What Makes You Proud To Live in Austin and Would Show Off to Visitors? (Spring: apartment, houses)
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When people not from Austin (or Texas in general) ask you what you really like about Austin, what do you tell them? If say that person were to visit for a short amount of time, what are the things that you would show off about the city to wow them and make them think Austin is a great city? Austin obviously has its problems, especially with growing pains, but on the other end of it is a great city to call home and show off. I know these boards often show a lot of negativity towards the problems, but I really want this thread to be about the positives of this city and why you're proud to live here.
For me, I live in Northwest Austin (a little north of The Domain). I have come to love this part of Austin because it doesn't feel as much like a congested city. I have a third floor apartment and I can see ton of trees and actually the only buildings I can see is an apartment building in the distance. Other than that, it's like living a bit in a tree fort when I sit on my balcony.
I love the variety this town has to offer. Whether it be quirky places like Top Notch Hamburgers, Lucy's Fried Chicken, or amazing local products like Yellowbird Hot Sauce, there is so much stuff to discover here. I do love the Texas influence on food and the BBQ and tacos are unbeatable here.
I want to hear from everyone else on why they love this city and what are the specific things they love about it. I'm also trying to make a list of awesome places to visit that I can blog about in my travel blog (put a .com after my username). I really want to find out what my fellow Austinites are proud of in this city and then embody that in my blog.
Hopefully, everyone has a great day and the traffic isn't too horrible for y'all
Why would I want to show off austin? Why would I be "proud" to live here? Why would I be proud of things Im not responsible for?
The thing that I love about austin is mainly the people Ive grown to know here. Ive spent almost half my life here and my life is intertwined with people in the city.
Austin has some great restaurants, but many cities have even better restaurants with more variety
Austin has a great nightlife, but lots of places have better nightlife
Austin has lots of outdoors, but lots of places have even better outdoor opportunities
Austin has cool festivals, but lots of places have even better festivals
Austin has great live music, but lots of cities have even better live music
Austin is still relatively affordable, but lots of great cities are even more affordable
What austin does have is a good mix of all of these things, without necessarily being the best in any of the categories.
When people complain that austin is overrated it is usually because they want a world class city in a category where austin is just very good. The people who love austin appreciate how austin is strong in many areas, even though we are probably not the best in any area.
So how would you convey that? If a friend came to town for a short amount of time and wanted to see the best of Austin, what would you show them? There has to be some things that stand out for you.
So how would you convey that? If a friend came to town for a short amount of time and wanted to see the best of Austin, what would you show them? There has to be some things that stand out for you.
thats a different question.
I take people shooting/hog hunting
to some of our favorite restaurants (uchiko, rudys bbq/salt lick, asia cafe, new fortune, south congress cafe)
depending on the season, out to the lake, junior league christmas affair
depending on the person, mountain biking on one of austins many rogue trails, hiking, or kayaking
They would come with us as we drop the kids off to their various activities.
We have done the ducktours before with people. Less about seeing austin and more about the novelty of the vehicle.
If we go to south congress cafe, we will shop on south congress
If they are my wifes friends they might go to travaasa for the day
We typically dont do any of the famous stuff, although we did sxsw interactive/film this year and bought passes for next year.
The things we do are less important than the people we are with. The things we do are the things we already normally do. To me austin is a good city to live in, but isnt a "sight seeing" city.
Austin is a city with a southwestern vibe but on the cusp of the southeast. You're just as likely to find someone boiling crawfish as someone making a tamale, smoking brisket, or deep frying catfish. We have this outdoorsy vibe that you generally don't find in the southeast. The citizens are highly educated and interesting.
The aesthetics of the city never were that good but that part is improving. It was a unique blend of cultures and people mixing who all had a common idea of a great place to make a living, raise a family, and have fun.
You don't "show Austin" you "experience Austin". The best way is to bring someone to a festival, or F1, or Barton Springs or something.
I take people shooting/hog hunting
to some of our favorite restaurants (uchiko, rudys bbq/salt lick, asia cafe, new fortune, south congress cafe)
depending on the season, out to the lake, junior league christmas affair
depending on the person, mountain biking on one of austins many rogue trails, hiking, or kayaking
They would come with us as we drop the kids off to their various activities.
We have done the ducktours before with people. Less about seeing austin and more about the novelty of the vehicle.
If we go to south congress cafe, we will shop on south congress
If they are my wifes friends they might go to travaasa for the day
We typically dont do any of the famous stuff, although we did sxsw interactive/film this year and bought passes for next year.
The things we do are less important than the people we are with. The things we do are the things we already normally do. To me austin is a good city to live in, but isnt a "sight seeing" city.
Yes. This post and your last post are my EXACT sentiments. If I could rep you 100 times, I would - Austin is a jack of all trades, master of none. Indeed! I know this isn't what the OP was looking for, so I won't go further with this.
I just returned from Colorado Springs, and I struck up a conversation at the airport with a guy from somewhere up North (can't remember because he's been around), and he raved about Austin and Texas, in general. He said the people and the "vibe" in Texas are unparalleled. I know this isn't something you can literally "show" a person, but just taking them out and about might allow them to experience the "vibe."
My brother moved away a short while after graduating from UT where he studied engineering, so his big thing was to show visitors the Balcones Fault Line. This would be interesting for a geology nerd.
I take people shooting/hog hunting
to some of our favorite restaurants (uchiko, rudys bbq/salt lick, asia cafe, new fortune, south congress cafe)
depending on the season, out to the lake, junior league christmas affair
depending on the person, mountain biking on one of austins many rogue trails, hiking, or kayaking
They would come with us as we drop the kids off to their various activities.
We have done the ducktours before with people. Less about seeing austin and more about the novelty of the vehicle.
If we go to south congress cafe, we will shop on south congress
If they are my wifes friends they might go to travaasa for the day
We typically dont do any of the famous stuff, although we did sxsw interactive/film this year and bought passes for next year.
The things we do are less important than the people we are with. The things we do are the things we already normally do. To me austin is a good city to live in, but isnt a "sight seeing" city.
Thanks for the more specific suggestions. I definitely see where you're coming from with Austin being the jack of all trades sort of city. In a way, there's a kind of quirkiness to that in itself. The variety can be very refreshing and actually that's one of the things that really attracted me to move here from Wisconsin.
Quote:
Originally Posted by cBach
You don't "show Austin" you "experience Austin". The best way is to bring someone to a festival, or F1, or Barton Springs or something.
This is actually a really good way to frame it and something I'll keep in mind when I'm trying display what is going on through my blog. The display needs to try to invoke as much experience of the city instead of just showing it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mrs.JT
Yes. This post and your last post are my EXACT sentiments. If I could rep you 100 times, I would - Austin is a jack of all trades, master of none. Indeed! I know this isn't what the OP was looking for, so I won't go further with this.
I just returned from Colorado Springs, and I struck up a conversation at the airport with a guy from somewhere up North (can't remember because he's been around), and he raved about Austin and Texas, in general. He said the people and the "vibe" in Texas are unparalleled. I know this isn't something you can literally "show" a person, but just taking them out and about might allow them to experience the "vibe."
Actually, I was looking for this kind of feedback. I want to find out what makes Austin unique to people and then convey it on my blog. Everyone sees Austin differently and really being the jack of all trades city you have to experience puts a lot of things into perspective. I really want to showcase why this city is great and knowing how other people view it helps me do that, so this feedback is really gold in the whole scheme of things.
I do know when my parents came to visit, my dad really liked the city. He raved about how clean it was and how modern everything looked and said this was a city he liked to visit. This is coming from a guy who grew up in Central Wisconsin and considers my hometown of Marshfield (yes the place the guy who locked himself in the beer cooler at the gas station and kept drinking), to be a big enough city at 19,000 people and actually doesn't even want to live in the city. I literally grew up on 80 acres in the woods 10 miles south of Marshfield where the zoning laws only allowed 4 houses per side of the road per mile or basically 8 houses per mile stretch. It was very rural, so for him to say he enjoyed visiting Austin and seeing it is definitely something.
Why would I want to show off austin? Why would I be "proud" to live here? Why would I be proud of things Im not responsible for?
The thing that I love about austin is mainly the people Ive grown to know here. Ive spent almost half my life here and my life is intertwined with people in the city.
Austin has some great restaurants, but many cities have even better restaurants with more variety
Austin has a great nightlife, but lots of places have better nightlife
Austin has lots of outdoors, but lots of places have even better outdoor opportunities
Austin has cool festivals, but lots of places have even better festivals
Austin has great live music, but lots of cities have even better live music
Austin is still relatively affordable, but lots of great cities are even more affordable
What austin does have is a good mix of all of these things, without necessarily being the best in any of the categories.
When people complain that austin is overrated it is usually because they want a world class city in a category where austin is just very good. The people who love austin appreciate how austin is strong in many areas, even though we are probably not the best in any area.
Austin is a jack of all trades, master of none.
All true, except what makes Austin stand out from other American cities is the fact that it is the capital of the most unique state in the Union.
I do know when my parents came to visit, my dad really liked the city. He raved about how clean it was and how modern everything looked and said this was a city he liked to visit.
Imagine how nice it would look if the CoA would make sure the medians and roadsides get mowed more than once a decade(yep, could be city, TXDot, private; but only the private roads are usually kept anywhere near attractive).
I'd like to know where he went to see modern(Domain, perhaps??? ) and clean. He surely didn't drive up Airport from the airport or Manor Rd into town or N Lamar for nearly its full length or...
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) and clean. He surely didn't drive up Airport from the airport or Manor Rd into town or N Lamar for nearly its full length or...
