Austin City Fun

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Austin, wow what can I say. Such an enjoyable and mellow city. I went February 20th-23rd for my cousins Aaron bachelor party. I have never gone to Texas before and had heard so many amazing things about Austin especially. The food, bars on sixth street and the laid back atmosphere. Nothing could prepare me for what I would experience going down there.

I went to JFK airport to meet my cousin and a few of his friends. I waited on the security line. I got to the front of the line and was told to wait by one of the security. I waited for about 5-10 minutes with a huge line building behind me. Finally another security guard came over and said why are you waiting and you should have moved already. I sat there confused and then the security guard took out his Ipad and an arrow appeared pointing to the left. I sat there puzzled again and thought are you serious? We have now got to a point where guards can't even tell us which way to go they must have an arrow application to show which way to go.

I got to my gate and met up with my cousin Aaron and his friends David and Michael. The flight going down was good and arrived in Austin and took a cab to the hotel. It was an enjoyable stay at the hotel throughout and only about 5-10 minutes walk from 6th street. We settle in our rooms and walk looking for some barbecue. The city itself has this small feel and laid back. I saw signs all over for SWSX concert that was coming down in 2 weeks afterwards.

On a side note, I had always heard how delicious barbecue was in Texas but wow nothing could ever brace me for the taste. It is the best barbecue I have ever eaten hands down. We get to La Barbecue and order some brisket, pulled pork and some side dishes. You take one bite and you are hooked. It is addicting and you want another bite. We sat outside in the fresh air and the weather was so mild and clear skies above. The place had beer in a keg and was free. I felt like I was back in college pumping the keg and tilting the cup to ensure no foamy beer. We finish our meal and walk back. On the way back we stopped off at this quaint bar that had ping pong outside. We had a few drinks and play some ping pong. We leave and head back to the hotel to get ready for drinks/dinner and to later meet up with more guys coming down for the bachelor party.

We leave the hotel and head to this interesting bar. You walk in the door and you don't even think that a bar exists there. You order a cocktail and the waiter comes to the table with the whole bar set and prepares your drink in front of you. I ordered a drink called 43 problemas that had gin, sherry, licor and a few other things in it. It was delightful and refreshing. After we left and headed looking for a dinner place. We walk up and down Austin looking for a place to eat. One of the guys thinks of an idea of going into this private party that we see. We sneak in and try to blend in. We find out it was a party for Whole Foods Executives. We tip one of the waiters who allows us to get drinks and eat free buffet meal. The food was delicious with bacon mac and cheese, mashed potatoes and green beans along with other dishes. We finished our meal and head inside and sit at a table and meet a couple from Chicago celebrating their 31st wedding anniversary. It was a delightful meal overall.

We leave and get a pettycar to take my cousin and I up towards 6th street. On the way the chain stops working. The got flustered and nervous trying to get it to work again. Waiting and another driver pulls up asking us if we need a ride but our driver tells him to go away. Finally the chain is fixed and we head up to 6th street to meet up with most of the bachelor party participants. We hit up a few bars and get to meet everyone else. Finally get home at around 3AM and get to bed for another crazy few nights.

Aaron and I sleep off the night before. The other guys head to Franklin BBQ. This place is very famous in Austin and you actually need to get there early enough or you won't be able to get any BBQ. Once we go to meet the other guys, we are told they weren't able to get BBQ. I was stunned to hear this and have never heard of something like this. Aaron and I meet everyone at La Barbecue and wait for more of the guys to arrive. We waited about 45 minutes for the BBQ but thankfully to Tinder it was a quick time of a wait. This ridiculous app was one of the funny highlights of the weekends and learned a lot about how to use it and not stress over not being picked back by some women. The BBQ as the day before was super amazing though by the end of the trip I was in overload of BBQ. My other cousin Mathew and a few other guys from the bachelor party meet us and get some BBQ with us. Once we finished we head back to the hotel room and upon entering our room we notice 4 people for the hotel standing our room. It was probably one of the more creepier things I have ever seen and they profusely apologized to us and made it up to us later on. Before dinner, a few of us sit outside by this area where a river was behind us. You see people canoeing in the river and even a wedding was ongoing with the couple taking pictures. It was such a picturesque and peaceful time.

Before dinner we head to the University of Texas campus and walk around. It was a huge campus and stunning to look at. We saw the stadium where the Longhorns play their football games. After this we all jam into one taxi of 9 people. It was funny because I remembered back at Binghamton college days where we would jam into a cab and the cab drivers were afraid of getting pulled over since it was illegal. I guess in Texas things are a bit different! We head to this Mexican restaurant dinner and randomly see actor Jason Schwartzman there. We eat a delicious meal with all you can drink margaritas and a plethora of different tasting dishes. The food was fantastic. We leave and head to see a coverband play and then head out to the bars. Upon arrival back to the room, there is a note left for us from the hotel apologizing for the early intrusion and a free six pack of beer. Great way to a fantastic day.

The next day we head to Franklin BBQ which is known as one of the best BBQ places in Austin. We got to sleep late as one of the guys in the group found out you can pay someone $50 to wait in line early at 7AM and by the time we get there, we head right in and try some delicious BBQ. Afterwards, we leave for one of the most fun activities of the weekend. We ride on this very long tandem bike that holds about 16 people in total. Our driver Lee who was very cool and down to earth is the one steering the bike but we all had to pedal it to work. We have some beer on the tour and pedal up and down hills. It was pretty exhausting but a unique way to see the city. On the way we stopped off at some bars and had many people honking at us and taking pictures. After the tour we met a bachelorette party of girls from Tulsa who were very friendly and then headed back to the hotel to rest up.

At dinner time, we all got these neck ties to wear like the Texans wear with our first letter of our first name on it. We had a delicious BBQ tasting menu for dinner. We had a party bus take us around the city and stop off at random bars in the city and again got to meet up with the girls from Tulsa. It was a successful night in total. We got back late that night and rested up. We left the next day to head home. It was a successful weekend and met so many great guys on the trip. The BBQ was fantastic though after eating so much BBQ I definitely needed a break from it for a few weeks. The weather was warm and the people down to earth as can be. Austin is a fantastic city and would recommend it anytime to anyone who wants to visit.

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