Today we drove to Austin, about 70 miles north of San Antonio. I had never been in Austin, but both Susie and Carrie had visited the city and really liked it. One of the most striking buildings in Austin is the State Capitol. I don't know how to define the architecture, but whatever you call it, you can call it impressive. The capitol and its grounds are beautifully maintained. Rather than give you a very short tour, follow this link to more information.

While standing in the Capitol rotunda, we got into a wide ranging conversation with a Texas Highway Patrol officer. He was quite an interesting individual and had previously served as part of the governor's protective detail when George W. Bush was in office. Talking to him made me wonder whether the State Highway Patrol and the Texas Rangers were the same organization. I somehow thought they were not, but really didn't know the relationship so I went on the Internet for the information. The State Highway Patrol and Texas Rangers are both part of the Texas Department of Public Safety and together act as the state police force. The Rangers are an a small group that is an investigative arm of the Department of Public Safety. For more information follow this link.

The area south of the Capitol has a lot of historic buildings, at least judging by the number of buildings with plaques on them. For all we know they may be the same plaque we bought for my brother a number of years ago, which read, " On (date) at this place, nothing happened." I took pictures of some of the more interesting buildings, particularly along 6th Street. The most impressive building along the stretch of 6th Street that we walked was the Driskill Hotel (before someone sends us a note on the spelling... it is correct). We understand that 6th street is one of the centers of night life in Austin.

We thought about going to the campus of the University of Texas at Austin, but parking in the area was difficult so we had to skip it. The other disappointment was that we didn't get to see the bats of the Congress Street Bridge. Susie had been at a conference and stayed at a hotel overlooking the bridge. Unfortunately, the bats were out of town for the winter. They are here now, but were sleeping when we visited. Bats are nocturnal and we decided we would not stay until sunset. Read more about the bats.

Texas State Capitol viewed from Congress Street (l) and from directly across 11th Street (r). The statue is a memorial to the volunteer firemen who have lost their lives in the line of duty.

Capitol entrance hall

Capitol Rotunda

The capitol dome (left, above) is an acoustical reflector that focuses the sound and returns it to one spot on the floor directly below it (left). If you stand directly on the star and say something you will get quite aloud echo in return. Move off the star and there is no more echo.

Alamo Memorial on Capitol Grounds

Theater on Congress Street

Driskill Hotel with roof detail (r)

Historic 6th Street buildings serving as restaurants and clubs