Austin

Post date: Aug 20, 2016 4:42:57 PM

I ended up sleeping in a bit the next morning, likely due to being worn out by the Texas heat. It was brutual! I was hungry though, and my friend and I decided to head towards downtown and grab some energy at the South Congress Cafe.

The food was good, and the coffee was great. It was too much though. I had the braised pork hash and couldn't eat all of it because of portion size.

After a few delays, we headed into downtown checked out the hustle & bustle of Austin, if you want to call it that. Austin has a nice downtown that's clean and walkable. There were people about as it was a weekday morning, but the crowd wasn't hectic. Nearby is the University of Texas campus, but it was relatively silent since school had not yet reconvened for the fall semester.

We strolled down to Zilker Park and walked along the river. There was slews of people kayaking and paddle-boarding in the heat of the day. If you choose, there is a small kayak rental business where you can rent everything you need for a days outing on the river. Zilker Park is also home to the Austin City Limits Music Festival. If you're not familiar with Austin City Limits, well, you should be...

By this time, the Texas heat was zapping any motivation that I had for being outside. I was in need of some air conditioning, and with a Fry's Electronics nearby, we headed out in search of supplies. My motorcycle communication system experienced an issue... Again! Ugh! I required a 3.5mm TRRS male connector or a cable with one already attached to resolve the issue. Luckily, Fry's had what I needed to make repairs. I picked up a small soldering iron, solder, the cable, and away we went.

There was one place that I had identified to eat lunch long before ever arriving in Austin - Black's BBQ. I knew the place would be good as soon as I saw the meat cleaver door handle.

The ribs did not disappoint. They were meaty, had nice bark, just the right amount of smoke, and were nice and juicy. The sausage was good too, and when accompanied by a little sauce, it was even better. However, the beans in Texas leave something to be desired. They are not your typical baked beans with molasses, ketchup, mustard, and brown sugar. They're pinto beans with chili powder, some garlic, and that's about it. Rather bland tasting, if you ask me. I'll pass next time.

Me being one to rarely turn down a new experience, my friend asked if I had ever floated in a deprivation tank. It was an interesting activity, one that must be repeated several times before realizing its true potential. Give it a try, if you're an open-minded individual.

The icing on the cake for the day was repairing my motorcycle communication system for the second time on this trip. Grumble. Needless to say the Texas heat is unrelenting. Even at 2030 at night, it was sweltering hot outside. This repair go 'round was much easier than the first, since I had already figured out what wire was what, e.g. left, right, mic, and ground. It took about 20 minutes, but after some splicing, soldering, and testing, things were working great.

It was 2330, and I was done for the day.