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Outdoor activities in Hosuton

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Old Jul 19th, 2010 | 09:12 AM
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Outdoor activities in Hosuton

I am pretty much new to Houston. We will be celebrating our second anniversary on Aug 14. Can you guys suggest some fun out door things to do ?
We are planning to go to Armand Bayou Nature center for the guided Canoe Tour and planning to do some hiking.
Any suggestions for the Dinner Places and activities to do on Sunday in Houston area?


Thanks
here4u1979 is offline  
Old Jul 19th, 2010 | 11:02 AM
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outdoor activities in august can be a challenge--you could look into kayaking--i think there is at least one store that rents kayaks and plans trips--going to galveston can be fun if you have never wandered around. there may be a soccer game if you are a fan.

kemah boardwalk can be fun--lots of restaurants and many boats going by.
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Old Jul 19th, 2010 | 11:21 AM
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Outdoor-Houston-August is a bad combination. That city makes its own gravy from humidity and street gunk.
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Old Jul 19th, 2010 | 01:22 PM
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I disagree BigRuss. I live here and since I am a teacher I have the summer to enjoy doing things. I have found many things to enjoy about the city and yes, it can be mighty hot and humid some days, but by evening it is often bearable. I walk 2-3 miles most evenings around 7:30 and there is usually a breeze and it is not too hot by then. But I guess since I have lived here most of my life I have gotten used to the weather. (At least we can go in and cool off in the air contioning when too hot!). Things to do in Houston: 1. Waugh Bridge bats at dusk; 2. Kemah Boardwalk; 3. take in various museums in the Museum District- the corpse flower has yet to bloom at HMNS; the Contemporary Arts museum has a great exhibit right now; the Menil Collection is free and so is the Holocaust Museum; outdoor sculpture exhibit; 4. Miller Outdoor Theater; 5. Tour the San Jacinto Monument. I would also recommend, in the future, to take a boat tour down Buffalo Bayou. Someone recently vandalized and burned 2-3 of their boats so it is not going now. I have taken a historical tour of the bayou and found it interesting and it gave me a different view of Houston from the bayou level.
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Old Jul 20th, 2010 | 04:17 AM
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Another place to check out is the Cynthia Mitchell Woods Pavilion in the Woodlands.
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Old Jul 20th, 2010 | 05:54 AM
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Our son lives in Houston and hates the summer. He hopes to make enough money to someday spend summers up north, it's hard to cool his house even with the A/C. IMHO August will not be a good time to visit Houston. When visiting our son, the only thing I want to do if it's summertime is as an above poster states, Kemah boardwalk and Galveston. We usually visit around Thanksgiving and it is very pleasant.
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Old Jul 20th, 2010 | 06:15 AM
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I believe here4u1959 lives in Houston and is just asking for ideas on things to do since they have not lived here long.
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Old Jul 20th, 2010 | 12:07 PM
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Thanks kkukura for the suggestions. I checked the Boat Tour and they are not operating at this poitn of time because the boats are vandalized.
I will try to check other suggestions.

Do you have any suggestions for Dinner to celebrate the anniversary.
here4u1979 is offline  
Old Jul 20th, 2010 | 12:41 PM
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What type of food are you wanting? Kemah has a nice selection of restaurants and the Boardwalk is fun. I recently ate at The Flying Dutchman and had a nice seafood dinner. Have you ever eaten at the Monument Inn by the Lynchburg Ferry? This is located on the ship channel and it is fun to watch the boats going by (you could also ride the ferry across and back). This is right by the San Jacinto Monument too. If you want to eat someplace in the Clear Lake area a couple of places for Italian that are good are Frenchie's and Villa Capri. Give me an idea of what you are looking for.
kkukura is offline  
Old Jul 20th, 2010 | 02:18 PM
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here4u, what type of food are you interested in, what is your budget, and what part of town are you thinking about? Also, are you wanting formal or casual? While there are not a lot of things to do outdoors in Houston in August, there are tons of good places to eat. Just give us some specifics.
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Old Jul 21st, 2010 | 08:53 AM
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Definitely agree with kkukura's suggestions. Also might add the Zoo is worthwhile and is next to Hermann Park which borders the Museum District. There's also Discovery Green (Park) downtown.

Agree with the comments to share what foods you like and general location. You can literally find any kind of cuisine you want and there are some very good restaurants all over, but Houston is so big it would help to narrow down the area you're thinking about.
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Old Jul 21st, 2010 | 09:19 AM
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http://www.b4-u-eat.com/ is a good link to local restaurants. You can find just about any kind of food you want in Houston - great restaurants, just depends on what you're looking for. Sailing on the Captain Kidd out of Kemah is fun, and they'll let you bring a bottle of wine on board with you. We love the Kemah Boardwalk too.
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Old Jul 22nd, 2010 | 07:24 AM
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I am sorry I should have been more specific in my question regarding food.

I am looking for casual restuarant and I am looking on a moderate budget. I live in west part of the town ,but any thing within the city limits are fine .
I am ok with any type of food.

Thanks guys for all the suggestions.
here4u1979 is offline  
Old Jul 22nd, 2010 | 07:35 AM
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Star Pizza on Norfolk St, Sparkle Burger on Dowling, Spanish Flower in the Heights, Niko Niko's on Montrose, Katz's Deli on Westheimer, Thai Spice in West U area. I like to check out the pull-out section of Thursday's paper to see what is listed for restaurants. I love to try different places all the time and I use that section as a guide. There are SO MANY places to try. Enjoy!
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Old Jul 22nd, 2010 | 09:07 AM
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I like Niko Niko's, too. I think Nidda Thai on Westheimer is by far the best Thai I've had in Houston. For Mexican, try Teotihuacan, Pico's, and Tampico. Empire Cafe and Brasil, both in Montrose, are good, casual, and not expensive. Further west, and for more of a special occasion (but not terribly expensive), try Brio in City Centre (I-10 and the Beltway). It's and chain, and I wasn't expecting to like it that much, but our whole group loved it! I also like Lemon Tree for Peruvian food, and it's on the west side, too. Check all these out at b4-u-eat.com.
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Old Jul 22nd, 2010 | 09:32 AM
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Crapittos is good - terrible name, but good food. Nino's is good too.

http://www.crapittos.com/

http://www.ninos-vincents.com/index.html

Also like Gravitas.

http://www.gravitasrestaurant.com/

If you want order at the counter, Pronto Cucinino is a good spot.
http://www.pronto-2-go.com/

Like mentioned above, the Kemah Boardwalk is always fun, and you can eat along the water which is nice.

Tila's is nice. http://www.tilas.com/home.html

There's also the Pappa's restaurants which are chains but usually good food.
volcanogirl is offline  
Old Jul 22nd, 2010 | 09:35 AM
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One more - if you like Greek, check out Yia Yia Mary's

http://www.yiayiamarys.com/location/
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Old Jul 22nd, 2010 | 01:12 PM
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Thanks a lot guys. You have given me a lot of options. I will check with my wife and make a decision.

I will try to vist most of them in the coming months.

Once again thanks for your suggestions
here4u1979 is offline  
Old Jul 22nd, 2010 | 02:06 PM
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marryann, thanks for the tip on Brio; I've never heard of that one. We'll try it!

here4u, Can you post back about the nature center? I'm curious to hear about it. Happy Anniversary!
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Old Jul 24th, 2010 | 01:30 PM
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I'd think Kemah Boardwalk or Galveston would be your best bets. Galveston gets a sea breeze and walking along the seawall (or rollerblading) would be a good outdoor activity, then you could take a dip in the Gulf to cool off. You could spend the day at Schlitterbahn in Galveston as well which is outdoors.

There are plenty of good restaurants at Kemah and Galveston once you're showered and cleaned up.
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