Ain't No Place Like It

7.15.2014


Would you like to go on a walk with me?

As you probably already know, last November I started a new job that is located in downtown Oklahoma City. It's been over 8 months now, and I absolutely love working downtown. 

An abundance of tasty restaurants are within a five-minute walk, or there's always a food truck handy. The library is less than two blocks, which is great because I can check out tons of books ("only" 30 at a time, I was told). There's also a lovely park and the general hustle and bustle of the city, which is new and fun for me to see on a daily basis. 

Oklahoma City in particular, I think, is great because while it is our capitol and a generally large city population wise, it's nothing even close to the kind of busy you would see in a place like Chicago or New York. Basically it's city without too much city.

A few weeks ago I decided to take my camera to work and go on a little walking tour during my lunch hour. I wasn't sure if my pictures would be interesting enough for a blog post, but then I remembered Charlotte's "Around Town" series and how much I enjoy looking at her pictures, so I figured I'd give this a shot. Granted, Charlotte lives in Europe, so her pictures are guaranteed to be more interesting than mine, but still.

Just pretend we stopped at the local smoothie shop, Crave, for a delicious drink, and now I'm taking you on a little walking tour around the downtown area. Just make sure you bring a water bottle or five, because it is hot outside.



^^^ I really need to try out our bike system. There are bike racks throughout the city, and you just rent a bike in one location and return it to any other location. It's like Netflix for active people.


^^^Everyone in my office says Coney Island is really good. It's on my list!

^^^There are painted windows like this everywhere all year round. When your state only has one professional sports team, they really get into it.

^^^I don't know what the deal is with that multicolored building on the right, but I like it. 

The picture below is a fuller shot of the Myriad Gardens. This is where everyone and their mom goes to take maternity, engagement, wedding, etc., pictures. It's really a lovely area. In the summer there are free movies and concerts on the lawn, and in the winter there are pop-up shops and lights everywhere.

There are so many other things I could have taken pictures of, but in case you didn't know, it's dang hot at noon in Oklahoma, and I was dripping sweat and trying to walk fast, so I only made one quick loop and didn't detour much. 

Not to ruin the illusion or anything. But seriously. I had to paper towel myself off in the bathroom after this little walk, which is, not surprisingly, exactly what it sounds like.

Anyhoo, what do you think about the tour? Should I try it again sometime when it's a bit cooler outside and I can go farther? Do you like Oklahoma City?

__________

*If you liked this post, you might also like my "Keep It Local" series about delicious local restaurants: S&B Burger Joint (home of the peanut butter burger) | Kaisers Old-Fashioned Ice Cream Shop
Beka @ Sunshine to the Square Inch said...

Yes! I loved this. Walking tours are fun. Maybe I'll do this of Woodward =) I'm laughing just thinking about it.

Anyways. Let's RENT THOSE BIKES WHEN I VISIT! All caps because that looks like fun! I took pictures of The Memorial to share but I just have a hard time with that because it is so serious.

I like your tour! You should do one in the fall when it isn't so hot.

Tracy said...

You should have waited until today to take your pictures. Can you believe how nice it was out there?

The Lady Okie said...

It was insanely nice. Perfect day for a car nap ;)

Courtney said...

I LOVE OKC. It's about three hours from us and we love making special weekend trips there! It's been way too long though.

Megan said...

"Netflix for active people." > insert crying/laughing emoji here. But really. This was fun! Our local library lets you check out ONE HUNDRED books at a time, but "only" 20 DVDs. Madness!

Betsy said...

I've never had a tour of Oklahoma City before - thank you! What a fun glimpse into your life :)

Unknown said...

I LOVE this tour! And, for us Europeans, pictures of America and other faraway lands are way more exciting than ours. It's all a matter of where you stand (well, live), I guess. :)
PS: so happy you like my little series!

Anonymous said...

I always love seeing pictures from other places. Great idea! Maybe I should do one of Albany. Hmmm...

Jennifer @ Mrs Robbins Sparkles said...

Coney Island is good! I love Sweets n Eats, their roast blue plate special is wonderful! I work downtown too, but I have a tendency not to leave my little block (Main & Broadway). Maybe I'll branch out this week since it's cool enough to walk around :)

Unknown said...

I loved this!! It looks and sounds like a beautiful city! Netflix for active people ha ha love it:)

Kerry @ Till Then Smile Often said...

I was in Oklahoma City once for work and they took me to the site of the memorial which was so beautifully done. Other than that I haven't seen much. The Myriad Gardens was very pretty and i can imagine it being filled with people. Very beautiful.

Breenah A said...

I love this! Maybe Quinn and I should do our own version of Wichita. I love your Netflix description of the bikes.

Becky said...

I've never been and now I want to go! DC does that bike thing too and I haven't done it either. I don't get into that often though so if I did a walking tour, it'd probably be of my little neighborhood haha.

Robyn B said...

love all the colors & this is a fun idea! :)

Rachel said...

The closest I've ever gotten to Oklahoma city is driving on the Expressway around it when driving to Dallas and back. I've been to lots of cities with the bike systems, though. Angel thinks that sounds so cool, but we've never tried it. I'm not really a big fan of biking in the city when you always have to stop at intersections and walk across, I prefer biking in the boondocks where we live and intersections don't exist....or at least stoplights don't.

Candice said...

I used to live in Norman, then OKC. In Chicago now. However, OKC is growing and I think many people underestimate it. Love that place!

Leslie Lukens Martin said...

This is a great post! And your pictures are fabulous! Thanks for the little tour! Bricktown/downtown OKC is such a fun area....and it seems to be changing/growing so fast. There's something new every time I'm there (and always something under construction!).

Courtney Rose said...

We have the bike thing here in NYC, although riding a bike in the city does not seem enjoyable...at at!! Let me know how Coney Island Hot Wiener's is? Fun fact: Coney Island is actually famous for having the original Nathans so I am very intrigued to see what they got going on over there!

Ali said...

I love the bike system, that is so cool! Thanks for giving us a peek into OKC!

Kate said...

I was in Oklahoma City for a few hours several years ago, and I really liked it! It had that big city feel without tons and tons of people. I remember wishing I could stay longer!

I also remember this:
Before we ever got to OKC, we had stopped at a rest area to use their facilities. We talked to a lady to see if there was anything in the area we just NEEDED to see. She asked if we knew who Toby Keith was; we laughed and told her about how close we lived to Nashville so, duh. She insisted we eat at Toby Keith's restaurant. No matter HOW HARD we tried to get other suggestions, that was the only one she would give us. You MUST eat at Toby Keith's restaurant. We didn't.
We also found it really weird that there was a Sonic that you went inside to eat. We didn't eat there either, but it felt wrong just seeing it.

The Lady Okie said...

You're the opposite of me! I used to live in a suburb of Chicago. Chicago will always be the best city ever :) But OKC has really been stepping up its game lately. I do think people underestimate it. It's actually really nice down here!

The Lady Okie said...

It is weird to eat inside that Sonic. But I've actually been to eat inside another Sonic farther south! Is OK the only place where they have eat-in Sonics? Can't be.

Also, I've been to Toby Keith's once. It's fine. I don't know why that lady was raving about it. I could give you tons of recommendations if you decide to come again! With working downtown, I am really learning my way around the place pretty well. It's fun!

The Lady Okie said...

Why have we not met for lunch yet?! For serious. I haven't been to Sweets n Eats yet, but I've seen the window and thought I should try it out. Good to know you like it!

Caroline @ In Due Time said...

Love seeing pictures of my home state!! You are such a good photographer! Thanks for the tour!

Food, Booze, & Baggage said...

What a fun post! I vote for another one. You captured some great pictures.

Jennifer @ Mrs Robbins Sparkles said...

I don't know, but we should! They do the blue plate special I told you about on Thursdays, if you ever want to go just hit me up on Twitter :)

The Modern Tulip said...

How quaint! What a neat tour of downtown :)

Susannah said...

This is awesome! I love seeing your city through your eyes!

Amanda said...

I am cracking up! I thought I was the only one who had to literally paper towel dry myself after being outside for my lunch hour. I love this idea, though. I may need to do it with the OSU campus or downtown Stillwater :-)

Unknown said...

Amanda, you totally make me want to visit right this second! Also, I love when places go all-in on something (like the sports team). It is just so much fun!

Alyson said...

Love love love! I am always curious what other cities look like and you did a great job capturing yours:) Reminds me I need to walk around Pittsburgh more and do the same. And yes, please more photos and another post! I am just nosy like that;)

Cheers,
Alyson

Veronica Lee Burns said...

So I LOVE this and I'm with you! Since moving to a job in OKC I'm falling so in love with it! You work much closer to the downtown part than I do. I've seen or been to almost all these places though! And we just to our anniversary pictures near that mulitcolored building. I'm hoping they show up in the mail soon!

Anonymous said...

I haven't spent much time in OKC, but it looks beautiful! I love a smaller city, like Fort Worth. I love that town! I'm from the Dallas area, which is also great, but man, it's so easy to get lost in that place. The roads were not made with visitors in mind.

Victoria said...

This was great! Sorry it brought on such a sweat on your part!

I'd love to see more posts like this! I especially liked the quotes you snapped shots of as well as the music hall and that blossoming tree towards the end. That park sounds great! I just love public activities that bring people together for simple things.

The Jessa Olson Blog said...

I miss OKC so much. So many things that I love, and wish I could go back ASAP..

Katie Elizabeth said...

This is such a great post idea! I've never been to Oklahoma City before so I enjoyed the virtual tour :) We have one of those bike rental systems in Chicago that I've been meaning to try, too!

Jenna Griffin | Gold & Bloom said...

Love this idea! It would be so fun to work downtown. Do you live far? Is it trafficky there?
Haha, you sound like me when I went to Greenville recently. I wanted to take little bath in the sink I was SO hot after just a short walk!

Katie @ Daily Cup of Kate said...

New reader here- so glad I stumbled upon your blog! My good friend lives in OKC and I plan on visiting her soon!

Anonymous said...

I ran that city last year for the OKC Memorial Marathon. It's my home!!! I miss it. I'm out here in NC now. So glad I stumbled across your blog!!

Flora said...

Great post and photos! OKC has changed so much since I moved 9 years ago, but it will always be home.

・ DESIGNED BY ECLAIR DESIGNS