Surprising Houston

Houston is full of surprises, even to those very familiar with the city. Tom Segesta, General Manager of Four Seasons Hotel Houston, has compiled a list of some of his favourite little-known H-Town facts and figures:

• 4th largest city in America (with more than 2.3 million residents)
• Most diverse city in America (with residents speaking more than 145 languages)
• 2nd only to NYC for number of theatre seats (more than 12,000 seats in a 17-block area)
• Residents eat out more than in any other city in America (at more than 10,000 restaurants)
• Energy capital of the world (home to 4,600 energy-related companies)
• The largest medical centre in the world (1,000-acre/400-hectare Texas Medical Center sees more than 7.2 million patients per year) is in Houston
• Home to the nation's first Hindu Mandir (originally built in 1988)
• Has an extensive underground tunnel system (7 miles/11 kilometres long, connecting 95 city blocks)
• Hosts the world's largest rodeo (1.8 million visitors annually)
• Home to the 3rd most Fortune 500 headquarters in the US (24)
• Buffalo Bayou was formed more than 18,000 years ago (this 53-mile/85-kilometre slow-moving body of water flows from Katy, through Houston, and into the Gulf of Mexico)