Austin - Live Music Capital Of The World

Austin is the capital of Texas and boasts many attractions, interesting places to visit and culture to view. It’s locals like to promote the “Keep Austin Weird” slogan, but there is plenty of history and architecture in addition to the more modern music and media life that makes Austin the “Live Music Capital of the World”.

The traditional places to visit such as Bob Bullock State History Museum and The Texas State Capitol Complex are impressive buildings. The Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum is enormous and holds the original goddess of Liberty, not to mention a full sized windmill and a Texan Airplane from the 1940’s in addition to smaller displays and multimedia presentations. The Texas State Capitol complex is a true treasure of the state and is in fact larger and plusher than the original US Capitol buildings. It is a place that visitors must try to visit, if just to walk in the well kept and picturesque gardens.

Austin is a cosmopolitan city with plenty of modern architecture mixed with classic styles. Just to walk around some of the local streets and neighborhoods is enough for some visitors. You can visit the Pennybacker Bridge which is surrounded by urban picturesque scenes in all directions or take a stroll near the Congress Avenue Bridge around sunset which is the home to over 1.5 million Mexican free tailed bats. These bats live under the bridge for 8 months of the year and come out around sunset to look for insects to eat. It is quite a phenomenon to see the clouds of bats rising from the bridge during a warm summer evening. The bats migrate to Mexico for the winter.

Animals and nature are all part of Austin’s culture. In fact the Austin Zoo is known as a rescue zoo and sanctuary for over 300 animals that have been saved from the wild or extinction. The Barton Springs Pools and the Deep Eddy Pool are the largest and oldest man made pools in the country and are fed from water from the Barton Spring. The water temperature in the Barton Springs pool is always a constant 69 degrees and thought to be a very healthy place to swim and bathe in the grounds of the Zilker Park. Apart from these two famous pools there are many nature trails, parks and recreational facilities to visit and spend time while taking a break from the more upbeat sights and sounds of Austin.

The reason for Austin’s famous name as the “Live Music Capital of the World” is not just because of the hoards of graduates from the many music schools in the area but also the infamous 6th Street. 6Th Street is the home to a multitude of music venues and nightclubs housed in architecturally unique buildings. Strolling down 6th street by day is entertainment in itself to view the buildings and meet the cosmopolitan residents. All of these attractions and more can be seen from the comfort of the Dillo, an historic reproduction of the trolley cars that will take you downtown, to the capitol complex and around the University complex all for free. It is a perfect way to start your trip around Austin and decide which of the many attractions and places of interest that you want to see.