This blog focuses on Austin. It was part of our Southern US road trip to experience Southern hospitality, amazing landscapes, great food and authentic Blues. It was fantastic! For more about the music scene and band videos, go to Southern Blues Road Trip.

Our Southern US trip started in Austin, state capital of Texas, and live music capital of the world. Austin has more than 250 live music venues. Major music events include the South by Southwest Music, Film and Interactive conferences in March and the Austin City Limits Music Festival in October. It is the 11th-most populous city in the U.S. and the fastest growing large city in the United States.

Where to Stay?

We spent two nights at a great B&B, The Fairview. They have luxury rooms in the main house and guest houses out back. Breakfast is quality organic food (yogurt, fruit, homemade granola), home baked goods and excellent coffee brewed by the cup. Free wi-fi. It is a historic home, beautifully furnished and very clean.

It is in a nice residential area that is full of flowers, scented trees, succulents and lots of greenery. I don’t think I have seen such lush flora and certainly didn’t expect so much in hot Texas.

Other options for accommodations:

Attractions

Spray mist keeping people cool
Congress Bridge has millions of bats underneath. They fly at dusk. It’s the biggest bat show in the world.

The B&B is a four-block walk to South Congress where the good restaurants are (and a few live music venues), but to get to 6th Street, where most of the music venues are, it is a long trek (half an hour in the stifling heat across the bridge to North Congress). We didn’t have a car for this part of the trip, thinking we could get a taxi or a bus, but we couldn’t find either. We walked across this bridge (it took a 15-minute walk to get there) all the way to the State Capitol Congress Building, which you can see at the at the very end of the street. And then there was the walk back!  The plan was to take a taxi, but we were there on a weekend when over 100,000 college football fans descended on the city, using up the limited taxi supply. The city does not have Uber or Lyft (at least not in 2016). Blisters exploded on our feet and crippled us for the rest of the trip!

 We did a quick tour of the Texas State Capitol Building, it didn’t take long to get in, even with the security check. It is a beautiful historic building constructed in 1888, and recognized as one of the most distinguished state capitol buildings.

They have galleries and various exhibits and you can climb to the top of that dome. Check out their web site for more information. It is worth a visit.

We were thirsty after that so we went to the 5 star Driskill, Austin’s top hotel. Built in 1886 as the showplace of cattle baron Jesse Driskill, The Driskill Hotel remains a legendary landmark in Texas.

It is gorgeous! It would have been nice to stay there, but at the time the rooms were over $650 USD per night, which was above our budget. The staff is super friendly. Great place for drinks.

We were hoping we could get a cab back from Driskill (what 5-star hotel doesn’t have a line of taxi’s waiting right?) but no such luck. EVERYONE was waiting for a taxi. Every single car was going to the football stadium for the big game – Texas Longhorns vs. Notre Dame.

I wanted to check out the flagship Whole Foods store in Austin, but we needed to save our energy for the long, long walk back in the heat. Yes Wholefoods was founded in Austin Texas in 1980 – for those rare folk that have never heard of Whole Foods, it is the best chain of organic groceries stores ever! You can also eat there – they have a buffet and other great organic foods in most, if not all, locations. You can’t beat a quality meal for $8-15. Toronto has only one, but it’s the only place we shop. I should buy stock!

Back on the South Congress side of the bridge we ran into an Insta Poet. Pick a topic and he writes you a poem on an old typewriter! We didn’t get one. But I did buy a great western shirt at a store on South Congress. The store had the door wide open, but with a wall of cold air flowing down that blocked the heat from coming in. So you walk through the wall of cold air and into AC and you are nice and chilled. Then they offered us whiskey! Every store offered us either a small glass of beer or whiskey. So nice. Of course, we then had to keep walking into stores for a refreshing chill break.

Later we went to the Continental Club on South Congress, “Austin’s premier live club since 1955”, to see Cash’d Out – a Johnny Cash tribute band. It was very enjoyable to have a cold beer with a lively crowd that was really into the music.

Tip: if you like good beer, order an IPA or APA – most places have at least one from a micro brewery, and they are full of flavor. Or stick to anything from a micro brewery, the big-name brands are very watery – but I think most people know that about US beer.

Other attractions:

  • Zilker Metropolitan Park and Botanical Garden
  • Bullock Texas State History Museum
  • Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum
  • Lady Bird Lake
  • Umlauf Sculpture Garden and Museum
  • Texas Memorial Museum
  • Bats of Congress Avenue Bridge – millions of bats fly at dusk
  • South Congress Street (SoCo)
  • Austin City Limits

Where to Eat?

We went to Italian Vespaio – 5 star fine dining – and we were blown away. This was the best buffalo mozzarella either of us have ever tasted! It was better than in Italy! Fresh heirloom tomatoes, perfectly ripened and perfectly seasoned with fresh basil, sea salt and a splash of high end balsamic vinegar; together with house-made, super creamy, super tasty buffalo mozzarella and a slice of amazing sour dough bread – my mouth is watering as I’m writing. This was one of those dishes that will be remembered forever (like the panini we had in Venice).

The next day we ate at the back patio of the South Congress cafe, another top rated restaurant, and just walked around the South Congress area. The food was outstanding! We visited more stores and just hung out. We loved Austin! The people are very friendly, the fine dining is superb (I’m not into Tex Mex, but they have the best of that too) and it is the place to be for great music.

Other Recommendations:

Enjoy your stay in Austin!

For more photos of the South go to Wonderland Photography.

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR