Most of us remember this line well from American films, especially from the Oscar-winning “Apollo 13”. This time, exceptionally, it is not just a movie fiction – in Houston they really have a space flight control center for the US space shuttles. After all, it is also nicknamed “Space City”.
According to existingcountries, Houston (read Hjústn) can be found in the south of the USA, on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. It is the largest and most populous city in the state of Texas. It covers more than 1,600 km2 and is home to over two million inhabitants. The population consists of half whites, a quarter blacks, the rest are Asians, Indians, Islanders and other minorities. People of Hispanic origin are strongly represented in the city, almost 40%, regardless of race.
The history of the city dates back to 1836, when two brothers, John Kirby Allen and Augustus Chapman Allen, bought land with a total area of 27 km2 for $9,428. They named the founded city after the general and later Texas president Sam Houston.
The enterprising Allen brothers would certainly be happy with Houston today. In 2006, it was ranked first in Texas and third in the U.S. in the “Best Place to Do Business and Work” category. The petrochemical industry thrives the most here. Houston literally lives off the oil industry, and of course “lives off of it”. Crude oil can be smelled in many places, all of Texas is simply soaked in oil. Giant refineries are the most common scenery around the city. When thousands of lights shine at night, you can easily mistake them for a populated city.
Houston also has a large and important port, the sixth largest in the world. Recently, high-tech fields have been doing well here. The city is also home to the Texas Medical Center, which is the largest healthcare company in the world. In addition to it, you will find the already mentioned Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center, from where space flights are controlled. In addition, Houston also specializes in the production of oil extraction equipment.
Houston’s skyline is ranked as the fourth most impressive in the United States. In terms of building height, the city’s skyline ranks third in the US (after New York and Chicago) and among the top ten in the world. Houston has a system of ingenious passageways and above-ground tunnels connecting buildings in the center, Downtown. The tallest skyscraper is called the JPMorgan Chase Tower (formerly the Texas Commerce Tower), it has 75 floors and is 305 meters high. It is also the tallest building in Texas, the ninth tallest in the US, and the 29th tallest in the world.
Tourists who had the opportunity to get to know Houston “from all sides” describe it as a very contrasting city. The center is modern and impressive, but just get off the highway and you will find yourself among dilapidated houses. These two seemingly disparate worlds operate in close proximity. “When you stand in the center and look out, you don’t even know you’re in the city until you look back. On the contrary, when you stand “in the ghetto” and look at the skyscrapers, you feel that the center is all around you,” is how one of the tourists describes his impressions of Dallas.
The highway network that surrounds “Downtown” is also said to be very impressive. You can look directly into the windows of skyscrapers from the highway. There are almost no cars here at night, and for Tutists such a night drive around the illuminated center of Houston is an unforgettable experience. However, the traffic in the morning and afternoon rush hours is an experience of a completely opposite nature. People mostly live outside of the city and commute to Houston for work other than by car. The highway with four lanes in one direction is impenetrably full every day in all lanes, but unlike our highways in permanent swift movement. Americans park indispensable “vehicles” in multi-story garages, which are an obvious part of Houston’s downtown.
And finally, a “tiny gem” from that colorful American city. Don’t go here if you don’t want to gain weight! For several years now, Houston has alternately held the top two places in the list of cities with the most obese residents. Obesity is monitored by the authorities and data on the number of fat people are published annually in Mens Fitness magazine. At the same time, they add a recommendation that if you want to see the tips of your feet, you should better avoid Houston…
