Stopover Houston to visit family
We used the trip around the world and the proximity of our next stop, Colombia, to visit Tatjana's cousin Sally in Houston (Texas - USA). A 14-hour flight from Frankfurt for a cup of coffee and a piece of cake is not something you do lightly, and now it was a good time.
The craziest thing about this flight for both of us was that we flew across the day/night boundary. Our bodies took it a little differently, but we travelled back in time! Departure was in the evening at about 8pm and landing on the SAME DAY at 4pm! Totally crazy!
Air New Zealand again made a very positive impression on us at this point. Firstly, because they were so accommodating and simply let us extend our stay in New Zealand. Of course, this is also a good move from an economic point of view 😉 and then the safety instructions on board were ripe for the cinema!
Here are two examples, one the current video and an older one.
Tiaki & The Guardians #AirNZSafetyVideo – YouTube
The Most Epic Safety Video Ever Made #AirNZSafetyVideo – YouTube
Once we arrived in Houston, we had a great time with Sally in air-conditioned rooms, shops and restaurants at 105 degrees Fahrenheit in the shade (about 41 degrees Celsius). It was just blisteringly hot, so we could only move outside very early in the morning until 9am at the most or late in the evening from 6pm. In the evenings, the streets were also so heated up that it was quite uncomfortable to walk around at first. Fortunately, the community where Sally lives has a pool where we could cool off with a few neighbours 😊
On one day, we were brave enough and ventured out into the heat to take a look at downtown Houston. Compared to Singapore, we immediately noticed that green facades and intelligent street greening for pedestrians are rather absent. Downtown Houston consists more of high-rise buildings containing offices that are connected to each other by a tunnel system. In the tunnels between the buildings you can eat, drink, go to the dentist, visit tailor shops or laundries and change buildings. As soon as you step onto the street, it gets scorching hot. Nevertheless, we took the tram to the university district and strolled through the courtyard of Rice University, Houston.
We have also tried to find sustainable projects here that we can learn something about. In the oil state of Texas, however, it has honestly been very difficult to find anything. Let's just say there is still a lot of potential, especially for the necessary cultural change. But we can show you pictures of fascinating sunsets 😊. Are there aliens at work here? It fits thematically with "Houston - we have a problem" 😉. And look what we found in the shops:
Texas borders Mexico and many local specialities are Texmex. We were able to enjoy this twice with Sally and her friends, as well as the good (spicy) margaritas. Special recommendation for our dear friend Roslyn😉
Many thanks to Sally for the hospitality and the great time with you and little Winston. Hopefully we will see you again soon in Germany 😊
Hallo Ihr Beiden!!
Vielen Dank für Euren Bericht über Houston.
Wie verschiedene die Menschen ihre Lebensräume gestalten konnte ihr schon feststellen und uns daran teilnehmen lassen. In dieser Region sind die Temperaturen extrem, wenig grüne Natur und natürlich die riesige Auswahl in den Läden.
Mal sehen was ich noch alles zu sehen bekomme durch Eure Reise— ich bin schon sehr gespannt—
Nochmals danke das Ihr einen so tollen Reisebericht schreibt!!
Liebe Grüße Mama
Danke für euren wieder spannenden Reisebericht! Eins ist mir klar, Houston wär nichts für mich (nur die spicy margaritas haben mich neugierig gemacht.. ;))