There are instances when I totally adore dwelling in Austin: when I’m paddleboarding on City Lake, when I’m drinking a frozen margarita at Maudie’s, when I’m hanging out in hip East Austin beneath string lights.
That getting explained, there are selected points I’m less fond of: the sweltering summers, the isolation, the deficiency of walkability.
I have lived in Austin for pretty much two years. Here’s what I’ve occur to love and dislike about it:
What I love about Austin
The People
By and significant, Texans are amazingly great persons: generous, funny, and sincerely kind. When I had Covid, numerous neighbors brought me tortilla soup and walked my doggy. People today say hi there to you on the street listed here, even if they really do not know you. Austin is by considerably the friendliest put I’ve at any time lived.
The Food stuff
An additional beneficial – the food. Austin’s meals scene is flourishing: you can locate outstanding TexMex, Thai, Vietnamese, and of system, barbecue. Some of my most loved spots are Uchiko (sushi), Odd Duck (new American), and Loro (Asian/barbecue fusion). I’ve also grown to Like frozen margaritas, ha.
The H2o
As a born-and-lifted Michigander, I desperately have to have to dwell in the vicinity of drinking water (that was one of the matters I uncovered most difficult about dwelling in Colorado). Luckily, Austin has loads of it: Town Lake, Barton Springs, and Lake Travis, to identify a several.
The Winters
The winters here are delightful – the temperature hovers all over 70 degrees, and the skies are typically crisp and blue. Although we do have the odd snow day, the winter weather conditions is pretty mild.
Are living Music
I’d be remiss if I did not mention Austin’s internationally renowned dwell tunes scene. I adore how you can wander into a random bar on a Tuesday and hear an outstanding effectiveness for the value of a Shiner Bock.
The Pet-friendliness
In Austin, you can provide your puppy nearly wherever — I convey my pup nearly everywhere I go. My local CVS is even canine-helpful.
What I Loathe
The Crowds
Because of to its huge level of popularity in modern decades, Austin feels insanely crowded at occasions. Parking is hard to find, restaurants are packed, and the weekends specifically can be frantic.
The Superior Cost of Dwelling
Austin is quite high priced. To invest in a plot of land – not even a home – in my community, costs a million bucks.
Poor Walkability
Sadly, Austin is not a walkable metropolis. Bisected by two highways, Austin is a very vehicle-dependent town for walkability, it ranks 42nd in the US, among Las Vegas and Pheonix. As anyone who enjoys to wander, this is a substantial downside.
The Allergies
Central Texas has been known as the “Allergy Cash of the Earth.” There is even a daily allergy report on the community information, the place official pollen counts for ragweed, grass, and mildew are calculated. I never had allergic reactions in my life until finally I moved here — ugh.
The Heat
The summers in Austin are brutal. Temperatures can reach 110 levels (or greater). After this year’s scorching summertime, 90 degrees bizarrely feels fairly awesome to me.
The Isolation
Austin is shut to only a handful of towns: Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio. Earlier this calendar year I designed the oversight of driving to New Orleans, which took 10 hours. Often I truly feel so envious of the East Coast – picture driving a couple of several hours and being in a position to accessibility Boston, Philly, and NYC? Sigh.
All this to say, I have been very delighted in this article. I’m not absolutely sure if it is my endlessly house (I’m not positive I have a without end house, time period), but I prepare to continue to be at least a number of extra many years. And appreciate numerous far more lake days and frozen margs.