Keith’s Blog – February 2019
Welcome Fans, Friends, and Visitors,
Hi. February is Black History Month, the month of Presidents, and of course, a sweethearts month with the holiday of Valentine’s Day. All of these designations and events make good excuses to go exploring. In our subtropical climate and with the temperatures becoming both more erratic, but consistently hotter, one now sees spring beginning in winter. By the end of the month, you will see new leaves on trees and some flowering plants beginning to bud.
Weather in Houston
February is Houston’s third coldest month after December and January. These are the only months where the average high temperature is in the 60s Fahrenheit/Teens Centigrade. However, cold is a relative term. We see snow in Houston about once every three years and then it is usually a light dusting that will melt by the following day. Be prepared to wear a light jacket. The monthly average high temperature is 67 degrees Fahrenheit/19 degrees Centigrade. The monthly average low temperature is 48 degrees Fahrenheit/9 degrees Centigrade, and the mean is 58 degrees Fahrenheit/14 degrees Centigrade. The average rainfall is 3.01 inches/7.65 centimeters. It is the driest month of the year. The next four months will all experience progressively more rain.
Tours Below
Mention that you read about any of the tours below (other than the monthly specials) from the blog and you will receive a 10% discount in the month of December. What a deal!
African American themed Tours
February is Black History Month. Celebrate it with an African-American historical tour. We offer 7 different African-American tours, including two that go out of town. These are normally six-hours each with a stop to eat at a traditional soul food, barbecue, fried chicken, Creole, or Jamaican restaurant for lunch. These tours can be shortened with fewer stops or sites and or two different tours can be combined to equal six-hours. The tours are divided by geographic locations. With a population of over 500,000 African Americans, Houston has the second largest Black population of any United States city. We will have maps to show you the original wards, as well as historic photographs and articles. Did you know that the first African Americans served on the Houston city council in the 1870s? Yes, that is correct!
Valentine’s Day Themed Tours
Are you or someone special to you feeling romantic? Does your special person like chocolates, flowers, and or wine? Do you like domestic or imported chocolates, chocolates with or without nuts and or fruit, sweet or semi-sweet, white, dark, or milk? How do you want to be remembered? If receiving affection important to you? We have tours starting from 3 hours to 5 hours for you to make a good impression and have an amorous day. We can also include stopping at a wine bar or flower shops to add to the occasion. You choose.
Presidential Tours
Presidents Day is in February because both the 1st and 16th Presidents of the United States under the Constitution were born in February: George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. Historians regularly rank Washington and Lincoln as two of the three greatest presidents in US history. The other member of this triad is Franklin Roosevelt, who missed being born in February by 2 days; he was born on January 30th. Take one of our 3-hour local Presidential tours and learn about the city’s connection to Texas Presidents Sam Houston, Mirabeau Lamar, and Anson Jones as well as US Presidents John Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, and George Herbert Walker Bush, and Presidential Conventions of 1928 and 1992.
National Food Day Tours
Did you know that:
- February 2 is National Tater Tot Day?
- The second Tuesday of February is National Frozen Yogurt Day?
- February 9 is both National Pizza Day and National Bagel Day?
- February 22 is National Margarita Day?
- February 23 is National Banana Bread Day?
We will create a customized 3-hour themed tour for your enjoyment anytime in this month for the above gastronomical sensations. We can combine two or more of the above holidays. Who does not like comfort food and drink?
Think About Late February and March
Two major Houston events occur almost exclusively in March:
- The Houston Rodeo begins on Monday, February 25th and continues through Sunday, March 17th. This covers a three-week period. Will you need or want rides to and or from the rodeo or other surrounding areas?
- The Azalea Trail on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, March 1, 2, and 3. Let us know if you want to plan such a tour so we can buy Azalea Trail home tour tickets in advance. This will include touring inside six homes, seeing beautiful gardens, and a tour of River Oaks.
The time to plan is now.
Monthly Special – Discounted by 17 to 43% Based on the Number of People
The monthly special for February is a 2.5-hour walking tour through the Rice Village and Rice University. The Rice Village is a cute shopping area that gets its name as it is next to Rice University and it is like a village of mostly mom and pop small stores. Many of the shops are locally owned and operated which means you will generally get better service from knowledgeable and concerned workers. It has over two-dozen cafes, restaurants, and specialty food stores and hundreds of retail stores. Most of the stores cater primarily to women. You may want to go to one of them for lunch after a tour.
Rice University is one of the twenty highest ranked universities in the United States and one of the top two or three universities in all of the South. It has a sprawling campus that goes on for over 1-mile/2-kilometers, yet it only has a few thousand students. Found in 1912 as the William M. Rice Institute for the Advancement of Literature, Science and Art, it became a full-fledged university in 1960. Ralph Adams Cram (1863 – 1912), one of the most renowned architects of American churches, libraries, and universities was the original architect. We will enter a number of the buildings, see several statues, and even view a piece of the Berlin Wall. You will see the statue of William Marsh Rice (1816 – 1900) sitting over where his ashes were buried after he was murdered. Tall oak trees surround and dot the campus. It is a lovely place to spend 4 years as a student or part of a day on a walk.
We begin this tour at The Chocolate Bar at 2521 University Boulevard, Houston, Texas 77005. Free, unrestricted parking on the south side of the 2400 and 2500 block of Shakespeare Road, Houston, Texas 77005. This is one block behind The Chocolate Bar. Free parking is available on the north side of University Boulevard and in front of The Chocolate Bar, but for only two hours. Metered parking is available in the area.
Monthly Special Prices
- 1 person – $40.00. This is a 43% discount off of the regular price of $70.00
$40.00 + $3.30 (Sales tax of 8.25%) = $43.30 Total.
- 2 people – $30.00 each. This is a 25% discount off of the regular price of $40.00 per person.
$30.00 + $2.48 (Sales tax of 8.25%) = $32.48 per person x 2 people = $64.96 Total.
- 3 or 4 people – $25.00 each. This is a 17% discount off the regular price of $30.00 per person.
$25.00 + $2.07 (Sales tax of 8.25%) = $27.07 per person.
$27.07 per person x 3 people = $81.21 Total.
$27.07 per person x 4 people = $108.28 Total.
- 5 to 9 people – $20.00 each. This is a 20% discount off the regular price of $25.00 per person.
$20.00 + $1.65 (Sales tax of 8.25%) = $21.65 per person. $21.65 x 5 people = $108.25.
$20.00 + $1.65 (Sales tax of 8.25%) + $3.00 (15% gratuity for parties of 6 or more people) = $24.65 per person x 6, 7, 8, or 9 people.
- 10 to 19 people – $15.00 each. This is a 25% discount off the regular price of $20.00 per person.
$15.00 + $1.24 (Sales tax of 8.25%) + $2.25 per person (15% gratuity for parties of 6 or more people) = $18.49 per person x the number of people.
Invite Your Friends
If you know anyone who would be interested in receiving our blogs, please let us know at houstonhistory@aol.com. Provide a clear name and email address for the person or group and we will sign them up. Thanks.
See you on a tour.
Sincerely,
Keith Rosen
Houston Historical Tours
P. O. Box 262404
Houston, Texas 77207-2404
(713) 392-0867
(713) 643-4086 Fax
houstonhistory@aol.com
www.houstonhistoricaltours.com