Austin TX for Christmas

I just returned from 3 days in Austin TX. I wanted to spend part of the Christmas holiday with two of Jett’s remaining 3 siblings (who just happen to be two of the people I feel closest to in this world).

The plan was to fly to Austin for 3 days, including Christmas Eve, then fly back to Ft Myers on Christmas Day to have dinner with my sons. It wouldn’t be easy – especially since the only reasonably-priced nonstop flight from AUS to RSW on Christmas Day left at 7am (translation: arrive at the airport at 5:30am). But it was feasible. So I booked the flights.

I stayed with sister-in-law Christine in her 17th-floor condo overlooking Lady Bird Lake. It was a beautiful view. Brother-in-law Ray and his wife Kim also stayed there, in the guest bedroom. Christine assigned the sofa to herself and I took her very comfortable bed in a bedroom with dramatic wrap-around views of Austin (thank you, Christine). Her condo was a very short block from Rainey Street, one of the major night entertainment venues in Austin. The nightlife noise was present from 6pm to 2am but it was never loud enough to keep me awake. And being that close to a major attraction has to have a positive impact on her property value.

The first full day was slow until 5pm. At that time we drove out to the Crowded Barrel Whiskey Company for a tour. Crowded Barrel was founded by Daniel Whittington who just happens to be the brother of Sarah, a very close friend to Jessica, my niece. He gained some fame on YouTube by reviewing whiskeys which led to a crowd-funded start to Crowded Barrel. It is still a very small operation but I have to say that the Extant whiskey – a Scotch-style blend — was terrific.

The tour, led by Richard, was very informative. Then, while we were enjoying a post-tour drink, Daniel joined us and chatted with us for an hour about whiskeys, his experience as an entrepreneur and the weird laws surrounding – and limiting – what he can produce and ship. Very interesting.

Dinner after the tour was at Fixe, an upscale restaurant serving southern dishes. It was not far from Christine’s condo. Not cheap by any means, but excellent. My pork chop was the best I have ever had.

Friday was easy for me – I just watched Christine prepare her coq au vin dinner. I helped a bit – reaching high items, taking the hot dish out of the oven – but she did the hard work. The dinner for 8 – Christine, me, Ray, Kim, Nick, Jess and their 2 kids – was awesome. I certainly ate well on this mini-vacation.

I got to bed around midnight and then was up at 4am to get to the airport for the flight back to Ft Myers. Christine drove me but Ray came along for the ride (because what else is there to do at 5am on Christmas Day?). Much love and a boatload of gratitude to Christine, Ray and Kim for making my whirlwind holiday trip just plain wonderful.