Crime in Houston? (Dallas, San Antonio, Austin: buses, authority, public transportation)

[Cougar31]

Originally Posted by swedenMaria

Much crime in Houston? I will travel to USA from Sweden and I want see many part and towns in USA.

compare to Sweeden (country), Houston has a very high crime rate.
Be alert with your suroundings.

[texan_176]

Originally Posted by tstone

^ ^ Katrina crime? That is one of the most ****ed up things I've seen in this area and it happened way too close to home for me.

This is VERY TRUE. The criminal media in Houston painted this false concensus that all Houstonians were open with loving arms when 250,000 people came from NOLA in a matter of 48 hours. Yes not all of them were criminals and most of them were just poor people who could not afford to leave. However, the criminals that did come were the worst of the worst.

Did you notice how the people in West U and the Rice University area put pressure on the city to move all of the Katrina stuff out of the Astrodome because it was a stone's throw from their homes?

The city leased out the old Auchan store on 610 east of 288 and pretty much dumped those people back into the ghetto to get them away from $1 million homes and college kids that pay over 30 grand a year in tuition.

Not Bill White or even a single member of city council would house an evacuee in their own home or have one live next door to them with FEMA aid. However is if okay for YOU to have them living next door.

[AGGIEZ]

Originally Posted by texan_176

This is VERY TRUE. The criminal media in Houston painted this false concensus that all Houstonians were open with loving arms when 250,000 people came from NOLA in a matter of 48 hours. Yes not all of them were criminals and most of them were just poor people who could not afford to leave. However, the criminals that did come were the worst of the worst.

Did you notice how the people in West U and the Rice University area put pressure on the city to move all of the Katrina stuff out of the Astrodome because it was a stone's throw from their homes?

The city leased out the old Auchan store on 610 east of 288 and pretty much dumped those people back into the ghetto to get them away from $1 million homes and college kids that pay over 30 grand a year in tuition.

Not Bill White or even a single member of city council would house an evacuee in their own home or have one live next door to them with FEMA aid. However is if okay for YOU to have them living next door.

I heard a rumor that NOLA was giving grants to try and lure the Katrina evacuees back to their city. I sure hope they take the city up on that!!! It pisses me off to no end that we opened our arms to help the evacuees and they leave us with their criminals. I wish they'd go back to LA!

[Rocket Power]

Most the people I've personally met from New Orleans have been nice people who actually work and try to make an honest living.

It not like good`ol H-town didn't have crime problems before Katrina.

[ohmanon]

A student was stabbed in front of Lamar High School this morning. Assailant was unknown to the student and did not attend the school. Don't know any facts yet - apparently, HISD officers were called, NOT the Houston Police. Will be interesting to see how HISD handles this. I understand they did not even call the paramedics.

[Rocket Power]

3 across Houston reported killed in 1 hour Sunday | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle (broken link)

Wow....3 people in one hour is pretty bad

[AGGIEZ]

Originally Posted by Rocket Power

It not like good`ol H-town didn't have crime problems before Katrina.

I love this argument. No, it wasn't Pleasantville, but it was sure a hell of alot better before the storm than after...

[lawrencewilliams]

Originally Posted by swedenMaria

Much crime in Houston? I will travel to USA from Sweden and I want see many part and towns in USA.

I am guessing that you are flying into Houston from Sweden. You will need to rent a car. You cannot get around Houston or Texas without one. Public transportation in the southern United States is almost non-existant. Taking taxis is just too expensive for a tourist.

If you are just traveling in Houston by car, try to avoid going into really trashy looking areas. If you go to a shopping area, mall or strip mall. Avoid leaving valuables in the car in plain sight.

The only thing really to see in Houston is the Johnson Space Center (NASA). There are some museums in the Houston Museum district that may be worth visting. See http://www.houstonmuseumdistrict.org for details. I reccomend the Houston Museum of Natural Science with its butterfly center.

If you are looking to buy some clothes, there is a factory outlet (Katy Mills) on I-10 West on the west side of Houston. There is also a place called the Forbidden Gardens just outside of Houston. It is a miniature replica of the famous sites in China (Forbidden City, Terra Cotta army, etc.) Though if you have already been to China, it might not be worth seeing.

See Forbidden Gardens, Katy, Texas for details.

If you are interested in a one of the sub-cultures, you could visit a mega-church on Sunday (I hate them, but it's worth going just to see what it's like).

For San Antonio, you can visit the old Spanish Roman Catholic Missions and the Alamo, which is near the riverwalk. In Austin, you can visit The University of Texas and the Texas Capital. There are also a lot of parks and trails in Austin.

In between Austin and San Antonio is New Braunfels which has a factory outlet (if you want to buy clothes) and a river to go tubing on (depends on the weather ).

[tstone]

OK, San Marcos has the Tanger outlets, not New Braunfels.

The only thing to see is NASA? I know Houston isn't the most entertaining and touristy, but don't forget:

Down around NASA (SE side) you can also visit the Kemah boardwalk (permanent carnival, eating, drinking on the bay). In Galveston, the strand, Moody Gardens and the beach. Check which pro sports games are playing when you get in, depends on season of course -- we have almost everything here. For a shopping mall, see the Galleria before any other place. You can also take a tour of the port and I believe the battleship San Jacinto. Check the schedules first.

Sugar Land and The Woodlands may be suburbs worth hanging around for an afternoon for their town centers as well. Someone in here could also chime in on what to do around Midtown and Downtown.

[coldlady]

Originally Posted by NorthsideJacksonville

Houston's crime is typically concentrated in the impoverished wards and hoods. Some of the hoods are inside Loop 610 but also extend outside the loop and in some cases, all the way out of the beltway. As long as you steer clear of the wards and hoods, you should be fine. Unfortunately, crime has increased due to Katrina evacuees but has somewhat leveled off. Houston is like any major city, stay out of the ghetto and you should be fine.

Is loop 610 a highway? How about public transportation? Which buses should I avoid and do they run 24/7. What area of town would I find city hall and Tourism Office? Traveling by Amtrak or bus. Are they located in "the imp0verished wards and hoods."? I'm interested in Texa Bar-b-que. Who has sidewalk cafes?