Hello, Space City! HuffPost’s ‘Listen To America’ Tour Stops In Houston

Jenna Amatulli
Updated

Week seven of our Listen To America road trip rolled on into Houston.

The fourth most populated city in America was devastated by Hurricane Harvey in August and is still on the road to recovery. Harvey took over 70 lives, cost the city billions of dollars in damages from rainfall and flooding, and is considered one of the worst natural disasters in the history of the nation.

Despite all of that, Houston trucks on. 

It doesn’t matter if you call Houston “Space City,” “Bayou City,” “Magnolia City,” “H-Town” or, well, Houston. The bustling city has an unrivaled vibrancy that can’t really be pinned down.

Space Center Houston appeals to visitors with a taste for the unknown, while downtown’s theater, ballet, opera, and symphony offerings appeal to aspiring thespians, dancers, singers, and those who just appreciate the crafts. There’s also the country’s fourth-largest museum district, which features 19 different institutions ― 11 of which are free!

HuffPost spent some time in Midtown Park, chatting with locals about what makes Houston so great. Here’s what our time there looked like:

Akbar Shahid Ahmed interviews Leanne Schneider.

People sign up to be interviewed during HuffPost's visit to Midtown Park.

Richard Dixon is interviewed while his dog waits.

Kevin Kallet wears a branded T-shirt during HuffPost's video activation at Midtown Park in Houston.

Megan Talley signs up to be interviewed.

Mark Guerra is interviewed during HuffPost's visit to Midtown Park.

Olivia plays a game of cornhole with Craig Callaghan.

A van owned by "Second Servings," an organization that picks up leftover food and gives it to those in need, is parked at Midtown Park in Houston.

Annette Liftman shows leftover food that had been picked up by the organization "Second Servings."

Lars Thorn hits a baseball thrown by Augustine-Pio.

Brothers Augustine-Pio, Alphonsus-Leo and Hyacinth-Michael play baseball at Midtown Park in Houston.

Brothers Augustine-Pio, Alphonsus-Leo and Hyacinth-Michael play baseball at Midtown Park in Houston.

David Vuong and his sons Augustine-Pio, Alphonsus-Leo and Hyacinth-Michael play a game of baseball at Midtown Park in Houston.

Brothers Augustine-Pio, Alphonsus-Leo and Hyacinth-Michael play a game of baseball.

Brad Cowgill plays around by holding a film slate in front of Will Tooke and Emily McCombs.

Police officers on horseback make their way around the HuffPost tour bus.

  • This article originally appeared on HuffPost.