Enjoy the Journey

[kimandalex]

Signing paperwork for our new home! We're officially Austinites.

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Grand opening of Red Rabbit Cooperative Bakery's truck. Serving vegan donuts and muffins. They had a DJ, kegs of beer and a kiddie pool to dip your feet in (or throw your friend in as the case may be). They claimed to be the only employee owned bakery in the state! The place had a great vibe and hopefully more locally owned small businesses open in Austin!

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Memorial Day BBQing lesson courtesy of Maurice. Texans love BBQ so we decided it was high time to learn the basics! "We" (Mo) smoked ribs, burgers, chicken and brats. Delicious!

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We had fun checking out the fancy new(ish) race track here in Austin. Circuit of the Americas was built for F1 but they hold several other events and races as well. V8 Supercars out of Australia were racing the day visited. It was over 90 degrees and they announced that inside the cars it was 140 degrees. I also read that the previous day, they had some malfunctions with the cooling suits. Yikes.

Although it was neat to experience once, we probably won't be going back again anytime soon. On top of ticket prices, it cost $30 to park, then you had to walk a long ways under the beating sun, and then there was little to no shade anywhere in the General Admission areas.

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Free concerts weekly from April through September at Shady Grove. We are in "The live music capital of the world" afterall.

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Pretty peafowl at Mayfield Park.

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What I've learned about Texas...

In an effort to acquaint myself with the area, I sometimes drive around and take mental notes of neighborhoods, restaurants, parks, etc. I read some blogs about Austin, subscribed to Texas Monthly and picked up several books on the area.

The book I am enjoying the most right now is Nature Watch Austin - Guide to the Seasons in an Urban Wildland. Here are a few things it taught me:

Texas has 254 counties! For comparison, Oregon has 36 and Nevada only has 16.

Central Texas has more habitat conservation plans than any other region in the U.S.

Downtown Austin is home to the largest urban bat colony in the world. Approx 1.5 million Mexican Free-tailed bats live under Congress Bridge.

A group of road runners is called a "marathon" and they can run up to 18 mph.

[kimandalex]

What an awesome day! We have been attending some "Meet-ups" in Austin- guided hikes, board game events, a charity poker tournament, and now a kayak demonstration.

Austin Canoe and Kayak had over 90 kayaks to try out. There were many kinds- singles, doubles, inflatable, with a sail, made for fishing, sit on top, sit inside, pedal powered, etc. This was so much fun!

We signed a waiver and then just jumped in any and all that we wanted to use, and then paddled around the lake. The icing on the cake was getting to try stand up paddle boarding! SUP always looked like fun but I probably never would have tried it if it wasn't free and so easily accessible.

Now that we live in a warmer climate, it will be amazing to do more outdoor and water activities!

[kimandalex]

Our "Relocube" arrived safely 10 days after we bid farewell to it in Portland. So glad the delivery guy was precise with the forklift, as he had to drop it in between 2 cars! Now to unpack 70 boxes...

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Our new place is an apartment overlooking beautiful Texas hill country. These are pictures from Bull Creek Park which is right across the street (highway) from our apartment. There were already people and dogs playing in the creek in March! It's nice to know we have a swimming hole nearby, as Mother Nature is sure to crank up the heat soon enough.

[kimandalex]

Opening day at Portland Farmers Market at PSU. This is one of my favorite places/events in the world. I love the bountiful piles of produce, the fresh flowers, the artisan baked goods and cheeses, the delicious sweets, and the energy. I'm going to miss this, but surely Austin will have some great markets as well!

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All our belongings fit easily in an 8x6x7' moving cube. Now hopefully they show up in Austin! (Hi Lia)

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Kitty's first flight

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Endings and beginnings

Our long term travels have come to an end and we've been very busy "starting over" in Austin. We chose this city because of its similarity to Portland (which we love), its job opportunities, and for its weather. We've been here a week and in that time Alex has interviewed with several small companies, we picked an apartment, bought a car, a TV and a mattress to sleep on. Now after spending almost 4 months straight with each other, we are about to be apart for the longest period of time since we've known each other. I will be in Reno awaiting my best friend's first child, and he will be in Austin following up on job leads and settling in. It's been a very busy and exciting journey to get to this point, and our next adventure will be exploring all our new town and state has to offer!

[kimandalex]

We celebrated Alex's birthday at Basecamp hotel at Lake Tahoe. It has some really fun outdoorsy decor and firepits to make s'mores. We didn't ski or snowboard but the Heavenly Gondola ride was fun and the views were amazing!

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Things we missed most about "the settled life"

Kim- Cooking Having an exercise routine Not worrying about bed bugs every night Alex- Fast and reliable Internet Soda stream Playing board games with friends

[kimandalex]

Goodbye Asia and your red rising sun. Back to the USA to begin the next chapter in our lives (moving to Austin, TX).