A Taste of Austin

Hello from Austin, Texas! 

We have been here for a few days, and the few colds we have going around, haven't stopped us very much. Although, as I listen to Josh and Lucas coughing this morning, I think we may lay lower today to try to restore good health faster. 

Our first impressions of the Austin Lonestar RV Park are that it reminds us of camping in Ontario due to the large shade trees, ladybugs, bluejays and cardinals and humidity in the air. The only thing missing is a lake or beach to walk to to finish off that picture for us. The park is located less than 10 miles to the airport, which is a wonderful proximity for the guys. However, the pool and park are positioned on the outside of the gate, near the office which is very noisy as it's near the highway or 'frontage' as they call it. It doesn't call out, 'let's go relax by the pool' let's put it that way. The staff are friendly and helpful which has been very welcoming. There are no trails or even sidewalks in the park and big speed bumps to keep the cars and rigs going slow. The laundry and pet park are literally across from us, so that has been great. The children have discovered some heavy clay-like dirt to get themselves messy in and enjoy going to the park, playing games, riding scooters and bikes, reading books and comics and having some quality family time with Daddy at night. 

The city is just outside our door and has all the commercial and quirky shopping you could want and then some. However, the roads to get to it all are odd and loopy. This is such a complete contrast from where we were in Arizona. The downtown is close by and a walk along Congress in search of ice cream, showed up some cool shops, art galleries, horse drawn carriages down the middle of the road and a taste of Austin's style through its windows. It feels a bit like Kingston and Downtown Toronto mixed together. There are plenty of bars which certainly gives it that University town aura. There are large establishments-the hotels and banks in the U.S. are quite a production. 

We visited Zilker Park which contains Barton and Eliza Springs and Barton Creek Greenbelt, an outdoor restaurant, theatre and education center. Upon arrival, the kids ran right over to the park with the big old red fire truck. There were large musical instruments to play and a big park to climb on. A green train ran through it, taking people on a 25 minute tour of the park. Nearby, was Barton Springs artesian fed swimming hole which was quite a sight to see. It was a huge pool and you could picture generations of people enjoying it on hot days since 1930 when it was created. We walked around and took it all in and started a trail along the greenbelt area, and then we succumbed to Josh and Matt's stomachs, which required food and decided to see what we could find at the car and drive around the greenbelt area instead. We could see young and old enjoying Zilker park as it had something for everyone. 

We also enjoyed a visit to the State Capitol which you can't miss with all of its towering pink granite splendour. As you walk around the building, you can see how history has been preserved and honoured with statues, fountains, canons and aged trees protecting and lining the area. You can see that Texas is very proud of their heritage and those who braved battle in times of war to protect and assert their independence. The kids made wishes at a fountain and were quite amazed at all the bats flying around when we came back to the capitol area later in the evening. Austin houses the largest urban bat colony of 1.5 million in North America which depart at dusk nightly from April to October.

In addition, we trekked up 99 limestone steps at Mt. Bonnell to a beautiful view of masses of green treetops, gorgeous homes, the Austin city skyline and the Colorado River Valley. This also reminded us of northern Ontario to a degree which was comforting in and of itself. It is quite amazing how this beautiful spot can be amidst all the commercial craziness ... it was quite clean, pristine and lovely.

I have learned that I really enjoy getting an appetite for a place yet not needing to know all about it and then get there and discover it for myself ... like when you see a movie trailer... I can watch just a few seconds or a couple of minutes and I know if it interests me or not and I'll tell Jeff to turn it off - I'm either gonna watch it, or I'm not... Researching places online is sort of like that...  you can find out so much about a place, take a virtual tour, see reviews ... but nothing beats actually going there and figuring it out as you go... If you know the whole story, what's the point?  The only exception to this for me is places that are historically significant and I have absolutely no clue about its context. Knowing something about it, gives more meaning to a building, church, group of people or event. So, there are instances when research in advance helps you to appreciate what you are looking at more so than if you hadn't. Sometimes it's hard to take in a new place visually and learn a lot about it all at once especially with little kidlets who tend to be hands-on, experiential and visual in nature. We are currently learning about the Alamo as we intend to go to San Antonio to see it this weekend! My Dad will be so proud!