August 7: Post 2 - I started by finding City Hall. Security directed me to another building. I found the right department after a bit of looking, but they didn't have any maps available and the computer person was out today (Friday). I did get a website to go visit, but it won't get me 3 ft x 3 ft color maps. I left my contact information and got the name and number of an engineer. In theory the person is supposed to contact me when he is back in the office. We'll see what comes of it.
After that little adventure, in the very hot sun, I decided to check out the bicentennial park next to City Hall. It is next to the museum of art and leads to the music hall. It's also a camp for the homeless. I stayed to the middle of the park and walked toward the music hall. At the other end of the park are a series of plaques that, I think tell the history of Oklahoma (I didn't have time to read them all). There was also a central plaque commemorating the park.
Next I headed over to the Botanical Gardens and something called the Crystal Bridge. The gardens were really a large pond with a winding road, and several stairs to walk around various places on the grounds. The Crystal Bridge was an enclosed cylinder that had a contained tropical forest. It was decorated with various kids themes such as Alice in Wonderland, The Wizard of Oz and Peter Pan. My favorite was a dragon who's head is at the top of a little waterfall at the beginning of the tour. The nostrils are venting steam in addition to the water seemingly coming from its mouth. Back to the gardens outside, I wandered around for a while and got some shots of a whale fountain that actually moved every now and then. I couldn't tell whether the movements were random or tied to some mechanism below the water. Still it was an amusing surprise when I realized it had moved.
After that, rather than going to the museum I decided to drive up to the state capital (3 capitals in 3 days - a record for me). There was a risk because the guidebook said the capital closed at 3 PM. The drive up was straightforward but it was interesting that Oklahoma seems to have built a highway around the capital, I guess to get people where they want to go in a hurry. I parked in a satellite lot and took a tunnel under the capital. The inside, like most, was very impressive. Someone seemed to have set up one of the floors for a reception or something, but otherwise there seemed to be only guards and other tourists.I went outside to take pictures of the exterior and right after I saw the two statues out front, I saw the oil well (for Philips 66) right out by the front parking lot. Then I noticed several others in the distance. People were heading to their cars as I was taking pictures.
Around the back of the Capitol there was a park set up with a stone fountain in the middle. It was a very nice contemplation area, although I'm not sure how much it is actually used.Done with pictures, I figured I would walk across the parking lot and then the highway, which hadn't been particularly busy when I had arrived. Unfortunately, it was now past 5 PM and the traffic had picked up. Eventually, I went back to the front of the building and the security person let me back in.
Here's a slideshow of the photos from my time in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
Then it was back on the road to head home. Getting back on the freeway was less of a problem than the last time I was there. However, rush hour and some closed lanes made the first 30 miles or so very slow, almost like LA or Denver (see previous post). After I was out of the influence of Oklahoma City the speed picked up, except for the occasional construction. My exit in Dallas was sooner than I expected, but that was find with me.
I was back safely and the end of another adventure.
TTFN
