Carson's Art School

The Holocaust Museum Houston begins with a look at life before the Holocaust and the beginning of Nazism. The exhibit then shows its insidious progression from segregation to imprisonment to extermination. Artifacts, film reels, photographs, and text panels tell the story and set the backdrop for personal accounts from local survivors. Among the many items on display is a World War II Holocaust railcar that carried millions of Jews to concentration camps and a Danish rescue boat that saved thousands of Jews from the hands of Nazi Germany. The museum is an ever-evolving, living museum that includes a permanent exhibit and temporary exhibits on loan from other Holocaust Museums around the country. Many who have visited here, survivors, adults, and schoolchildren, have left notes, poems, artwork, and gifts to express their feelings upon seeing the exhibits.

Dive into the wonders of the underwater world at the unique Downtown Aquarium, where you can interact with the ancient legends of El Dorado in the Sunken Temple, sink to the bottom of the neighboring sea, and catch glimpses of offshore rig divers in the Underwater Rig. Tour the marsh and bayous of the Gulf Coast and encounter the alligators, turtles, bullfrogs, and more in the Texas Bayou. Step inside the sunken hull of a 17th-century Spanish Galleon and see the giant octopus, a moray eel, clownfish, and the diversity of species the ocean world has to offer at the Shipwreck. Explore the lush environment of the dangerous tropical life of the red-bellied piranhas and venomous freshwater stingrays in the Rainforest. Step into Discovery Zone and come face-to-face with electric eels, seahorses, and a dazzling array of colorful fish. Interactive monitors let you further explore coral reefs, the arctic seas, and the mysteries of the deep ocean. You may even meet one of our Ambassador Animals up close during the daily Animal Encounters.

Visit the Chapel of St. Basil, based at the University of St. Thomas. Designed by renowned architect Phillip Johnson, the chapel includes three functioning bells, a custom-built organ, and an overall style reminiscent of historic European churches. The chapel hosts Mass every day. It seats about 225 people and is lit from the inside by natural light from the dome, a skylight over the altar, and the statue of Our Lady on the east wall and from the asymmetrical glass cross on the west wall.

Lace up your running shoes and prepare to join The Chevron Houston Marathon festival that supports many charities, including CanCare, Texas Children's Hospital, and The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. As the largest single-day sporting event in the city, all runners get a chance to participate in the course map that runs together with a half marathon and a 5K race, where thousands of runners and spectators get to enjoy the fun signage, clocks, bottled water, Gatorade, aid stations, and exhilarating entertainment.