Why We Love Austin
As two native Texans (well, almost--Susan was born in Fort Smith, Arkansas but lived there only a month before moving to Fort Worth, Texas) we have a lot of pride about our great, big state and love to share that with folks who don’t know much about it! At our brick and mortar, Austin General Store, in downtown Austin we get the chance to meet people who are here for work or fun and usually are not just passing through. It's so fun to talk about all of the things we love with football game-goers, bachelor/bachelorette parties, wedding guests, spring breakers, Dallasites, and Houstonites looking for a more relaxed weekend. There are also ample numbers of foodies looking for great bbq, which of course they find in abundance in Austin and the surrounding hill country locations.
Our favorite shopping destination is, of course, going to be our own 2nd Street District, a high-class but laid-back section of Downtown Austin that has become more of a haven for local shop owners now than our long-running “Keep Austin Weird” South Congress District has transformed into an area more known now for the big names and heavy hitters that have joined that area. That’s right, things are changing pretty rapidly here in one of the fastest-growing cities in the USA. But, with the crowds and traffic we get an abundance of people who are excited to see our city, work for one of the huge tech companies that have made a home in Austin (Apple, Dell, Google, Facebook) as well as find a part in our creative city creating music and films and some of the best food in the world.
The location of Austin within Texas in the Hill Country makes for amazing hiking and swimming at places you can’t see anywhere else in the world including Hamilton Pool and Jacob’s Well, and Barton Spring Pool right in downtown Austin. You can’t throw a stick without hitting one amazing restaurant, food truck, or BBQ stand. We look forward to world-class events that take place here in Austin, such as Formula 1 racing at COTA, the two-weekend extravaganza of fun at our biggest one-location music festival Austin City Limits, and our impressive 2 week-long SXSW, a showcase for learning, music, film and general rowdy times. There is too much to do and see here to list it all, but you can always let us know if you are looking for something specific and we will do our part to help you find an answer!
See you in Austin!
Love,
Leigh and Susan