Austin
6th Street, Live Music & Austin's Role as the Music Capital of the World
Austin, Texas (the capital of Texas, population approximately 979,000 in the city and 2.3 million in the metro area — the 'Live Music Capital of the World' (the title officially adopted by the City of Austin in 1991), the city with the highest concentration of live music venues per capita of any city in the United States, and the home of South by Southwest (SXSW — the annual music, film, and technology conference and festival that is the most important music industry event in the world)): 6th Street (the 8-block entertainment strip in downtown Austin) and the Red River Cultural District define Austin's live music identity.
Silicon Hills — Austin's Tech Boom, Innovation & the New Economy
Austin's technology economy ('Silicon Hills' — the nickname for the Austin tech sector, referring to the Hill Country terrain of west Austin where many of the early tech campuses were built): Austin has emerged as the third-largest technology hub in the United States (after Silicon Valley and Seattle), with major corporate campuses (Tesla's Gigafactory Texas, Apple's $1 billion campus, Google, Oracle, Facebook, Amazon, and Samsung), a thriving startup ecosystem (Austin is consistently rated the top US city for startup activity by the Kauffman Foundation), and the South by Southwest Interactive festival (the annual technology conference that has been the primary platform for launching major technology companies (Twitter in 2007, Foursquare in 2009, Highlight in 2012)).
Texas Hill Country — Wineries, Bluebonnets & Weekend Escapes
The Texas Hill Country (the region of rolling limestone hills, cedar-juniper forests, spring-fed rivers, wildflower meadows, and working ranches immediately west of Austin — the most beloved natural landscape in Texas): the Hill Country within a 1-hour drive of Austin includes Fredericksburg (the German-founded town famous for peach orchards, wineries, and the National Museum of the Pacific War), Wimberley (the art colony on the Blanco River), the Pedernales Falls State Park, the Enchanted Rock State Natural Area, and dozens of Texas Hill Country wineries (the Texas Wine Country — the Texas Hill Country AVA (American Viticultural Area) is the most productive wine region in Texas, producing approximately 60% of Texas wine from approximately 50 wineries).
Lady Bird Lake, Barton Springs & Austin's Outdoor Culture
Austin's outdoor culture (the culture of a city whose semi-arid climate (300 days of sunshine per year, an average annual temperature of 20°C (68°F)), the Colorado River, and the surrounding Hill Country have made outdoor recreation an essential part of daily life): the Barton Springs Pool, Lady Bird Lake, the Town Lake Hike and Bike Trail, and Zilker Park form the outdoor recreational heart of Austin and the most tangible expression of Austin's famous 'Keep Austin Weird' identity.
Texas State Capitol, Congress Avenue & Downtown Austin
The Texas State Capitol (1100 Congress Avenue, Austin — the seat of the Texas state government, built 1882-1888 in the Italian Renaissance Revival style from sunset red granite quarried in Marble Falls, Texas — the tallest state capitol building in the United States (308 feet / 94 metres to the top of the Goddess of Liberty statue) and 14 feet taller than the US Capitol in Washington DC) dominates the Congress Avenue corridor, the grand axis of downtown Austin.
South Congress, SoCo Shopping & Austin's Independent Retail Culture
South Congress Avenue ('SoCo' — the mile-long strip of independent shops, restaurants, music venues, and boutique hotels on South Congress Avenue between Lady Bird Lake and Oltorf Street) is the commercial and cultural heart of South Austin, the neighbourhood that most fully embodies the 'Keep Austin Weird' ethos: the independent boot shops, vintage clothing stores, food trailers, and music venues that line South Congress represent the Austin culture that has made the city one of the most visited in America.
Texas BBQ, Franklin Barbecue & Austin's Extraordinary Food Culture
Austin's food culture (the culinary scene of a city that combines the deep-rooted Texas barbecue tradition with a vibrant taco culture, a nationally recognized restaurant scene, and the food trailer culture that is unique to Austin): Austin has become one of the most exciting food cities in the United States in the 21st century, driven by the city's rapid population growth, its young and internationally diverse population, and the food trailer park culture that lowers the barrier to entry for innovative chefs.
East Austin, Independent Culture & the Keep Austin Weird Movement
East Austin (the neighbourhood east of Interstate 35 in Austin — the historically African-American and Mexican-American neighbourhood that has gentrified rapidly since 2005 but retains a concentration of independent restaurants, bars, galleries, and cultural institutions that embodies the 'Keep Austin Weird' ethos) and the broader 'Keep Austin Weird' movement (the slogan coined by a local radio DJ in 2000 that became the unofficial motto of Austin, expressing the city's commitment to independent culture, local businesses, and eccentricity over chain stores and corporate homogenization) define what makes Austin unique among American cities.
Austin's Museums, Weird Attractions & the Blanton Art Museum
Austin's cultural institutions (the museums and attractions that reveal the city's depth beyond the live music and food scenes): the Blanton Museum of Art (the finest art museum in Texas, on the UT campus), the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum (the most comprehensive Texas history museum), the Elisabet Ney Museum (the studio-museum of the 19th-century German sculptor), the Umlauf Sculpture Garden, and the Cathedral of Junk (the privately constructed sculpture in South Austin made from discarded objects) together represent the full range of Austin's cultural character.