Keeping it Weird in Austin

The capitol of Texas, Austin, offers history, art, and so much music that it would take a lifetime (or more) to listen to it all. The town also has its quirky side, emboldened by the unofficial motto, "Keep Austin Weird." If you'd like to see a little more of Austin than the standard tour of the state capitol and the Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library, here are a few ideas:

1. See the Bats on Congress Bridge. One of the weirdest, and most fascinating, sights in Austin are the bats that call downtown Austin's Congress Bridge home. The bridge is home to the largest colony of urban bats in North America, an estimated 1.5 million Mexican free-tail bats. These creatures leave the bridge each evening at dusk from mid-March through November for their nightly search for food. It's quite a spectacle.

2. Have a laugh at Esther's Follies. A mixture of magic show, improv, and vaudeville, Esther's has been entertaining Austin residents and visitors since 1977. The 90-minute performance repeats every Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday.

Esther's Follies
525 East Sixth Street in Austin
512 320-0553

3. Visit the O Henry Museum. This small, free museum is nestled amid the skyscrapers in downtown Austin and devoted to the life and work of William Sidney Porter, better known to readers as O. Henry. The museum, established in 1934, is open Wednesday through Sunday from noon to 5:00 p.m.

O. Henry Museum
409 East Fifth Street in Austin
512 472-1903

4. Explore the Museum of the Weird. Monsters, lizards, supernatural phenomena, and mummies: it's all there at this downtown Austin museum. Experience it daily from 11:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m....if you dare.

Museum of the Weird
412 East Sixth Street in Austin
512 476-5493

5. View the Treaty Oak. Estimated to be more than 500 years old, this southern oak tree is the last survivor of a grove of trees that were sacred to the Comanche and Tonkawa tribes that once inhabited central Texas. The tree, located on Baylor Avenue between Fifth and Sixth Streets, was poisoned in the 1980s, but survived and is returning to its former majesty.

6. Browse the Racks at Waterloo Records. You would expect a music-loving city like Austin to have a great music store and Waterloo Records is just such a place. If you can't find what you're looking for there, it may just not exist. At Waterloo, you can listen to the music before you buy and even return the record or CD within 10 days for a refund if you decide you don't like it.

Waterloo Records
3600 Presidential Boulevard in Austin
512 530-2900

7. Be Part of Urban Music Fest. This small, one-day music event sets up along the banks of Lake Austin in April and features an array of rhythm and blues, soul, and jazz singers and musicians. It's a great start to the warm-weather concert season.

8. Take a Duck Tour. While not unique to Austin, a tour in an amphibious vehicle shaped like a duck still qualifies as weird. Don't be put off by the kitsch; these light-hearted, 75-minute sightseeing excursions are fun and drive by various historical points in Austin before taking a spin in the Lake Austin. Tours depart from East Sixth Street downtown.

9. Get Tropical at the Hula Hut. Tiki huts and Mexican food? Only in Austin...and only at the Hula Hut. This Polynesian-themed eatery on the shores of Lake Austin offers everything from Texas nachos to coconut shrimp in a fun, waterfront atmosphere.

Hula Hut
3825 Lake Austin Boulevard in Austin
512 476-4852

10.Wander through the Bob Bullock State History Museum. This three-story museum in downtown Austin tells the fascinating, quirky, and sometimes just plain weird history of Texas and the people who founded the state. The museum, open daily, features an IMAX theater as well as a variety of temporary and permanent exhibits that help illustrate the people, identity, and opportunity of the Lone Star State.

Bob Bullock State History Museum
1800 North Congress Avenue in Austin
512 936-8746

Sources:
http://www.texasescapes.com/AustinTexas/TreatyOak/AustinTreatyOak.htm
http://www.thestoryoftexas.com/
http://www.urbanmusicfest.com/
http://www.hulahut.com/#menu
http://www.austinducks.com/
http://www.museumoftheweird.com/
http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/ohenry/