STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

Where is the concert at? What are some things you'd like to do? (i.e. shopping, what kinds of restaurants, outdoor activities, bars, etc.)

I can definitely help you out with some cool places to go but any narrowing down you can do would be great! Also, football is out of town that weekend so you won't have to deal with a ton of people/traffic situations, which is good.

If you want to see the bats, head over the Congress Bridge a little before dusk. (The Bridge is just south of downtown.)

Restaurants - what type of food/atmosphere would you like? There's the Real World house that's been made into a restaurant. It's not something I'd recommend for the food or anything but if you want to see it... Sushi? Italian? Tex-Mex? The Oasis is a bit of a drive but it's got the best view in town. The Hula Hut is cool because it's right on the water and always has good food/drinks. Trudys has the best (best!) mexican martinis in town but the food is just so/so. Beware - the limit is two and they won't serve you anything more. Vivos is a great Tex Mex place on the east side of town (I highly recommend the puffy tacos and prickly pear margaritas). Sushi in Austin is great, too. If you want some recs for that, I've got plenty.

Shopping - I'd hit up South Congress and just walk up and down the street. There are a lot of cute/funky boutiques/shops. My personal favorites are New Bohemia (vintage) and Parts and Labour (local Austin made jewelry and assorted other accessories). It'd be something to do before the bats on the bridge. You could stop in at the San Jose Hotel (also on South Congress) and sit out on the patio and have a drink/appetizer. It's very cool and lots of famous peeps stay there. (My favorite is to drink wine there and get the cheese platter thing - it's like being at my house but no clean up and a much better view.)

Let me know if there's anything you'd like to know about!