Livin' On Tulsa Time...

 

We're now about half way thru our longest sit to date (2.5 months) in Tulsa OK.  Part of the reason that we requested this sit was that five of our grandkids live about an hour west in Stillwater.  Separate from that compelling point, wherever we land we make a point of exploring the local area - what we were pleasantly surprised by was the plethora (scrabble word for lots) of sights and experiences in this area. 

Besides being the home of Cyrus Avery known as the "father of Route 66," Tulsa also claims to be "The Center of The Universe" (sort of) for having a little-known mysterious acoustic phenomenon. If you stand in the middle of the circle of bricks and make a noise, the sound is echoed back several times louder than it was made. It’s your own private amplified echo chamber. Who knew?!

In the early 1920s, a second wave of oil discoveries along the Arkansas River in Oklahoma turned Tulsa into a veritable boomtown. As businessmen from more cosmopolitan areas arrived and built refineries, a city of great wealth grew around them, with architects and designers taking cues from the au courant Art Deco style that dominated bigger cities. The area was ripe for development, what with this vast midwestern landscape being further west than any fully developed city in the vicinity at the time. Before long, Tulsa became the “Oil Capital of the World” a commercial mecca.  Downtown Tulsa still has an array of historic art deco buildings (Tulsa Trivia: during the 1920-30's Tulsa boasted  more millionaires per capita than anywhere else in the world - courtesy of the oil boom!) 

"It's oil that drives the ships, powers the trains and the planes and fills the traffic lanes. Yes sir, oil's a right valuable commodity, sought for and fought for all over the globe, in Arabia and Persia, Venezuela, Algiers and Mexico. But talk to an oilman anywhere and he'll tell you the oil capital of the world is Tulsa." - Pinky Jimpson, from the 1949 movie Tulsa 

As for restaurants, we highly recommend spending some time on Cherry Street in the Northern Midtown area, a foodie’s playground featuring around 20 restaurants, many of them locally owned.  And if you visit during NOV/DEC you gotta go to Roosevelt's Gastropub where they do it up right for Christmas with an overwhelming display of ornaments and decorations, complete with a light show every hour!

We still have much more to explore in "T-Town" and it reminded us of the song made famous by country singer Don Williams called "Livin' On Tulsa Time" 

“Tulsa Time” might be based on specific locations, but it works as a metaphor for how some folks simply prefer a slower pace to the frenzy that bigger cities just naturally engender. 

Though Tulsa is the second largest city in Oklahoma, it's got a small town vibe. It also has an interesting mix of history, culture, art and food that just may have us setting our watches back to Tulsa Time on occasion as we continue our cross country journey!