**My heart goes out to the folks who were affected by the recent tornadoes that touched down in Oklahoma**
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#1 – Travel somewhere I’ve never been – Complete!
I’ve taken 4 trips birthday trips in the last 5 years – it’s a thing!
- 2011 – Portland, OR
- 2013 – Louisville, KY
- 2014 – Albuquerque and Santa Fe, NM
- 2015 – Tulsa, OK
With each trip I’ve been able to either visit good friends or travel with them. I’ve entertained the thought of a solo trip, but haven’t yet either got up the nerve or found a trip I wanted to take on my own. That could still happen.
Tulsa was of the visiting-friends variety. My friend Sara and her family moved from Chicago to Tulsa almost 2 years ago. Oklahoma and Tulsa were a bit of a mystery to me (and pretty much everyone else I told I was going there for the weekend – Tucson or Texas is where everybody thought I went). But you guys, HANSON is from Tulsa, St. Vincent is from Tulsa, the Flaming Lips are from Oklahoma… I hear Brad Pitt was born in OK. So stop thinking you don’t know nuthin about Oklahoma.
But here, I will share a bit more about what I learned…
Friday
I landed in Tulsa at just around 11am and headed out the meet Sara and her kiddos. The Tulsa airport is itty-bitty and easy-peasy. I basically got off my plane and walked down one hallway straight outside. You should go there!
They gave me a quick tour of the Tulsa that lies between the airport and their home. Their house is awesome and I wish I’d taken pictures of it to share with you, but maybe that would have been weird for Sara and well, I just didn’t do it. Sara has great taste and lots of art and comfy furniture and the house kept going on and on in unexpected ways til you reached the guest suite (that’s right, uh-huh, you know it). Yes, a quiet suite all to myself. I took 2 naps!
After getting a little settled we headed out to lunch at a great little deli – Trenchers Delicatessen. It’s tucked away at the end of a nondescript strip mall – this place was a gem. I had the “Dutch Crunch” – a turkey sandwich with avocado mayo, bacon, arugula and swiss on housemade bread with housemade chips. It was dang good
(#5. 12 new restaurants in 12 new towns)
Everything they serve they make in house. One of the owners was rolling out dough for their breads while we ate. And they had the best fresh squeezed lemonade I’ve had yet. I couldn’t get enough. I’d like some right now, actually.
Next stop – The Woody Guthrie Center!
This is a great little museum celebrating the life and legacy of Woody Guthrie and it’s inexorable link to Oklahoma. There was also a mini Beatles exhibit. (#21 - see an art exhibit once a month)
And look – I learned to play the drums!
hello, drummer-face.
After my rock ‘n roll afternoon I took a nap and Sara and I had dinner at El Guapo’s Cantina and did a little shopping at Dwelling Spaces.
Saturday
Saturday I woke up and it it was my birthday! I think I did feel a little older. ah well. I wandered into the kitchen to find a birthday card propped up against the coffee maker. It was a card from a friend from home…turns out Sara asked some of my friends/family from home and elsewhere to send birthday cards for me to Tulsa. Sara then had them handed to me throughout the day…one by the coffeemaker, one with breakfast, a store clerk handed me one in a shop we stopped into, one came with lunch and so one…everyone should spend their birthday in Tulsa with Sara and have friends like mine!
Sara took me to do a little shopping and out to lunch. Where I saw, but did not consume the following weird sodas that I think Tulsan’s drink in secret
Lunch was juicy burgers and tasty fries from HopBunz Burgers on Peoria. Their fries are made from Maine potatoes…I didn’t know that was a thing, Maine?
My birthday was unfortunately marred by a headache I just couldn’t shake. Sara had planned lots of treats, but about all I was up for was lunch-movie-nap. So that’s what we did.
Sara, her husband Ari and I headed out for an early dinner at Juniper – a fantastic restaurant focused on local, seasonal foods. We started with the charcuterie board and chicken liver pâté, followed by a romaine hearts Caesar salad. I ordered a housemade ginger ale to drink and had the roasted rosemary chicken as my entrée. It was so good.
Seriously, if you are going to go to Tulsa – even if you aren’t going to take my advice and stay with Sara and Ari – eat at all the places we ate. You’ll be a happier person for it.
My flight out Sunday morning was at the crack’o so it was an early night for me.
I can’t wait to go back and see what else there is to eat and drink in Tulsa!
Thanks, Sara, Ari, Charlie and Lucy for giving me such a sweet and lovely birthday weekend!
