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The nation's fourth-largest city is renowned as the home of big oil (ConocoPhillips is headquartered here) and space exploration (NASA's mission control is located within Johnson Space Center), but it also has a lively arts scene, with its theater district ranking second only to New York City in number of seats per capita. Some of the finest museums in the country can be found in Houston's Museum District, including the private Menil Collection, an eclectic set of more than 15,000 works.

The Metropolitan Transit Authority (METRO) is in the process of developing a light-rail system (METRORail) in Houston. It currently has just one line, but it does make stops at major destinations like the Museum District, Hermann Park, the Houston Zoo and Reliant Park. METRO also operates buses and trolleys throughout the downtown area. One-way fares are $1 and day passes are available for $2.

Houston is also serviced by two major airports -- George Bush Intercontinental and Hobby. George Bush is 20 miles north of the city, with taxis charging a flat rate determined according to a zone system and fares to downtown running between $35 and $45. A METRO bus line (#102) offers service from Terminal C.

Hobby is closer to Houston proper, 10 miles southeast of downtown. Taxi zone rates range from $20 to $40, and a METRO bus (#88) picks up at Curbzone 8A.

Get a Little Bit Country
With one million visitors, celebrity performers and $750,000 in prizes, the annual Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo bills itself as the largest in the world, and the second-largest fair or festival of any kind in North America. Besides the pro rodeo events and livestock exhibitions, fans can shop for clothing and crafts, sample award-winning BBQ and check out the famous pig races.

See the Astros at the Juice Box
The Astros moved from the Astrodome to the retractable-roof Minute Maid Park (originally called Enron Field before the energy giant went bust) in 2000, bringing outdoor baseball to Houston. Among the park's more famous -- though not necessarily beloved -- features are its home run-friendly dimensions in left field and a small incline (Tal's Hill) in front of the center-field wall.

Visit Where Football and Controversy Collide
If you want to see the Houston Texans in action, you'll need a seat at Reliant Stadium, which opened in 2002 as the first NFL facility to have a retractable roof. It went on to achieve infamy as the site of Super Bowl XXXVIII, when Janet Jackson's titillating halftime show sparked a nationwide uproar.

Hit the Links at Memorial Park
The largest urban park in all of Texas covers more than 1,400 acres and has one of the top-rated municipal golf courses in the nation. Originally opened in 1923, the course was renovated in the mid-1990s to add a new clubhouse, driving range, practice greens and a golf museum.

Watch the Dragon Boat Races
Each May, the Texas Dragon Boat Association hosts the Houston Dragon Boat Festival. The competition involves teams of 25 racing 250-meter sprints in Hong Kong-style dragon boats. For spectators, Asian food and entertainment are also available throughout the day.

Space Center Houston
1601 NASA Parkway, Houston, Tex. 77058, 281-244-2100
There isn't anyplace else like this: you board a tram for a 90-minute tour of NASA's Johnson Space Center. The tour takes you to Mission Control, the International Space Station Assembly Building, and, if you're lucky, to a building where you can watch astronauts going through actual training.
http://www.spacecenter.org/about.html

Museum of Fine Art, Houston
1001 Bissonnet St., Houston, Tex. 77005
This is the biggest art museum in Texas. It's known for its Impressionist and post-Impressionist collections, including significant works by Manet, Pissarro, Matisse and Seurat. Don't miss the 19th and 20th century American art collection or the collection of tribal African art.
http://www.mfah.org/main.asp?target=home

Menil Collection
1515 Sul Ross St., Houston, Tex. 77006, 713-525-9400
This is one of the world's great private art collections. For more than 40 years, John and Dominique de Menil bought and commissioned works of 20th century art, including works by Picasso, Matisse, Braque and Cezanne. They also assembled great collections of tribal art, works of the Byzantine and medieval periods, and of antiquity. Don't miss the Rothko Chapel, home of 14 of Mark Rothko's paintings.
http://www.menil.org/home.html

Bayou Bend
1 Westcott St., Houston, Tex. 77007
One of the jewels of Houston. Ima Hogg, daughter of one-time Texas Governor Jim Hogg, was a prodigious collector of American decorative arts — from the homes of early 1600s settlers to those of the late 1800s. Her magnificent family mansion is a treasure trove for lovers of antiques. Don't miss the gardens that circle the grounds. Some are formal, some areas are forested, all are designed as "outdoor living rooms."
http://www.mfah.org/bayoubend/main.asp?target=home

1995 Houston Rockets (defeated Orlando Magic, 4 games to 0).
1994 Houston Rockets (defeated New York Knicks, 4 games to 3).