Vacation: A little “Austintatious”
On the week before our anniversary (20 June), Lisa and I went on vacation. We didn’t wander far. After dropping the kids off in Marble Falls for a one-week camp (Camp Peniel), we jumped in the car and hastily made our way to the Hilton Downtown Austin for a couple of days and nights. We literally parked the car in the parking garage and walked everywhere: restaurants, the capital, shopping and historic sites. The only exceptions were the worldwind guided bus tour and the one afternoon we made our way to the hike-and-bike trail on Lady Bird Lake. More on that later…
Here are some photos from the worldwind tour:
A light jog –
The afternoon we went to the hike-and-bike trails, we planned on a nice jog/walk a couple of hours before the sunset. Our (okay, my) plan was to be back at the Congress Avenue bridge to watch the largest urban bat colony in North America (1.5 million) take flight at dusk. Lisa really didn’t want to go running on her vacation, but she conceded. We parked, stretched and started our way west from the First Street bridge on the trails. The trails were so awesome and the weather was so favorable, I completely lost track of how far we went. At the end of the first hour, (yes, first hour) we finally turned around.
Let me just say, Lisa is a great sport. She hung in there. I felt bad since we had to go the same distance to get back in time to see the bats. Jogging is not something Lisa had done in some time, but she pressed in and we walked and jogged back with time to spare. In that one outing, we ended up walking/jogging over eight miles.
Hyatt at the Lost Pines:
After our stay in Austin, we drove out to the Hyatt Regency Lost Pines. It was amazing – settled far back into the pine forests of central Texas along the Colorado river, this resort had a lot to offer: hiking trails, horseback riding, golf, full service spa, pools with a joining lazy river, a butterfly garden, daily activities for the kids, Smores by campfire every night, good food and great hospitality. We did a lot of eating, rest and relaxation.
A sunset sail, or so we thought:
I signed us up for this sunset sail. I thought it would be romantic and special for Lisa and me. Well, as it turns out, when we showed up at the water’s edge, we were staring at five river rafts. We had to wear lifejackets and we had to work – not exactly what I had in mind. It turned out to be a lot of fun. We had a couple of goofy college kids working summer jobs at the LCRA along as guides. They kept it all pretty lively, but not,… uhm, romantic.
A hike through the McKinney Roughs Wilderness Area:
We took one morning and hiked a couple of hours in the McKinney Roughs State Park, adjacent to the Hyatt.
The home of Shiner Beer:
Well, we ended our time by traveling south to Shiner, Texas and toasting to a great vacation with some free Shiner Beer.
Picking the kids up from camp:
Finally, it all came to an end, and we went and gathered up our little chickadees at Camp Peniel. The boys and the girls each had their own “closing ceremonies” where the cabin leaders presented awards and shared what they enjoyed about each child under their care. The girls danced, sang, presented dramas and said sweet things. The boys, however, had a Pow Wow, where clapping was forbidden. Praise was verbalized with a “How” or “Hmmm” (spoken in low tones). Activities included stick wars, tug of war, and leg wrestling… very different from the girls fairwell.
– D
