Austin, Texas

Arrived in Austin after three hours or so in the car, the last half an hour of which was through hurricane-force wind and rain. Thunder and lightning literally right on top of us. A bit scary, actually. Checked in to the Doubletree on 15th and Lavaca, and spent the next few hours chilling in our huge (but a bit smoky) room.

LVL and I met here in September, 2003 at the Austin City Limits music festival, so every visit back – especially one in honor of our wedding, etc. – is an occasion to relive that weekend and celebrate.* A little before 9 we set out for a nice dinner at Shoreline Grill.

Running a bit late, we decide against walking the 20 or so blocks (the stifling humidity was a deal breaker), and headed back to the hotel to get a cab. Instead, one of the valet guys offered to take us in the hotel shuttle. For the 5-7 minute drive the three of us chatted about our trip, the hotel guy’s fiancé, whom he met on MySpace and just recently took on a roadtrip in his 93-year-old grandma’s Buick LeSabre, and more. He had the best TX accent I’ve ever heard. Tons of gratuitous “y’alls.”

As it turns out, Shoreline Grill didn’t get our online reservation for 9 pm and in fact, they close at 9. The kitchen wasn’t quite closed down, however, and the manager let us in. Thanks, chief.

A very romantic meal, complete with corner table, (mostly) quiet atmosphere, and good food. Wine, beet salad, ahi tartar, arctic char for LVL, and a mini filet for me. The appetizers were excellent, the entrees were not as good as they should have been. Mine better than LVL’s, but neither probably justified the prices charged. Oh, well. A chocolate peanut butter cake for dessert.** A great meal.

After dinner, we walked up from the water on Lavaca Street toward Lavaca Street Bar, the actual site of our first encounter (where he saw she, her saw him, etc., etc.). Though probably not our preferred atmosphere, it's a must stop every time we're in Austin. Last night we had a beer, watched some UFC fighting, listened to cheesy R&B, and laughed about the first time we spoke to one another, seven years ago, about 10 feet from where we were sitting. Crazy.

* As if we need a reason to reminisce and celebrate. Ha.

** Not sure whether to call it cake, brownie, tort, or something else altogether. LVL’s suggestion: “peanut butter goodness.” That works.

We quickly find ourselves back in the pack/drive/unpack/hang out for a night/pack/drive/unpack cycle. Maybe we have less energy for it at this point, but moving every day has become pretty tiring. A bit sluggish and not quite ready to leave Austin, we packed up and headed to Torchy’s Tacos for a late breakfast. On the way there we cruised through town a bit. An interesting side of the city, including some relatively upscale homes on nice tree-lined streets in quiet neighborhoods.

Though jobs would have to be absolutely right in order for us to move to here, I think it’s safe to say that Austin is our favorite (by far) place in TX. The summer weather notwithstanding, the city is easily accessible, pretty cool, and has a lot to offer in terms of its music and food scenes, a reasonable cost of living, an academic environment, and a general sensibility that we both seem to like. The breakfast tacos don’t hurt either. TTs absolutely did the trick, especially LVL’s “Dirty Sanchez.”** Despite busting at the seams, we had to try at least one “Nookie,” a deep-fried chocolate chip cookie topped with a maraschino cherry. Woah.

A short drive from Torchy’s is Anderson’s, where we stopped to get some coffee for the road and ground coffee for future camping trips/lazy hotel mornings. A cute specialty shop with a proprietress who seemed enamored with LVL and her tan. We bought a 1/2 pound of Tanzanian coffee and hit the road.

** “Dirty Sanchez” ($3.50): Scrambled eggs with guacamole, fried poblano chili, escabeche carrots, and shredded cheese served on a flour tortilla with our poblano ranch sauce.