The Austin Ice Cream Festival is one of the few outdoor events that Bill and I are willing to attend here in August. This festival was held last Saturday at Fiesta Gardens in East Austin. When we arrived around 10:30 AM, temperatures were already in the 90s.
How sweet to be a cloud. Floating in the blue! —– A. A. Milne
Photographed over Austin, Texas on June 25, 2017
Forever Bicycles is a new outdoor installation by Chinese artist Ai Weiwei. This stunning piece is located along the Butler Hike-and-Bike Trail near the Waller Creek Boathouse. It is presented by The Contemporary Austin in collaboration with the Waller Creek Conversancy.
Bill and I love food tastings, so we decided to try Taste of North Austin in The Domain, a huge outdoor shopping area that’s north of downtown. Although this event is in its tenth year, this was our first visit. We each purchased a wristband with ten little plastic tabs to be exchanged for tastings.
Last Saturday Bill and I attended Ney Day on the grounds of the Elisabet Ney Museum in the Hyde Park neighborhood. The event honored the legacy of sculptor Elizabet Ney by celebrating women in the arts, sciences, and civic culture. This year’s Ney Day was originally scheduled for mid-May, but had to be postponed due to rain. Saturday was warm and sunny—perfect weather for an outdoor festival.
Although the West Austin Studio Tour ran for two May weekends, I was only able to attend the first weekend this year. WEST stops are generally between I-35 and Mopac, but extend from north near 183 to far south Austin. My visits were mostly at group shows in the north-central part of the city.
The O. Henry Pun-Off celebrated 40 years of crazy pun-and-fun last Saturday at Austin’s downtown O. Henry Museum. The Pun-Off has been featured on CBS Sunday Morning and most recently in Smithsonian Magazine.
Kayaking on Lady Bird Lake is now my newest favorite pastime. I’ve kayaked a bit over the years and just recently decided to take up the sport again. Lady Bird Lake is the perfect place for a relaxing paddle, especially on weekdays.
The spring version of the Pecan Street Festival took over Sixth Street (also known as Pecan Street) last weekend. In honor of its 40th anniversary, this outdoor arts and music festival has been designated as a “Heritage Event” by the City of Austin.
The new South Terminal is now open at the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. As its name suggests, this building is on the southern side of the airport’s expansive property. South Terminal cannot be accessed directly from the main airport entrance on Rt. 71. Instead, you must take Rt. 183 south (of the Rt. 71 intersection), turn left onto Burleson Road, and then make another left onto Emma Browning Avenue. This route wasn’t well-marked when I traveled, but perhaps better signage has been installed now. A shuttle bus runs between the two terminals, but there’s plenty of inexpensive parking at South Terminal (maximum: $7 per day). The parking lot does not have an attendant, so only credit cards are accepted at the exit.