Houston
Houston is the biggest city in the state of Texas and is the fourth biggest city in the United States. It covers an area of six hundred square miles and has a population that exceeds two and a quarter million people. Houston is known for its energy production, particularly in the areas of oil and natural gas. The city also is developing a booming green economy that is based on solar and wind energy production. Since Houston is the leading city in the field of energy, its home to some of the biggest and most powerful energy companies in the world. These include Exxon-Mobil, ConocoPhillips, BP, Shell Oil Company and Chevron. This city also has a thriving aerospace industry and is home to NASA’s largest research facility, Johnson Space Center. The United Space Alliance is also situated here and employs over ten thousand people. Houston can trace its history to the period of time right before the Texas Revolution. This was when John Kirby Allen and Augustus Chapman Allen started scouting a location to build a center of commerce and government. In 1836, these two purchased over six thousand acres of land for the sum of $9,428 USD. They named the city Houston after the hero of the Texas Revolution Sam Houston. The city went through an extensive period of growth and in 1837 was made the temporary capital of Texas. After the Texas Revolution the city experienced a large influx of German immigrants. The city also experienced a major influx of Mexican immigrants, who came into the city to work on the railroads. The city of Houston has many tourist attractions to keep visitors occupied. One of the most popular attractions in the city is the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. This is considered one of the biggest rodeos in the world and features events and entertainers. The rodeo last for a period of three weeks and features bull riding, horse riding, steer wrestling and cattle roping. This rodeo also features many international performers and is also home to the World’s Championship Bar-B-Que Contest.
This BBQ contest features four hundred cooks making spare ribs, chicken and briskets. The rodeo also features a petting zoo and a carnival. Another popular attraction in the city is the Houston Zoo. This zoo covers an area of fifty-five acres and is situated in Hermann Park. The Houston Zoo has over forty-five hundred animals from nine hundred species. The main features of the zoo include the Reptile and Amphibian House, the John P. McGovern Children’s Zoo, the Fischer Bird Gardens, the Janice Suber McNair Asian Elephant and the Giant Eland Exhibit. The Houston Zoo is the seventh most visited zoo in the United States and attracts over one and a half million visitors each and every year. Also located in Hermann Park is the Houston Museum of Natural Science. This science museum was founded in 1909 to provide science rich exhibits to the residents of Houston. This museum features a central facility with four floors of exhibits. These floors contain the Wortham IMAX Theatre, Baker Planetarium and the Cockrell Butterfly Center. Other exhibits at this museum include Foucault pendulum, Lester and Sue Smith Gem Vault, Cullen Hall of Gems & Minerals, Hall of the Americas, Weiss Energy Hall, Hall of Space Science, Hall of Texas Wildlife, Hall of African Wildlife, Strake Hall of Malacology, the Cockrell Sundial, the Earth Forum, Fondren Discovery Place, Hall of Paleontology and Welch Chemistry Hall. An unusual, yet interesting, exhibit in Houston is the Orange Show. The Orange Show is a monument dedicated to the orange and was the vision of a Houston mail carrier named Jeff McKissack. It took him over twenty years to build his exhibit and it features materials that he collected over the years to turn his entire house into a monument. Its composed out of bricks, tiles, fencing and other junk items. Memorial Park is a popular park located in the city of Houston. This park is considered to be one of the biggest urban parks in the United States. It was founded in 1924 and covers an area of over fourteen hundred acres.
The area where the park is located was once the site of Camp Logan during World War I. The main features of the park include an eighteen hole golf course, tennis facilities, softball fields, pools, croquet courts, volleyball courts and a three mile running track. Also located in the park are picnic facilities and a rugby court. The Houston Arboretum and Nature Center also calls Memorial Park home. The Houston Arboretum and Nature Center sits on fifty-five acres of the park and contains over five miles of trails, wetland and meadow habitats. It also features afternoon art classes, guided nature tours and special exhibits on conservation. A prominent museum in the city is the Menil Collection. The Menil Collection is a museum that contains the private art collection of museum founders Jean and Dominique de Ménil. The museum contains over fifteen thousand paintings, prints, scultpures, photos and books. Paintings located in this museum include works by artist such as René Magritte, Pablo Picasso, Yves Tanguy, Max Ernst, Man Ray, Marcel Duchamp, Andy Warhol, Jackson Pollock and Henri Matisse. There are also ancient works that contain examples of Medieval and Byzantine art. Just a short walk from the main exhibit is the Byzantine Fresco Chapel Museum. It contains thirteenth century Byzantine frescos and a dome of the Virgin Panagia. Other prominent attractions in Houston include Lynchburg Ferry, The Galleria, The Space Center, The Health Museum, Market Square, Brazos Bend State Park, Buffalo Bayou Park, Polar Ice Galleria, Sam Houston Race Park, Splashtown Water Park, Aurora Picture Show, Landmark Greenway 3, Aaron Brothers and BlackJack’s Grill. Houston is also home to a number of health clubs, spas, restaurants, cafes, shopping malls and hotels. Houston also contains a theater district that spans seventeen square blocks and contains movie theaters, plazas and parks. Contained in this district is Bayou Place which is a huge building that has restaurants, bars, art houses and pool halls located within it. |
