Swapping blogs

Okay everyone, we might be a day late, but my blog swap partner Mai, of "Maisquared", and I have finally exchanged posts. As Mai describes below, we both decided to focus on our respective "current places of residence". Enjoy, my friends (and thanks, Mai). You can find my piece here: Blog Swap

My 2nd 20sb blog swap! Yay! Thanks Lanette for your great piece about Fort McMurray, Alberta for my own blog! For this 20sb blog swap we decided to talk about our respective homes to give our audiences different insight .

In one month I will be an Austin resident for one full year. In the year that I’ve lived here I’ve been able to explore a lot about myself, but sadly not a lot about the actual city I’ve lived in. Ever since I was born, I’ve lived all over the world from Bruxelles to Manila, Bahrain to Beaumont, and Boston to Austin. All these cities have made up pieces of my personality so it should be fitting that a city like Austin would influence my core as I begin to experience my 20s in the vibrant city that is Austin.

When I decided to move away from Boston (where I went to college), I looked for a city that had the same feel and personality as Cambridge, MA (home to MIT/Harvard). Rich with diversity and culture, community/political involvement, vibrant music scene and relatively cheaper than other major cities--Austin was the place for me!

I travel a lot for work but Austin already feels like home to me. Of course there are times where I complain about loneliness on my blog, but in all honesty I am the one to blame for being such a hermit. Austin has a lot to offer and my goal for the summer was to explore it in all it’s summery glory!

To give you a sense of what it is like here I thought I’d give you tour of my city via blog. This would be where I would take you if you were one of my guests here in Austin!

The day after I returned from my summer tour, I experienced the amazingness that is Barton Springs! For those of you who don’t know, Barton Springs is this amazing natural spring in Austin that stays 62 degrees year round. This is the perfect cure for triple digit heat! It’s a weird natural pool that endangered salamanders found ONLY in Austin call home. It looks like a pool but it’s ALL natural! In the deeper parts of the pool you can touch long pond grass and in the shallower parts, are algae covered rocks.

(photo credit: http://5minuteswithmolly.wordpress.com/)

After an early morning/afternoon dip at Barton Springs we’d head over to Sno Beach- the BEST sno cone place ANYWHERE. It isn’t just pieces of lumpy ice, it is shaved ice and more than that it isn’t one syrupy mess. Everything just melts in your mouth beautifully!! I consider myself a sno cone connoisseur, and even though I haven’t lived here long, I’ve tried out about 7 sno cone places in Austin and no place can make a sno cone like Sno Beach. It’s a nice $2 treat (and that’s WITH extra cream on top) and sometimes this is the budget treat I give myself when I can’t shop at Anthropologie.

We’d head back out towards South Congress also known to locals as SoCo. SoCo is where it’s at during SXSW if you want to avoid busy 6th street but still want to catch great music. The street is concentrated with local boutiques, restaurants and airstream eateries (where else can you eat out of a bevy of airstreams?!?) Good eats can definitely be found on this street! Photos compliments of my friend Stefanie (http://captainstefanie.blogspot.com/)


(http://www.travelmuse.com/articles/austin/austin-restaurant-guide)

(http://www.travelmuse.com/articles/austin/austin-restaurant-guide)

I love the sense of community that is here in Austin. People love going out, listening to music and experiencing all that is Austin. People support local businesses here and I rarely ever go to fast food chain when there’s such a great selection of local restaurants and even local fast food places in town.

After a stroll down SoCo, I’d drive you to The Cathedral of Junk! The best personification of Austin’s motto “Keep Austin Weird.” Photos Here

(http://www.flickr.com/photos/_alix/sets/72157616841605450/).

After exploring some amazing treasures, it may be time for an early dinner in historic Hyde Park. Hyde Park Bar & Grill for my meat eating friends (serves great veggie options for me too!!) or Mother’s Café for my vegan/vegetarian friends. People here love their food, our local farmers market may be small but people here eat organic all the time! Local restaurants serve the best ingredients and take pride in their food. Dessert at Quack’s Bakery for their fine cake slices, cupcakes, cookies or Dolce Vita for amazing gelato.

After dinner, we’d hit one of Austin’s hundreds of local venues for some live music. If it’s Monday, TC’s Lounge on the east side of Austin is where it’s at! They have amazing live blues and the owner always cooks up something nice, complimentary as part of the $5 cover! After a few drinks down on 6th street (a great place to people watch), time to head home!!!

Austin is everything I wanted in a city, and I’m so glad to be able to call it home. It’s hard to explain but Austin is way more than a city, it’s an entire culture separate from Texas and anywhere else I’ve been to in the entire country (and I’ve been to A LOT). Thanks for letting me take you on a tour of Austin via blog! Thanks Lanette!

Mai