Austin Here I Come!

 

At the beginning of this month I had the pleasure of visiting Texas for the first time. I planned on spending some time in Austin and making a pit stop in Dallas, but alas, time did not allow. So, I will simply share what I gathered from my one week in Austin, spending time with local Austinites - who will soon no longer be strangers to me, as I am moving!

My general, these were my superficial observations:

1. The topography and landscape was quite hilly, luscious and green, which I for some reason wasn’t anticipating. The green bushes were what I like to call round and squatty - can you tell i need to research the nature there? I think yes...there are lots of greenways to hang out at and parks to throw the Frisbee, nap on a hammock, etc. I am excited to cycle there and not be in the flat lands and absurd traffic of south FL.

2. The downtown and surrounding areas were super clean! I visited UT's campus and meandered around the downtown area for several hours and only found one single piece of trash - i'd say people there take pride in their city and conserve the area.

3.The buildings /community had its own sense of culture, style and uniqueness. I can see why some would call it "weird" but in my opinion, it's just a liberal city where the population prefers colorful, graphical representations on their structures...self-expression, if you will. This works for me, as I prefer odd to boring. Homes also openly exhibited their political affiliations and their support for political candidates - you don't see this in Florida or North Carolina, but then again, FL might be one of the most generic/ hodge podge/ places I have ever encountered (you can be sure to find these in any random order: surf shop, liquor store, dollar store, liquor store, bar, Wal-Greens…rinse and repeat).

4. It's taco Tuesday all day, every day! I am not sure what I was expecting, but the Tex Mex foodies really stepped up their game in this town, offering varieties of tacos that would please any palate. if you don't enjoy tacos, I stay away from Austin!! It's also food truck nation; there are countless (meaning, LOTS) of food trucks selling anything from cupcakes to...you guessed it, tacos!

What did I do while I was there?

The culinary highlights include a pit stop at the quaint and quirky Magnolia Cafe which had hands down the best squash dish I've ever eaten –  I know you are thinking “what?! squash?!...” but, seriously their vegetarian curry and squash dish was amazing. I would highly recommend eating there if you are looking for good customer service and a quick bite at an affordable price. If you are looking for a more upbeat atmosphere with live music and a killer view, The Oasis at Lake Travis is right up your alley. There, you can feast on frozen margarita treats and watch the sun  go down ...people even clapped and yelped at the impressive view.

Unbeknownst to me (and probably the majority of the general population) Austin houses the largest

urban bat colony in North America and I apparently came during season, which is mid-March to early November. How perfectly out of place and random...

In the SoCo area of Austin, there's a place called Off the Wall which is a crazy/fun conglomerate of antiques, unique finds and gifts from all over the world. I was lucky enough to get a behind the scenes tour of the store, allowing me to inspect the quality thrift merchandise which can only be described as eclectic and trendy (I must say i am biased here - i could spend hours getting lost in antique/ thrift shops)

Austin won me over with its friendly faces and small-town vibes. Now, it’s time to continue to do what I do best, which is keep on keepin’ on and making moves to new and unfamiliar places (which is not common in my family as both of my parents hate traveling and much prefer to stay at home). As I sit in the Philadelphia airport waiting on my flight to London, I am already hearing those old familiar UK accents; Europe here I come!