YYZ→AUS
An account of my recent trip to Austin during SXSW
On the way
We left about 4 hours before our flight, expecting long lines and delays due to the high amount of traffic going through YYZ that day (busiest day of the year because of Spring Break). Did our online check-in to beat the lines, but ended up going through security in about 30 mins. So we sat at our gate for 2.5 hours waiting.
When we finally got on the plane, I ended up in first class! Seat was comfy with lots of room. I was in the front row, so couldn’t keep my handbag, but oh well. As we were taking off the flight attendants were taking selfies at the front of the plane; got a good kick out of that! I wasn’t tired so I watched most of “This Is Where I Leave You” (gotta finish that movie!) during the flight. Near the end of the flight, I asked for a snack, and she gave me one of everything!
The plane was delayed an hour, so we ran to the next gate. Made it just as they started boarding. Phew! This plane was delayed an hour as well (I think they were waiting for a few passengers coming from another delayed flight). Sat in the main cabin this time, on the aisle. As I sat waiting for the plane to take off, I saw someone who looked like Stromae board the plane (at the time I thought “No way it’s him”, but turns out it probably was!).
During the flight, two people sitting in front of me talked the whole ride, another guy was third-wheeling, and a third guy used Snapchat to fix his hair, ate bubble gum, and read a book, hence #strangersonaplane. We made it to the hotel (which seemed to be in the middle of nowhere) at 12:30am, changed, went to bed.
Lazy Morning +Bike Ride
For some reason, I woke up at 7:30 and couldn’t go back to sleep. So I took my sweet time getting ready, went down for breakfast, then went back to my room for a bit of reading.
We left at around noon to Zilker Park, rented a couple bikes, and went for a ride along the Lady Bird Lake Trail. We made it about half way around before it got too hot. So we stopped, found a place called Toastie’s Sub Shop, had a mango-pineapple-orange smoothie to cool down. Then went for another short ride.
Cafes
Met up with @wilnichols who took us around Austin (thanks Wil!). Visted a bunch of cute cafes: ate the most amazing sandwich at Thunderbird Coffee, Italian soda at Caffé Medici, dinner at Blue Dahlia, and a Hibiscus Strawberry iced tea at Mozart’s. Made for an awesome day with lots of design talk, great company, and beautiful weather. I was so caught up with the day that I didn’t actually take a lot of pictures.
Hotel Take-Two
Woke up at 8:30am, watched “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” while I got dressed, ate breakfast, and packed up. Took an Uber to the second hotel, but ended up going to the wrong one (there are 2 close to the airport with the same name). Took a shuttle back to the correct hotel, then made our way to the Dribbble meet-up.
Dribbble@SXSW
The meet-up was at a cool bike shop called Mellow Johnny’s which had a ton of space, and a covered area outside in the nice weather. I got to chat with a bunch of designers from Dropbox, Netflix, local startups, and design agencies. Also met a Canadian! She was so excited to meet someone from Canada after having moved to Austing for a few years (and turns out her sister is in Waterloo, and friend is working for us next co-op term). As for food, there was pizza and ice-cream cookies, which were delish! Also got a bunch of swag: mini notebooks (LOVE), pencils, coaster, t-shirts.
Stromae!!
The highlight of the weekend has to be Stromae! We got into the Spotify House event just as he started singing. I was beyond exited, and quickly disappeared into the crowd. I actually made it to the third row in the front; I can’t express how excited I was! Stromae put on such an amazing show! I took so many photos and videos, danced, sang, and had an awesome time!! Best. Concert. Ever.
Netflix Rooftop Party
For the final event of the night, we went to the Netflix Designers party. We hopped onto a pedicab, which was such a fun ride! At the party, one of the DJs was an actress from “Orange is the New Black”. I don’t actually watch the show so I didn’t know recognize her, but she was an awesome DJ! Oh, and we got a free Moleskine notebook.
After the party, we went back to the hotel. Turns out there was a huge spotlight aimed right at my window, so I got switched to another (nicer) room.
Goodbye Austin
Woke up at 5am (before my alarm clock ugh) to get ready for our early 8am flight. Packed up (again), ate breakfast, got a shuttle to the airport. Line ups were short, so we made it to our gate quickly. On the first flight, I got the window seat and ended up chatting with the guy beside me throught the flight. Turns out he grew up in Dubai and speaks arabic! Made for an interesting conversation starter.
Once again we had an hour between flights and made it to our gate just before boarding. This time the flight was rather empty and I got one side to myself. So naturally I propped up my legs, popped in my headphones, and went to sleep.
I’ve only been back for a day and already I miss Austin. I’ve travelled to many places before, spent more time elsewhere, but somehow Austin made such a big impression on me that I genuinely miss the city. Here’s to hoping I come back soon!
