Barzzzzz, muzzzzic, muzt be Auztin

Sixth Street, Austin, Texas is hoppin' on the slowest night of the year. As we pass the bars, we can tell from outside that the music is great… We cross the wrong street, and find ourselves in a tenderloin of flop houses, tattoo parlors and shivering hungry ghosts…. We cross back and they disappear…..

Suddenly, we are in front of Katz's Deli and its companion bar, the Meow, a 24/7 food and watering place unlike anything at home. We share corned beef, cole slaw and Russian dressing (no, not the ensemble of a model from Moscow) and real, real rye bread. The pickles are perfect and we order more cole slaw.

Wandering, we find Book People, a huge independent book store, open until 11:00 pm and are so transfixed, we never make it to the second floor. But everything is closing for Thanksgiving, the temperature dropped 40 degrees today from a high of 81, and roads are icing over. We scan our maps, check accuweather and plot a route through El Paso. Austin will have to wait. We plan to pack up the boychicks and head home.