Trip to Austin

Cory was telling me about a free outdoor play she used to go to when she lived in Austin.  The Zilker Park Hillside Theater puts on a new play every summer and admission is free.  As we were talking we realized nothing was stopping us from going.  We could stay with Cory's family and have a fun few days in Austin.  Just like that, we took a road trip.  We went to see Shrek:The Musical at Zilker Park and had a pretty good time.  The music was great and the performers were excellent.  I couldn't believe it was free for such a high quality performance.  Maybe we will go again next year.  They announced that next year will be The Wizard of Oz.

Cory also took me to the Natural Bridge Caverns, since she found out a few months ago that I really like cave tours.  I absolutely loved it.  I like going on tours in general, so when they are in cool places, like underground, it is especially interesting to me.  The are called the Natural Bridge Caverns because there is a natural rock formation that creates a bridge over the entrance to the caves.  Supposedly it is the original ceiling of the cavern, before a collapse that created the sink hole entrance.  Be prepared to hear more than you might want to about these majestic caves, because I was hanging on our high school tour guide's every word.  How cool of a job would that be in high school?

Cory's youngest brother, Logan, came with us, too.

Early on in the tour, our guide explained about the living fern.  It is the only plant in the entire cave system, and if you read the sign it explains how it only started growing after developer's installed the lights.

All of the chambers and big formations have really dramatic or epic names.  This is me in the deepest part of the tour, 180 feet below ground, called Sherwood Forest.  The flash focused on me so it is hard to see behind me, so I took another picture of just the formations.

We were told that the formations grow at a rate of one inch every 100 years, so a lot of time is represented in these caves.  Sherwood Forest, the deepest point of the tour.

The next room was named Castle of the White Giants.  The really tall column is the tallest in the cavern and called the Watchtower.

Next to the Watchtower is the King's Throne, and up in the right hand corner of the picture is the Chandelier. 

We passed by Grendel's Canyon, which is the not on the tour, but is the route the original explorers had to take.  Now there is a nice, man-made path.  It is crazy to think about the original group of people that explored the cave with no paths or lights to illuminate the room.

The last room was the Hall of the Mountain King.  We climbed all the way back up to ground level to the exit.  We also saw some 5,000 year old bat guano, and their ancient roosts.

On the backside of the chamber is the Valley of the Fallen Lords.  Cory and I wondered why they put a green light at the back, because we are pretty sure no one ever goes over there.

I was proud of Cory for trekking the entire tour pregnant!  It was strenuous in some parts, and the temperature controlled cavern was 75 degrees and 99% humidity, so it felt like 80-85.  We were thirsty afterward.

Luckily, they have water fountains at the end with pure cavern water.  We passed numerous pools of water, and were told that the limestone is a natural filter, so the water was completely purified.  Cory did not want to taste it, but Logan and I tried it.  I thought it tasted like normal tap water.

After my deeply moving cave experience, I didn't know if the rest of the trip was going to be that fun, but it was.  We took Emmy to the Shady Hollow pool and had a great time.  They have a small wading pool for little children, and Emmy absolutely loved it.

She was so content that she could touch the bottom of the pool at all times.

To end the trip, Cory took me and Emmy out to the Salt Lick, a famous Texas BBQ joint she worked at the summer after she graduated from high school.  Just coming from a BBQ hub in Memphis made me curious about this place.  I got the beef ribs, and they were huge.  The brisket was excellent, everything was delicious, but then it was taken to a new level during dessert.

Half blackberry cobbler, half peach cobbler.  People, this is what dessert is supposed to be.  I think I contracted diabetes after one bite.

We had an awesome time in Austin, and thanks to the Schiess Family for hosting us.  Emmy learned all of their names and got pretty good at saying them on command.