Austin – Capitol of Texas

The drive south from Waco was very good.  Even though there were a few heavy traffic places, it all flowed well and the road condition was good.  First some observations and then a recap of our week!

The Drive South

A short 120 miles made for a great morning commute.  We left Waco at 10:15 am and arrived at the KOA on Austin’s far east side at about 12:30 pm.  Just in time to set up the RV and have some lunch.

The arrival day was spent just relaxing some and then doing some laundry.  We were not completely out of stuff yet, but the park laundry was brand new and just a few feet from our spot.  Good to have it done.

Observations on Austin Tx

Well, all locations that we visit do not become favorites begging another drive into town.  Austin kind of fits that category.  I’m sure there are many positives that we missed, but we just did not get that Wow Factor feeling.

One of our goals in traveling the country is to find a place to have a retirement home.  There have been a few candidates so far, such as Savannah Ga.  We were able to strike Austin off that list.  And here I was excited to get there to experience the live music capital.  Oh well.

The issues were some of the worst road conditions and heaviest traffic that we have ever seen.  Road construction everywhere.  If driving between 3-6pm, better just forget it.  The traffic is standstill.  We got stuck in it twice.  You would think that I would have learned the first time.

Also, we could not find any live music except later at night and we are not night owls anymore.  A walk down the 6th street main music area showed a dirty, depressed, broken down area heavy with homeless.  Not what we were expecting.  I really enjoy live music and will gladly drop a few bucks for dinner and/or drinks at a nice place.  Obviously saved some money here.

Okay, with the negatives out of the way, we did find two shining stars.  The State House tour and the LBJ library and museum.

Texas State Capitol Tour and Christmas Tree Raising

The capitol building was completed in 1888 and is 303 feet tall making it the sixth tallest state capitol building.  We had a very interesting lady tour guide who provided many “background” tidbits that made the tour very special.

The building is clad in red granite from a local quarry.  They had actually planned on buying limestone from out of state (Indiana), but finally decided on a local stone from Texas.  They even built a railroad line a few miles just to shuttle the granite from the mine to the building site.

Also, while we were there, they were raising a 27 foot Christmas tree.  LINK   It was interesting to watch the process.  Several ropes, many people, and a lift machine.  Our guide explained the 27 foot tree was selected because the folks in DC had a 25 foot tree.  In Texas, it must be larger.

The building extension completed in 1993 is mostly underground with only some skylights visible.

The tour guide also gave us the name of a place for lunch, the Scholz Garden.

We have now seen four state capitol buildings.  Little Rock, Harrisburg, Nashville, and Austin.

Scholz Garden Lunch

In 1866, a German immigrant named August Scholz opened his bar and cafe (LINK) and it is still operating today as the oldest bar in Texas.  They serve some good German food and beer and is within walking distance from the downtown.

LBJ Library and Museum

This was our first presidential library to visit and it was incredible.  We had a much greater understanding and appreciation for our 36th president after spending a few hours in the 10 story building.

The visitors exhibits are on the third and fourth floors and also the tenth floor.  All the other floors hold the 45 million documents from his life.  Yes, 45 million!

Walking 6th Street

As I stated earlier, this was a dirty, smelly, unpleasant area that is supposed to attract the young crowd.  Not so sure about that.  We did have a cold beverage at a place along a waterway.  The beverage was good.

That wraps up Austin.  We have now moved about 100 miles south to the very delightful city of San Antonio.  Our stay here is seven days and then it is off to the beach town of Port Aransas for another week, then down to the Mexican border for the winter.

Thanks for following along.  Leave a comment, if you wish, we love the feedback.  Take care and God Bless.