Only 24 hours from Tulsa

https://youtu.be/jIjUaxP7PPE

Ann and I left New Orleans to head for Tulsa, via Memphis.  I think now that I was mistaken when I wrote that our journey from Atlanta had been via Jackson.  It was on this NOLA to Memphis journey that we stopped in Jackson and (according to my journal)  had a hassle there as we tried to find a Bank to cash travelers cheques.  Remember them?



I also forgot to say that en route to New Orleans were were amazed when we came to Lake Pontchartrain having never heard of it.  The causeway "blew our minds away".

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We arrived in Memphis in the late afternoon and had enough time to take a River Cruise, about  which I said we were feeling very romantic.


This is not our boat and photo' is from the web, but I remember being mightily impressed with the magnificent bridge.

After the cruise we had three hours to kill at the Continental Bus Station. I noted  "staff very friendly - cashed our (travelers) cheques".

And so to Tulsa.   Why Tulsa?

Well of course because Ann had a long term pen friend there.  They were meeting for the first time. Wunderbar!   The friend was named Janice - she was newly wed to John.  They were every young and already owned their own house with all mod cons, exceot a/c

*  It was Labor Day weekend  (1975) and the temps reached 100 f, unheard of for we Brits!  We all went to see "Jaws", not because of the film, but to get into an air conditioned Movie House.

John was good enough to take us to the Oral Roberts University Campus with his (in)famous Prayer Tower.   He was also smart enough to drive us to downtown Tulsa with its Art Deco district including the famous Boston Ave United Methodist Church.

Reckoned, with good cause, to be one of the finest Art Deco building in the USA.
I noted that our second dinner in Tulsa was at a Mexican American restaurant where we each had a "De-luxe" all you can eat dinner for $3.25

After Tulsa we took yet another bum-stunning bus ride to Flagstaff via Oklahoma City, Amarillo, and Albuquerque where for the first time in our lives we saw beggars.  After thirty two hours of travel time we arrived in Flagstaff at 5:30 a.m. and it was cold!

I suppose that Flagstaff is forgettable, but there we saw one of those huge American Freight trains, with maybe three engines and was it seventy or one hundred freight cars.



We were there not for Flagstaff but for the Grand Canyon.

Of course it was awesome.  In my opinion there are few words, descriptions, or photographs which come anywhere near doing it justice.  So I'll say no more than that Ann and I were filled with awe.   Those who have been there know what I mean.

Gosh, we were seeing much of the U.S.A, and there's more to come - Salt Lake City, San Francisco, Bellingham WA, and then into Canada.   Watch  this space!

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