Weekend with the Siblings

Dianne and I spent our MLK weekend in Austin with our grown-up siblings. The get-together was somewhat planned but it was mostly serendipitous in the sense that all 6 of us were available to meet up in Austin for a 3-day weekend.

Coming from Houston, Dianne and I stopped by Snow's BBQ in Lexington, TX. They are only open on Saturdays and they sell one of the best barbecues in Texas from eight o'clock in the morning until they sell all of their meat. We got there at around 11 AM, which was pretty late especially that it was a holiday weekend and the weather was beautiful. Luckily, we scored ribs, briskets, and sausages. The sides were all gone even before Dianne got into the store.

Leaving Lexington at around 12:30 PM, we hurriedly drove to Austin to meet up with the rest of the gang at our sister's apartment. From there, we took an hour-long drive to Hamilton Pool Preserve to eat the barbecue that we bought from Snow's. We initially decided to picnic by the pool but quickly changed our minds when we got there. There really wasn't that much picnic area along the beach, and the water level in the pool was disappointing due to the never-ending drought in the Hill Country. There also wasn't much to do in the preserve, other than sightseeing and hiking. But the scenery, in and around the pool as well as along the trails, were breathtaking. For someone who is not a native Texan, I wouldn't have expected to see such a beautiful area in the state.

After a brief exchange of stories and jokes, and some picture-taking, we decided to hike back up to the parking lot where there were some picnic tables by the sides. We had a delicious and not-so-healthy lunch at about 2:30 PM (kinda late).

As if all the meat and fat were not enough (trust me, we had more meat than what would have reasonably filled us up), we all decided to head to South Congress Avenue for dessert. We had Amy's Ice Creams aimed down our sights, and we surely hit that spot armed with loud voices and boisterous laughs. Street parking was already full when we got there, so we had to park a few blocks up the neighborhood. The walk to Amy's gave us the chance to burn just enough calories to give room for the ice cream in our not-so-big bodies.

I apologize for not taking a photo of the ice cream. It's alright, I wouldn't want any of you to feel envious of the unique and delicious ice cream creations. Shiner Bock ice cream, anyone?

With all the calories that we have consumed in a span of 2 hours, we definitely had to burn off some of it. So we walked up and down along SoCo, entering vintage shops and weird stores with creepy paintings and chopped up baby doll parts.  Keep Austin Weird, y'all. 

6th Street was oh so tempting, but we were all exhausted early. So we called it a day at 8 PM.

The following day, Sunday, we woke up later than what we originally agreed upon. We attended mass, dropped off my sister at her sorority meeting, and the rest of us headed off to an Indian buffet for lunch. None of the lunch was documented, maybe because we were all starving and nobody remembered to take pictures. Right after lunch we went around downtown Austin looking for a cheap bike shop that was selling rim tapes. We went to two shops and neither of them had any for sale, so we decided to head to Sun and Ski, which was a few minutes away from downtown. Upon getting there, we realized that getting the items online would be a lot cheaper, since we were also going to buy a helmet, a pair of lights, and a bike lock. So instead of spending more time in the store, we went next door to a camera shop. We spent quite some time there going through the aisles and their displays, and slowly acquiring some camera gear buying addiction. Whether it was fortunate or not, we all did not have the money to buy anything in the camera shop. So to cure our craving to buy something, we got back on the car, drove to Lake Austin, and got some pastries and coffee at Mozart's.

The weather and view were perfect for a little hangout on Mozart's patio. There is a bar beside the coffee shop and the people there were cheering loudly. That was when we realized that the Seahawks and Packers NFC title game was going on. So we kept track of the game through NFL mobile, since there were no TV's in the coffee shop. That was an insane game and I am glad the Seahawks came out of it victorious.

Since my sister was already done with her meeting at 5 PM, we decided to head back to her apartment to meet her. We initially planned to hit the Graffiti Park before it got dark, but due to eating too much some of us had to use the restroom. So, we missed the sun and we did not make it out to the park. Instead, we all walked a few meters to a neighborhood bar to watch the game. We ordered some drinks, but then found out that the kitchen was closed. Bummer. 

After just one round, we all left and walked to Pluckers. We waited a bit for a table. At least Pluckers had their kitchen open, and they have WINGS. After some glasses of alcohol, a couple of wings, holy macaroni, and a bunch of catching up and reminiscing later, we walked back to the apartment. 

Two of my sisters originally planned to drive back home that night, but they just couldn't afford to miss out on the drinking. So the two said YOLO and stayed with us for one more night. The next day, both of them missed their target departure time. My sister who lives in Dallas won for the most epic delay. 

My brother unfortunately did not get the day off on MLK day. So it was just me, Dianne, Leica, and my Austinite sister Maristil who adventured around the city. First stop was Graffiti Park.

Leica was probably getting bored at the Graffiti Park. Since we arrived in Austin, we left Leica in my sister's apartment for two days, and we frequently teased her with the idea of going to the dog park. Well, that Monday was her day. We brought her to Auditorium Shores. That park is probably the best one that we've been to. The park is huge, it is not fenced, and it is right by the river where dogs can swim. 

Leica enjoyed the park a lot. She ran around aimlessly, rolled over on the fallen leaves, and laid on the grass for belly rubs from strangers. 

All four of us were starving by the time we were finished at the park. We initially wanted to go to this one food truck, but I thought it was Sunday and that they were closed. So we went to the second choice only to find out that they don't open until 5 PM. Stupid me. That was when I found out that it was actually Monday that day. So we went to the food truck that we originally planned to go to - Cow Bells. We were destined to eat food from that food truck. On hindsight, maybe Leica planned this all out, because Cow Bells just so happened to have an item for dogs on their menu... a thick beef patty! 

After filling up four tummies, we headed on to the boardwalk trail which was a few meters away from the food truck park. The view of Austin from that place was just amazing. It makes us want to move and live in Austin. Maybe one day.

It was getting later than planned, so we went back to my sister's place. We got her a bike as a super early birthday gift. My sister and I built the bike and I tuned it for her. Right after completing the build and packing up our stuff, we hopped on the car and drove back to Houston. We left our sister happy with her brand new bike for school and work. 

This last photo probably sums up the whole weekend. We were all happy and contented. Thanks to the Austinite Yap, we got the chance to have a grown-up siblings get-together. Come to think of it, this was the first time something like this gathering ever happened. Can't wait for the next one... maybe in another city, eh?