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Ballooning in Texas and Southwest USA

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Jazz has a long and distinguished history in Texas. Like most genres of music developed here, the music has its roots in many cultures. That is why you really should go to at least one of these festivals. The fest in Brownsville will provide an opportunity to hear all the types of Jazz music as it developed south of the border and then migrated to Texas.

Brownsville 12th Annual Latin Festival

October 9-12, 2008
Various venues in and around Brownsville, Texas

Brownsville Texas is celebrating its 12th Annual Brownsville Latin Jazz Festival with more Grammy Award Winners and Nominees than ever, the World Salsa Dance Champions, free music clinics, free dance lessons, art shows, after-show jams and the premier Salsa dance event of the Rio Grande Valley! Bring the family, stay the weekend, have great ticket and hotel discount packages! Call 956-831-9590 for more info.

Gary Nicholson has produced two Grammy winning records and many poplar records.  In 2006, Nicholson was nominated to the Nashville Songwriter’s Hall of Fame. Over four hundred of his songs have been recorded in various genres including country, rock, blues, folk, bluegrass, and pop by such diverse artists as BB King, Garth Brooks, Fleetwood Mac, Bonnie Raitt, Ringo Starr, Willie Nelson, Etta James, John Prine, Dixie Chicks, Stevie Nicks, Emmylou Harris, Keb Mo, George Jones, the Neville Brothers, Waylon Jennings, Del McCoury, Guy Clark and so many more. In addition to his Grammy winning records with Delbert McClinton, who has recorded twenty five of his songs, he has produced records for The Judds, Wynonna, Pam Tillis, T Graham Brown, Chris Knight, and others.

Click HERE for more information.

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Come Dance! 2008

Totally Free Event

Butler Dance Education Center
501 W. 3rd St.
Austin  TX  78701

Think you can dance? Want to try? Ballet Austin hosts a day of free dance classes of all types — modern dance, tap, flamenco, hula, jazz, Broadway theater style and yes, ballet. The 40-minute classes start on the hour beginning at 2 p.m. and 5 p.m

There’s also ongoing previews of the family-friendly show Not Afraid of the Dark and a special ‘Nutcracker’ room decked with sets and costumes from the holiday spectacular and ready for your early holiday photo opportunity. Bring the camera and lots of film!

Other things to do in the neighborhood:

Austin Children’s Museum

201 Colorado St, Austin, TX 78701
Near the intersection of Colorado St and W 2nd St
(512) 472-2499 www.austinkids.org

Tuesday - Saturday: 10am-5pm
Community Night Wednesdays: 5-8pm
Sunday: Noon-5pm

Adult: $5.50
Children 2 yrs.and up: $5.50
Children 12-23 months: $3.50
Children under 12 months: FREE

Zilker Park/Barton Springs/Botanical Gardens

Swim Fees
Senior    $1.00
Adult     $3.00
Junior (12-17)   $2.00
Child (11- under)   $1.00
Parking fee at Zilker  $3.00 (March through September)

Bring the family to Austin early and and stay the day.  Picnic in Zilker Park.  Hike or bike the trail around Lady Bird Lake. Swim in the sacred waters of Barton Springs. Ride the train around Zilker Park. Rent a canoe on :Lady Bird Lake.

Austin Duck Adventures

Monday and Tuesday: 2 PM
Wednesday through Friday: 11 AM & 2 PM
Saturday & Sunday: 11 AM, 2 PM & 4 PM

All public tours depart from the Austin Visitor Information Center at 209 E. Sixth Street
Adults - $25.95 + tax
Children (2 and Under) - Free
Children (Age 3-12) - $15.95
Seniors and Students - $23.95 + tax

Bob Bullock State of Texas Museum

Visit the Bob Bullock State of Texas Museum and see The Dark Knight: The IMAX Experience.  Come see Batman six stories high as he fights the Joker and crime in Gotham City.

See the Bats!  See the Bats!

When and Where To See the Congress Avenue Bats:

The best bat views are in August when the young pups join their mothers in the nightly flights. It can take as long as 45 minutes for all the bats to exit the bridge. Flights normally occur around 8 to 8:30 pm but could be earlier or later. Call the Bat Hotline at 416-5700 ext. 3636 for times. In addition to lining up on the sidewalks along the Congress Avenue bridge there are other safer and popular spots for bat-watching:

• Austin American-Statesman public viewing area on the Southeast end of Congress Avenue.
• Cruises on Town Lake are another way to see the bats. Lone Star Riverboat and Capital Cruises offer bat-watching cruises.
• Watch the bats from the Shoreline Bar & Grill, T.G.I. Fridays (in the Radisson Hotel), or the Four Seasons Hotel.

Doesn’t it shound like a great weekend for the family.  Do as much or as little as you wish.  Spend all the time indoors to beat the heat or cool down naturally in Barton Springs.

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My mother, father and older brother and sister were born in New York City. I was the first native born Texan in my family. The first time we visited New York City, I was only five years old and remember being cold, ill, and wondering how Santa Claus was going to find us in a motel in New Jersey. I do remember seeing the Statue of Liberty and visiting family members.

As I grew older, I was happy to visit my family in New York. Growing up within a nuclear family means you miss family reunions, Christmas at Grandma’s and having a safe place to go when you need it. My extended family lived in the Bronx area of NYC. This is a very old part of the NYC and the apartments were built just after WWII. It was always exciting to stay there because you could not plug in more than one appliance at a time or you would blow circuit breakers. However, we could walk to Macy’s and to buy pizza, large hot soft pretzels and Italian ices. I could have lived on those four items.

My mother and I went to New York City three or four times before I left home. Each time, I was a little older and we did more sightseeing. We toured Manhattan and Brooklyn in a double decker bus. I liked the buses much more than the subways. We did use the subways to visit my aunts on my father’s side of the family. We ate lunch in the middle of Manhattan.

One tour gave us a ticket to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, but my mom did not like museums, so I went on my own. On the way, I met some young people and found out about all the things to do in New York. I went on a tour of the countryside on a motorcycle with these new friends and saw some truly beautiful lakes and byways within an hour of NYC.

If you are planning to travel to New York or other major city, read the online travel guides at the Trusted Tours & Attractions website. While you are there, make sure you sign up for Trusted Tours & Attractions eNewsletter for a chance to win a $150 iTunes Gift Card!

Happy trails!

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