Houston Art Car Parade and Ball, Houston

Held on the eve of Houston's annual Art Car Parade, the Art Car Ball invites guests to let loose at one of the city's most talked about parties of the year. Drinks, food, and music weave common threads through what is otherwise an unpredictable evening, since party guests are encouraged to arrive in costumes of their own. The ball also acts as a showcase of some of the parade's participating vehicles.

The following day, the 27th annual Art Car Parade cruises through downtown along Allen Parkway. When it began in 1988, the parade featured a mere 40 cars and an audience of 2,000 people—a far cry from the 250-plus vehicles and 250,000 spectators that it draws today. A dizzying display of mobile masterpieces, the parade stars fully costumed cars, go-carts, unicycles, lawnmowers, and basically any vehicle that moves on wheels and doesn't have agoraphobia.