I'm Getting Married in the Morning

First time in Austin, Texas! My cousin Marlene's daughter Erica is getting married and Carol and I are attending the wedding along with several of our first cousins. Jeff took me to Savannah airport and I took a flight to Atlanta. Very short connection to my Austin flight and Carol was on the same plane connecting from Boston. We arrived just after noon, got a rental car and drove to our downtown hotel.

We are staying at the W, where all the employees look about 12 years old, but very competent. It is a young, hip place and we have a nice room with a view on the 14th floor. After unpacking we set out to the SoCo area which stands for South of Congress. It is a few blocks of restaurants and funky shops. It is only 45 degrees and not many people out on Thursday night. We walk to a graffiti sign that has become a symbol of the city and take pictures.

After checking out a few stores we settled in for dinner at a recommended restaurant, The South Congress Cafe,  with great food and service. Carol and I both had a vegetarian dish with grilled squash and eggplant. She had grilled shrimp on top and I had scallops. To start we shared a terrific bleu salad with loads of Maytag blue cheese and candied pecans. Later the shuttle from the hotel picked us up and we got friendly with the driver, Tim. He is a really sweet guy with loads of tips on where to see sights and eat.

Back at the hotel we ran into Marlene and Bob who were checking in and are the parents of the bride. Marlene is my cousin and closest to me in age. Later she came to our room and we hung out and talked and talked.

Called Jeff as he is home and busy with rehearsals for his upcoming play. He is in the cast of "Lend Me A Tenor" which opens next week. Wish he could be here with me.