I believe that a visit to the FAM First Americans Museum (USD15) was a good introduction to Oklahoma state. Much of the display, which dealt with the displacement of native American Indians, was quite sad and reminded me of other similar incidents in history, such as the Scottish Highland clearances. The museum was beautifully laid out over two floors, with far too much to read on the information panels. Traditions were explained and artwork was on display, with countless interactive touchscreens. These screens are designed to lead you to more information, but I hate those things- I never touch them! We began by joining a guided tour (something else I really don't like, unless they're obligatory) but the amount of standing around, talking and explaining meant that I quickly dropped out so I could examine the individual displays in more detail. It was a burning hot day outside, but somehow the heat didn't bother me. What really did bother me was the glacial cold of the aircon in the museum and I had to step outside the museum several times to warm myself up.

On the same outing I visited the Oklahoma City Contemporary Art Gallery, which was free. It was difficult to get emotional about any of the exhibits there, but it made for a fun walkthrough, especially the architecture section. Earlier the same day, before the heat began rising, my hosts had taken me for a walk around downtown Oklahoma City, which was incredibly calm and pleasant. At one point, in an urban park beside a waterway (which vaguely reminded me of Singapore), we came across a huge outdoor installation of 45 bronze figures on horseback, life-and-one-half sized figures. This is the Oklahoma Centennial Land Run Monument, finally completed in 2019 by Paul Moore (the project took several years to realise). The movement and kinetic energy is visible on the sculpted figures and in the whole installation! This represents the arrival of the settlers when the unassigned lands were opened for colonisation, presumably once the native Indians had been removed. If you come to Oklahoma City, don't miss it, along with the bombing memorial.

Other parts of downtown Oklahoma City consisted of lovely gardens, open to the public, with many flowers and plants. There are children's play areas, and areas where the adults can hang out.
While in Oklahoma City I tried, along with my hosts, some of the local IPA beers, which are excellent. One of my favourites was the F5 IPA, very tasty with a lot of bite, the tin sporting an image of a tornado (presumably F5 referred to the level of force of the tornado). The other was a very smooth and somewhat creamy beer called City IPA, with 7.2% alcohol content, which I loved.



This incredible series of bronze sculptures depicts the arrival of the first settlers in Oklahoma


This accident is depicted in amazing detail


Park and gardens right in the middle of downtown Oklahoma City


Inside the FAM First Americans Museum


Somebody fishing on Lake Hefner, a body of water within Oklahoma City


Galleries on the interior of the FAM First Americans Museum


A water spray installation which provided relief in the fierce summer heat


A couple of the excellent IPA beers I tried while in Oklahoma City