You may have seen my post earlier this week on 100 Ideas to be Global from Home. Included in the list are many ideas that I haven’t tried yet myself. For example, I’ve never had an international potluck, never learned an international card game, and I definitely do not know the names of all 194 UN-recognized countries. I do hope to remedy these, but I want to tackle some earlier than others, like #33: explore your own city like it was a foreign destination.

When I travel, I tend to visit the well-known stops but it is often the little things that I get the most excited about. In Rome, while I enjoy the Colosseum, the Vatican, and the Capitoline, I much prefer the quiet and less visited Roman Rose Garden, Sant’Andrea al Quirinale, and Palazzo Colonna. But when I’m at home, I never even think about going to a museum or reading the placards in parks or taking pictures of a monument unless I have out-of-town guests. Well, new city, new me. I hope to explore OKC just like it were Berlin, Bangkok, or Bogota, visiting the famous landmarks as well as the hidden treasures my new city has to offer.

It just so happens that I came to this conclusion yesterday morning after dropping Hubby off for a 7am meeting. I was to meet the realtor at 8am and with time to kill, I went downtown, parked and began walking the streets with camera phone in hand. It wasn’t long before I realized where I was – at the Oklahoma City National Memorial, the monument in honor of the 168 who died in the OKC bombing in 1995, as well as for the survivors and rescuers. As the sun came up in Oklahoma, I believe this was the best place to start my journey of exploring my city.