Austin

Day 1
We flew to Austin and got in around 5:30 in the evening. After a quick bus ride to downtown we walked a bit to find the loft we had rented from AirBNB. It was a super cute place and in a great location with an amazing view of the capital.

After checking out our place and unpacking a bit, we ventured out to find some dinner. It was then that Travis saw a big crowd forming on the Congress Avenue Bridge. My cousin's wife had told us about the bats under the bridge that fly out nightly around sunset so we thought we'd check it out. I'm not exactly the biggest insect/bat/critter lover but I agreed to play along. The wind was whipping around so fast I was thankful my camera was on a strap! We waited for about 45 minutes (luckily I had my trusty almonds in my purse to snack on) and were rewarded with an awesome viewing of the crazy mass-bat exodus. The pictures make it look like we were watching a gigantic swarm of insects but I promise they were bats. Tiny, hairy, creep-me-out bats.

After the bat escapade, we continued on our search for dinner. We decided to try out Lustre Pearl for drinks and tacos. We ate Bomb Tacos and drank beer and margaritas outside surrounded by the cool kids playing ping-pong and drinking quite excessively.  The tacos were made by a friendly guy in a truck and were the best tacos we've ever had! Highly recommend. 

On our way back to our place for the night, we stopped inside a cute little market to pick up some ice cream.

Day 2
Trav went for a run around the University of Texas campus and the state capital in the morning. Laying around in bed past 6:00a.m. was the absolute most decadent feeling in the entire world. We Skyped with the boys (always a hilarious endeavor) and were out the door for the day.

We walked to Cafe Crepe for breakfast and had delicious food to start our day.

After breakfast we decided to walk down Congress Avenue to the SoCo area of Austin. There were plenty of cute stores, cafes, and restaurants to peruse. Some of our favorites were:

Allen's Boots

Big Top Candy Shop

Goorin Hats

Uncommon Objects

Snack Bar

We met up with my cousin Connor and his wife Amanda to tour the law school Connor is attending at the University of Texas. He was proud to show us his home-away-from-home and we enjoyed seeing where he spends the majority of his time.

Dinner that night was at Hopdoddy and delicious burgers and shakes were devoured by all four of us. Travis and I had a great time catching up with Connor and Amanda since our paths don't cross with theirs very often.

Day 3
We started out the day a bit later than previously thought but that's the joy of vacation! We got to do whatever we want, whenever we wanted. It was magical to say the least.

It was forecast to be a hot day so we decided to spend it outside. That sounds weird if you know me well (I love warm weather but not too hot) but I was game. We stopped in the Austin Public Library (yes, we are nerds), REI, and then checked out BookPeople before heading to the flagship Whole Foods store for lunch.

While munching on our candy from the day before, we made the trek over yet another bridge to get to the Austin Hike and Bike trail. It's a great walking/running/biking/dog-walking path that follows the "lake" (it's the Colorado River but people here call it Town Lake or Lady Bird Lake, depending on if they've embraced the "new" name or not). We saw more people on this path than in our other days' travels put together. Austin is a fit city with bikers, walkers, and runners everywhere. 

Our main goal was to get to (and get in!) Barton Springs. It was hot and humid so once we arrived at the Springs we got right in. Well, not quite "right" in. The water was freezing and I am a wuss. The water is about 65 degrees year-round which might sounds warm but when the air around you is a hot-and-humid 85 degrees, 65 degree water is brutal! Nevertheless, I went in for a little bit and then enjoyed the springs from the grass. Trav swam for awhile, as he is much braver than I am.

Our walk back to our place was not the most enjoyable trek. It was 88 degrees with very high humidity and I didn't drink enough water during our many hours outside. Luckily my lovely husband could tell I wasn't feeling great and stopped to buy me a Jamba Juice. I felt much better afterwards.

We got ready for dinner out and headed to 6th Street to check out the bars and restaurants. We ended up at Iron Cactus for fajitas and margaritas. 

Day 4
Although we didn't hear or see the thunder and lightening storm that had been predicted for the early morning hours, we awoke to rain, rain, and more rain. Quite the temperature change from the day before- about forty degrees cooler!

After watching a (peaceful) protest traveling down our street, we headed over to the Texas State Capital. We found the capital quite impressive. Even the door hinges were attractive! Lots of important looking people in suits were bustling through the throngs of tourists (including us) and we had fun investigating all the different levels of the building.

  

We got bus passes this day so we wouldn't have to walk around all day in the rain (we both only brought light sweatshirts as outer-wear) and the passes were a great choice. The public transportation in Austin was awesome-lots of busses everywhere and a day pass that gets you basically anywhere in the city of Austin only costs $2. Such a great deal! I was impressed by two things that I don't usually see when I ride the bus in Seattle; 1.Eating and drinking are prohibited on the bus in Austin. As a result, the busses are very clean. 2. Nearly every single person getting off each bus we rode in Austin thanked the driver as they disembarked. Such good manners. 

We went to check out UT but we were freezing walking around (it was about 45 or 50 degrees but the wind was bitter cold) so we decided to check out the LBJ Presidential Library. It was phenomenal! We enjoyed the videos, photo displays, and all the memorabilia there was to look at. I can't say I knew much about LBJ or Lady Bird before visiting the library but I learned a lot and enjoyed it thouroughly. One of my favorite parts of the library was the area where we could pick up a phone receiver and "listen" to recorded phone conversations LBJ had with Martin Luther King Jr., Jackie Kennedy, and many others. It was fascinating. 

We grabbed a quick bit to eat back at our place that evening before heading out for Nerd Nite. Nerd Nite is something I read about in the Austin Chronicle and knew we needed to attend. As their website says, "We all know that learning is more fun when you're drinking with friends and colleagues. Thus, Nerd Night is a monthly event held in more than 50 cities across the glove during which several folks give 18-21-minute fun-yet-informative presentations across all disciplines-while the audience drinks along." Not only were the three presentations very interesting, covering Olive Oil, fabric, and a possible gondola-system in Austin, but the music by Star Fighter Dreams was awesome as well.  

Day 5
Our last day in Austin included breakfast at one of Sandra Bullock's restaurants-Walton's Fancy and Staple, visiting Central Market, and heading back to the South Congress area. We headed home that afternoon and flew in to Seattle after the boys were already in bed. Lucky us, Taran woke up multiple times that night so we were able to spend lots of quality time with him in the wee hours. That boy! 

This trip was made possible by: The wonderful grandparents that watched the boys while we were gone, our companion fare on our credit card, and our savings we've been working on for a few years to make this trip a marvelous way to celebrate our ten years of marriage!