Texas Archive:
Farewell To Austin
About 6 months ago, I wrote a post about making it to Austin. I talked about making the move from Arizona and did a quick farewell to the great times I had there. Well guess what?
It’s time to move on yet again. My girlfriend and I are moving across the country tomorrow so I thought I would share my thoughts and adventures I had here in Austin.
Pedernales Falls State Park
This past weekend, I went and checked out Pedernales Falls State Park. It’s located about an hour outside of Austin here in Texas. It’s made up of more than 5,000 acres of land and has a bunch hiking trails and camping areas.
Although the waterfalls weren’t what I was expecting, they were still cool to look at. It was also nice to get outside and do some hiking, especially in November. The leaves are starting to change colors so the scenery is pretty amazing.
Texas Capitol Tour
A few days ago, my girlfriend and I decided to take a walk to the Texas capitol building here in Austin. We’ve walked by it a few times but have never gone up close to it or inside to see what it looks like. So we decided to go in and check it out.
Outside The Capitol
The Capitol is an awesome looking building that really makes the Austin skyline. It reminds me a lot of Washington DC as well as Madison, Wisconsin. The top of the building looks the same, regardless of what side you are looking at.
Here’s a few pictures of the outside of the building:
Back From Beach Camping
Well I just got back from my beach camping trip and it was a ton of fun. We went back to Padre Island and camped at the same location we did last time. Luckily my girlfriend got some time off this time so we were able to stay longer.
Enchanted Rock
A few days ago, my girlfriend and I decided to go check out Enchanted Rock State Natural Area. It’s a state natural area made up of more than 1600 acres that’s located just north of Fredericksburg, Texas. The rock has been a National Natural Landmark since the 70’s.
What Is It?
Enchanted Rock is a HUGE boulder that sticks out of the ground more than 425 feet. The summit of the rock sits at 1,825 feet above sea level. It’s also one of the largest underground rock formations in…
The Most Interesting Academy
Last night I attended the Most Interesting Academy party, which was hosted by Dos Equis. It was a place to learn and try awesome things in hopes of making us “more interesting.” The only downside was the fact that the actual guy from the Dos Equis commercials was not there. Damn it.
The event was completely FREE! Free beer, free food, and free transportation. Nothing beat’s that. I probably slugged down about 15 beers in the 4 hours I was there, plus a half dozen sliders and a grasshopper (read below).
Beach Camping On Padre Island
This past weekend, my girlfriend and I had an awesome time beach camping on Padre Island. It was a great experience and something we plan on doing often.
This was the first time I’ve ever camped right on the beach before. I’ve slept on the beach a few times in the past but never in a tent or on purpose. We literally setup camp right above the high tide line and slept under the stars.
It’s an amazing feeling waking up to the sound of the ocean. The only downside was the fact that the inside of our tent was like 100 degrees. But it was a small price to pay for hanging out on the beach.
Back From #wcdfw09
I Made the drive back from Dallas last night and managed to make it in one piece. Overall, WordCamp Dallas/Fort Worth (#wcdfw09) turned out to be an awesome event where I learned some awesome things about WordPress.
I met some awesome people (including @sivori, @claygriffiths, @grantgriffiths and @plagiarismtoday) and learned about the future of WordPress from @photomatt.
If anything, it gave me a big boost in motivation to keep on going and try as hard as I can at blogging. Plus I managed to hand…
The Congress Bridge Bats
I never would of expected that Austin is the home of the largest urban bat colony in the United States. It turns out there are around 1.5 million bats that call the Congress Avenue bridge home from March until November. I just so happen to live right next to the bridge so they fly over our apartment complex every night.
Flight of the Bats
Here’s a video of the bats coming out at around 8:15 PM:
Near My Apartment
Here’s another video of the bats flying in streaks right near my apartment complex.
ROT Motorcycle Rally
This past weekend was the Republic of Texas Motorcycle Rally. It’s the largest bike rally in the state of Texas and it’s not hard to tell. I could not believe how many bikers were around.
There were tons of things going on including a Robbie Knieval jump near the capital building, midget wrestling, and a Hank Williams Jr. concert.
The Parade
The coolest part of all was the Rot Rally Parade where they lined up all the bikers and had them come downtown. It was 45 minutes of non-stop…
