Austin, TX How is it now?

[Everymanalion]

I have heard Austin was cool 5-10 years ago but I am thinking about spending some time up there in the near future on my way back from Mexico. Any opinions on Austin NOW?

 

[Deleted member 20]

Austin is hip & trendy like Brooklyn but it sure beats most of Texas. Lots of live music, artists & grass roots type culture etc etc Worth stopping in, its like an island surrounded by umm Texas..

 

[Matt Derrick]

you have got to have the longest signature i've ever seen.

people always say everywhere was better such-and-such years ago, but the fact is that things are just always changing. sometimes it's not that it was better however long ago, but that it isn't like it was when they were there.

but... sometimes places take a turn for the worse, so... who knows.

to answer your question though, i spent about 1 1/2 years in austin, from december 2010 to the summer of 2012. my main motivation in going to austin (since i had never been there before) was to find work, and i'd heard good things about it from austinites i'd met in other areas of the country.

in my opinion, austin is in my top 2-3 places i'd consider if i ever decided to settle down. it's got that total goldielocks scenario for me.

it's warm most of the year (the summer is like 8 months long), there's plenty of work to be had, it's extremely biker friendly, and it's just big enough to keep me entertained, but small enough that i can bike out to nature (or one of 100's of bad ass swimming holes) in about 10-15 minutes. also, it has a better job market than most places in the country, which makes it a deal easier to find work.

also, if it's something you're into, you could very easily pitch a tent in the woods and live there instead of paying rent. a tent and bike is all you really need.

the downside is that there's not a lot of dumpsters, and if you wanna spange i hear it's not that great. homeless services are decent, but not awesome. also, very few other travelers stop through, since everyone hates texas. i can hardly blame them since i avoided it like the plague until i went to austin.

overall, i feel like austin is what portland must have been like about 10-15 years ago. the fact that it's buried in the middle of a sea of conservative bullshit kinda works for and against it, since there's not a lot of travelers/punks, but that also keeps shithead travelers out too.

the number one thing i'd like to see in austin is more punks (especially punk houses) and travel kids. it would make it an even more epic place to live.