Life + Arts

Cheap things to do in Houston

Summer is quickly coming to an end; in less than a month the fall semester will begin. Don’t let classes and internships take away the only remaining break that year round students get before Thanksgiving.

Since a lot of students don’t have the money to take a vacation or even go out to eat without going into the red, here are some things that with a modest amount of effort and a few bucks can escalate the summer. The group goes from the obscure things to actual events that are still on going.

First of all, try playing Frisbee golf. It’s a silly sport that only requires walking around and throwing a disk every now and then. What sets this apart from regular Frisbee is that it gives time to catch up with friends without having to sit somewhere. There are courses all around the Houston area, and most of them require no money. There will be enough sitting in class.

Take a trip to Galveston. There is a lot to do on this sandbar of an island. Take the time to explore the Strand, play beach volleyball — or lying like a beached whale on the beach is always an option.  Houston is a big city, but there still needs to be an escape from it sometimes and this is about the cheapest place you can go.

The Houston Zoo is always a great place to go, even if it doesn’t have penguins. This was a main stop for school field trips for students before college. It’s only $11 to see lions, tigers and bears, along with just about every other animal that can survive in the heat.

If being out in the hot Texas sun seems too much like a bad idea, the corpse flower, the smelly plant at the Museum of Natural Science, has bloomed. For $7 with a student ID, you can see one of the rarest flowers in the world. While in the museum district, you can go see The Big Show at The Lawndale Art Center. The Big Show features 87 artists and adds up to 114 works of art. This is one of the biggest events in art in Houston and is a great interdiction into the art scene in Houston. You can also go see art at the Museum of Fine Art for free on Thursdays.

There is another form of art in town, such as live music. Places like Walter’s on Washington, Mango’s and Fitzgerald’s feature some of the best local musicians. During the week, AvantGarden is a great place to stop. The bands are not always great, but the experience usually is.

The most important thing at the end of summer is fun, regardless of the money that has been put in the bank.

What students really need before the start of a new semester is a break. So take time to relax. Sometimes it is hard to get out to do something as pointless as Frisbee golf, even when the time is there.

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