Hamster Dancin' Around the World

Oh goodie, more pictures!

Sozlet's waving back at Penny.

Really lovely house, the impatiens are great! I love when they get all exuberant like that. Pretty color combinations, too.

This is the Council Oak Tree, the spot where Tulsa began. All tours of Tulsa have to start here.

In the 1830s, a group of Creek Indians were relocated to this part of Oklahoma (formerly called Indian Territory) from Alabama. They carried embers from their council fire to their new home. When they arrived, they deposited the ashes on this site on a low hill overlooking the Arkansas River in a solemn, traditional ceremony. This large burr oak tree marked the location they chose for their new town. For the remainder of the century, Creeks gathered at the tree for tribal councils which included ceremonies, feasts and games. For miles around, smaller oak trees were forceably bent so their trunks would grow horizontal to the ground, pointing toward the Council Oak. These trees were known as Signal Oaks. I believe one still survives. The Creeks believed the Council Oak site was sacred, and no tornadoes would ever hit the site. It's been 170+ years, and so far they've been right. A few superstitious people still congregate there during spring storms. There is a small park surrounding the tree that features plants traditionally cultivated by the Creeks for medicinal purposes. It's quite interesting.

Tulsa is located in northeastern Oklahoma, an area of hills, green forests and lakes. The town is located on the Arkansas River (see photo), a major tributary of the Mississippi. In fact, an international seaport is located just outside Tulsa. Believe it or not! Ocean-going barges travel past New Orleans, up the Mississippi River, then up the Arkansas to the Port of Catoosa for faster customs inspections. The city is also located on the original Route 66. Although it celebrates its Native American heritage, this city of 385,000 (metro area 860,000) also offers nationally-ranked art museums, ballet and opera companies. Its downtown, largely built during the 1920s oil boom, boasts many significant Art Deco structures.

<learning a lot from Penny's TulsaTour>

I don't believe it :wink:

(According to the Tulsa Port of Catoosa official website, shipments are trans-loaded to or from ocean vessels at the Port of New Orleans or the Port of Houston.)

Penny and I checked out the construction on our new downtown arena.



When it is completed next year, it will look like this. Designed by Cesar Pelli, architect of the Petronas Towers.

Technicalities, Walter. The barges I've seen have been similar to the "river barges" shown on your link. They transfer containers to and from barges at Houston (sometimes) or New Orleans (most often.) The point, though, is that they go through U.S. Customs at the Port here. It's officially a "Foreign Trade Zone."

Pelli is interesting, maybe time for a thread on him. He's older, but he's had a presence on the architectural scene.

Penny liked this statue in the largest city park, Woodward Park, which happens to be located a few blocks from my house. The statue is titled "Appeal to the Great Spirit." It's a copy...the original is in the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.

The 45-acre park the 45-acre park features rock gardens, an English herb garden, a terraced Italian Renaissance rose garden (more photos below), a Victorian conservatory (Lord and Burnham), a three-acre arboretum and an azalea garden with over 15,000 azaleas. (The azaleas are planted on the hillside behind the statue, under the tall trees.) And in the springtime, thousands of bright yellow daffodils are naturalized on a certain hillside in the park that I call "Daffodil Hill" (of course.)

Penny says she'd like to see the original statue when she goes to Boston.

Osso, if you're interested, you can google images under "Tulsa Art Deco." Tons of fascinating stuff.

Tomorrow I will take you to the site of a local enigma. (Stay tuned.)

Great pictures, Eva!

(If you look closely at the photo of the statue, you can see Penny resting against the horse's hoof. It was hot that day...about 96 degrees...typical for July.)

Aha, I just found Penny--if you hadn't mentioned she was resting by the horse's hoof, I wouldn't have noticed her. Sort of like "Where's Waldo?"

I'll make sure that Penny does get to see the original of the statue when she comes here.

Great tour! Luuuuurve your house.

Penny saw it already - she'd been in Boston some hours

Well then, no wonder she liked it so much!

FYI, here's a better picture of our house, taken in March when we hosted the Japanese exchange student. That's him, along with SonofEva and Hubby waving at you. The house is about 2,400 sq. ft....not huge, just the right size for us. Two story brick with an attic conversion (master suite) and a great basement (2 rooms, office & mechanical). It's in wonderful shape for a 1929 house. We were lucky to find it. Houses in this neighborhood sell very quickly. We've been here since 1999.

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Now, back to Penny's Tulsa tour.

On a railroad bridge downtown, there is a very curious spot. It's called "The Center of the Universe."

"It's this way," Penny says.



If you stand in the very center of this circle and speak, you can hear your own voice amplified with a very loud echo. However, no one standing outside the circle can hear the effect. Not even 2 feet away. It's a very eerie experience. No one around here can adequately explain it.



SonofEva takes Penny to The Center of the Universe.

Eva--

You'll be a hard act to follow.