that can be arranged
). I chose Tulsa because I'd never even been to Oklahoma.
As hokey as it sounds, neither of us would forgive ourselves if we didn't go to the Center Of The Universe, an anomaly downtown where you can hear an echo. I was impressed with how clean downtown was. We were right in front of a tower that is supposed to be the tallest building in the Great Plains, excluding Dallas (if that's even in the GP).
After that, we drove a bit to the greatest aquarium I have ever seen, with a wrap-around shark tank. The aquarium even does weddings-were I getting married, I would so have it surrounded by sharks! Then we drove back across town, fortunately in the general direction of the hotel, to a really large park and a well-done zoo. There happened to be an exhibit of those mechanized dinosaurs there, too. Very close by was the airport and an aerospace museum, but it was closed for a private party that day
. Both of us were wondering how Tulsa gets an international airport and Little Rock (which I think is larger, not sure) does not.
I was impressed by Oklahoma in general, at least the parts we saw. On the drive there, we passed a series of lakes and the sunset was really beautiful. As for the people, complete strangers would "Good Morning" and "Good Evening" us all the time. Really nice.
Tulsa was the first city in which I have ever seen a steak place that delivered. We were there for pick-up, and it was a tiny little place, but I bet they make a fortune. At that point, I don't think anything was as delicious as that steak in my PJ's back in the hotel.
It appeared a very diverse city as well-white, African-American, many Native Americans, Asians, and a Jordanian-American who ran the steak place. Tulsa has a rich African-American history, as freed slaves headed west to become (that's right) cowboys and get away from the violence and racism to the east and south. There was land to be had and money to be made.
I did learn a lesson, however: You love your turnpikes up there! So, some amount of singles must be set aside for tolls and not spent on anything else. If we had to pay a toll to get into the city (and past Muskogee), then we would have to pay the same toll to get back out. We were scrounging for change under the seat and sticky coins in the drink cup.
Also, word to the wise: when you leave your home city, always call the bank and let them put a travel marker on your debit card. You will be flagged for a fraud and have to call them when you get home. Thank goodness for a backup.
Those hiccups aside, I loved Tulsa. Little Rock is my home, but Tulsa is my home-away-from-home
.