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Home→blog→Keith’s Blog – June 2019

Keith’s Blog – June 2019

Keith's Blog

Welcome Fans, Friends, and Visitors,

Hi.  Welcome to the land of heat and humidity.  Houston is the most air-conditioned city in the world.  Bring sunscreen and wear appropriate clothing.

Weather in Houston

June is the first month of the hurricane season that lasts through November 30th, for six months.  However, have no fear.  With the exception of a freak storm that began in the Pacific Ocean and crossed Mexico, Hurricane Patricia on October 25, 2015, 100% of all major hurricanes that have hit Houston do so in a six-week window during the last two weeks of August and the first four weeks of September.  The monthly average high temperature is 91 degrees Fahrenheit/33 degrees Centigrade.  The monthly average low temperature is 74 degrees Fahrenheit/23 degrees Centigrade, and the mean is 82 degrees Fahrenheit/28 degrees Centigrade.  It is the third hottest month of the year and the first of three consecutive months when the high temperature is normally in the 90 degrees Fahrenheit/30 degrees Centigrade.  The average rainfall is 6.8 inches/17.4 centimeters.  It is by far the wettest month of the year.  It is the only month with 6 or more inches of rainfall or 145 or more centimeters of rain.

Tours

Mention that you read about the tours below from the blog and you will receive a 10% discount.

African-American Music Appreciation Month

June is African-American Music Appreciation Month.  Would you like to schedule an evening tour to listen to some jazz,  rhythm and blues, or soul music?

Gay and Lesbian Themed Tours

June is LGBT Pride Month.  We go to a variety of bars, restaurants, clubs, unisex shops, and boutiques, and neighborhoods.  This is usually a late afternoon and or evening tour.

Brewery Tours

Nowadays, Houston has over 2 dozen breweries.  All but one, the St. Arnold Brewery (the grand-daddy), has started since 2011.  We offer brewery tours from 2 to 10 hours, from 1 to 4 breweries, from 1 to dozens of people.  We can play Irish, German, and country and western beer drinking songs along the way or play DVDs of movies and television shows that focused on beer drinking and where everyone knows your name.  Most breweries have either restaurants or food trucks on the premises to eat meals.

Galveston Tours

Galveston tours range from 5 to 14 hours depending on what you want to see.  Galveston has about 6 museums including the Ocean Star Oil Rig museum, The Bryan Museum whose specialty is anthropology, the Texas Seaport Museum, and the 4th largest Railroad Museum.  Perhaps, you would like to tour one or both of the 1890s mansion homes:  the Bishop’s Palace and or Moody Mansion.  You might want to go shopping on The Strand; this area looks a lot like a mini-, cleaned up version of Bourbon Street in New Orleans.  You could see one to three movies about the history and main events in the history of Galveston, including the greatest natural disaster in United States history.  The Galveston Hurricane, also known as the Great Storm killed between 6,000 and 8,000 people in just one city.  That figure was greater than the total number of people killed by all of the hurricanes that have hit the US since that time COMBINED with the exception of Hurricane Maria that hit Puerto Rico in September 2017.  We will also take you around to see the different neighborhoods, and Victorian homes and public structures and to tour downtown, and drive along The Seawall.

National Food Day Tours

Did you know that:

  • The first Friday of June is National Donut Day?
  • June 2nd is National Rocky Road Day?
  •  June 3rd is National Egg Day?
  • June 4th is National Cognac Day?
  • June 5th is National Gingerbread Day?
  • June 6th is National Applesauce Cake Day?
  • June 7th is Chocolate Ice Cream Day?
  • June 10th is National Iced Tea Day?
  • June 11th is National German Chocolate Cake Day?
  • June 12th is National Peanut Butter Cookie Day?
  • June 15th is National Lobster Day?
  • June 16th is National Fudge Day?
  • June 17th is National Eat Your Vegetables?
  • June 20th is National Vanilla Milkshake Day?
  • June 21st is National Peaches “N” Cream Day?
  • June 25th is National Catfish Day?
  • June 26th is National Chocolate Pudding Day?
  •  June 28th in National Tapioca 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?

Monthly Special  – Discounted by 17 to 29% Based on the Number of People

The monthly special for June is the 2.5-hour Tunnel Tour B.  THE TUNNELS ARE AIR CONDITIONED!  CELEBRATE!  Of the three tunnels tours that we offer, this is one of the two most popular tunnel tours.  It has the most visual stimuli, variety of activities, and a moderate amount of walking.  We will see hundreds of different stores and shops, go through the largest food court in the tunnel system, walk through at least 3 skybridges/skywalks from building to building and with smaller groups of 10 or less, go to 59th and 58th floor observation decks.  We walk through the busiest sections of the tunnels.  The walking is 2.0 miles/3.2 kilometers.  Shoppers and people with attention deficit disorder (ADD) tend to love this tour.

The downtown walking tours in May, June, September, and October all begin in the rotunda on the first floor of the City Hall building at 901 Bagby Street, Houston, Texas 77002.  You can enter from either the east or west side of the building.

It goes into the:

  • Wells Fargo Plaza
  • 1 Houston Center/LyondellBasell Tower/1200 McKinney Street,
  • 2 Houston Center/909 Fannin Street,
  • 3 Houston Center/Fulbright Tower/1301 McKinney Street,
  • 4 Houston Center/Shops at Houston Center/1221 Lamar Street, and
  • 5 Houston Center/1401 McKinney Street.

 

It goes under:

  • The Kinder-Morgan Building,
  • 919 Milam,
  • 1000 Main,
  • One City Centre,
  • 1001 Fannin,
  • 1001 McKinney/ International Bank of Commerce (IBC),
  • The Commerce Towers, and
  • 811 Louisiana.

 

You will walk through skywalks/skybridges over:

  • Caroline Street twice,
  • McKinney Street, and
  • San Jacinto Street.

 

A walking tour only moves as fast as the slowest person.

Warnings:

  1. Use a bathroom before the tour begins. Only about two public bathrooms are accessible during this tour.  Most of the businesses in or operating over the tunnels do not allow the general public to use their bathrooms.
  2. Not all of the tunnels are Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 accessible. Thus, you should NOT select this special tour if you use a walker, a wheelchair, or any other device that you need to enable you to move.
  3. If you use a cane, we will be moving at such a slow pace that we will not be able to complete the whole tunnel tour. Thus, we will have to omit some buildings.
  4. We go on elevators and escalators. Thus, you should NOT select this special tour if you have a phobia about either of these mechanical devices.

 

You cannot take photos inside the banks.  Taking photos elsewhere is fine.

  1. 1927 32-story tall Niels Esperson Building. This was Houston’s tallest building from 1927 to 1929.
  2. 1929 37-story tall J. P. Morgan Chase Building. This was Houston’s tallest building from 1929 to 1963.
  3. 1939 17-story tall City Hall. The architect was Joseph Finger.
  4. 1942 19-story tall Mellie Esperson Building. The architect was John Eberson.
  5. 1971 50-story tall One Shell Plaza. This was Houston’s tallest building from 1971 to 1980.
  6. 1975 36-story tall Pennzoil Place. This is Houston’s most award-winning skyscraper. Philip Johnson designed it.
  7. 1982 75-story tall J. P. Morgan Chase Tower. This is the tallest building in Texas. I. M. Pei designed it.
  8. 1983 71-story tall Wells Fargo Plaza. This is the second tallest building in Texas. Richard Keating designed it.

 

We will discuss the architects, histories, different building usages, styles architectural features and changes to the buildings over the years. This tour can include going to an art gallery and seeing sculptures.

The downtown walking tours in May, June, September, and October all begin in the rotunda on the first floor of the City Hall building at 901 Bagby Street, Houston, Texas 77002. You can enter from either the east or west side of the building. Metered parking is usually available in the 500 block of both Walker Street and McKinney Street for up to 3-hours. Underground garage parking beneath Tranquility Park is accessible in the 500 block of Rusk Street.

A walking tour only moves as fast as the slowest person.

Warnings:

  1. Use a bathroom before the tour begins. Only one public bathroom is accessible during this tour after we leave the area close to City Hall.
  2. Not all of the tunnels are Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 accessible. Thus, you should NOT select this special tour if you use a walker, a wheelchair, or any other device that you need to enable you to move.
  3. If you use a cane, we will be moving at such a slow pace that we will not be able to complete the whole tunnel tour. Thus, we will have to omit some buildings.
  4. We go on elevators and escalators. Thus, you should NOT select this special tour if you have a phobia about either of these mechanical devices.

You cannot take photos inside the banks.  Taking photos elsewhere is fine.

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.

 

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.

If you have any suggestions for special tour discounts in July, send us an email.

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

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