Hometown

It felt like time to get out of town for awhile and have a change of scenery. A day trip to my hometown  seemed like a good idea-back to my roots. Perhaps a visit to Houston is not on your list of places to go this summer, but the vibrant Museum District makes a great weekend experience. There are at least twenty museums and cultural institutions,surrounding art galleries and shopping in this tree-lined cultural oasis south of downtown.

I had forgotten how beautiful Hermann Park is with its statue of Sam Houston overlooking the reflecting pool, jogging trails and the Museum of Natural Science. It's an urban gem, and easy walking distance from the Museum District. 
The Houston Museum of Fine Arts is a good place to start and can easily take an entire day.

I was anxious to see the Soto exhibit, a kinetic installation of 24,000 hand-painted tubes suspended from two stories. This work by Venezuelan artist Jesus Rafael Soto, invites visitors to not only touch, but walk through and interact with his art.

I just wanted to include a few pictures from the museum's permanent collection and current exhibits.

It's an eclectic offering of ancient Islamic, Egyptian and African art. The Glassell School of Art which is part of the HMFA has a fascinating exhibit of African gold from Ghana.

Of course there are plenty of Old Masters paintings, but I am drawn to the contemporary abstracts.

 Next stop was the Museum of Natural Science. As you might imagine, dinosaurs and lots of fossils rule here.  Enough of art and culture, I was ready to head for one of my favorite Houston lunches-a James Coney Island hot dog!