San Francisco was definitely the highlight of my summer (last post), but I’ve also had a great ending when my friends came back to Austin to start their semester at the University of Texas! I started with doing a parking garage photoshoot during Hurricane Harvey. Crazy? Absolutely. I also did some interesting things like take a first SoulCycle class (totally worth the money), going to a UT football game (of course), and even seeing Mac Miller perform withAriana Grande feet away from me! Click below for all the details!
Most people decide to stay in and avoid the slick roads when there’s a hurricane on your doorstep. Well, me, dangerously living on the edge, got a text from a friend Saturday morning asking if I’d like to do a photoshoot in the rain, and of course I said yes!! I got ready and headed out, but as soon as I walked out the door, my hair turned into a giant frizzy, wavy mess (so much for straightening). Instead of freaking out and running back inside to change my mind, I decided to embrace the natural look and go for something I haven’t done before.
I drove over to where we were supposed to meet, the 360 bridge, and realized that this may be a bad idea. Not only was it heavily pouring rain, but the wind was blowing like crazy, enough to probably knock me off the overlook and bridge itself! We quickly thought of a new location (although my other friend actually hiked up halfway to the bridge and got some amazing photos!) and decided something out of the ordinary, but still outdoors and practical for this weather; a parking garage shoot!
I’m actually shocked at how well the photos turned out. Our equipment was falling all over the place from the high winds and we constantly were getting wet from the rain blowing into the garage. It was well worth it though, especially for the experience!
Also, you should definitely check out my friends’ photography pages if you get a chance. They have an amazing portfolio!
A couple weeks before my photo shoot, I had the opportunity to go to Float Fest in San Marcos with my friend! He knew a couple people sponsoring the event with Beatbox drinks, so I was excited to come along.
We got there a bit late and it was already super crowded, so we just hung out at the end of the river. Afterwards, we had trouble judging if we could get in or not with our Vendor wristbands so we ran inside and luckily didn’t get denied. We saw Lil Flip and Mike Jone (classic Houston rappers) before the next big artist we wanted to see was next, Mac Miller. We still had 3 hours before he was going to hit the stage so we decided to try our luck. I went up to the backstage entrance section and told the guard that I was with one of the vendor sponsoring the event, showed him my wristband, and said we needed to get back there. At first, he seemed confused, so I confidently repeated myself, and he went ahead and let us both in.
We ran up to the side of the stage and then sat down, hiding our wrist with the band on it so we wouldn’t get caught. A lot more people came to see the next act, Snakehips, which was good because they covered us up from the guards walking around. Also, Snakehips were actually really good! I never had heard of them prior to the show, but I’ve definitely checked them out since.
After they had performed, an hour later Mac Miller came out and everyone went crazy, he definitely knows how to put on show. I was so happy I was on the side of the stage because the crowd looked really really rowdy. Pretty much everyone was drunk from all the day drinking, and I was as sober as can be because I had strep throat the week prior.
When Mac Miller came out, we noticed a few people on the opposite side of the stage that came up. We happened to just look over at the right time and caught a glimpse of Ariana Grande! It makes sense that she was there, since she is dating Mac Miller, but I never would have thought she would be at the actual show. She interacted with him a few times actually while he was on stage, like putting her hands up when he told the crowd to, and he even glanced over at her every now and then, but I don’t think the crowd realized it was for her. It was a really cool experience!
On a side note, I just recently tried Soulcycle and I’m kinda obsessed. I heard nothing but good things from one of my friends, so I definitely wanted to give it a try. I saw that there was a Drake vs. Nicki Minaj class at the Domain location, and I immediately knew that was the class that I wanted to try.
When I got there, everyone looked very prepared like this was a typical thing for them. I was a little intimidated because I had no idea what to expect. I didn’t even know that you needed special shoes to clip yourself into the bike pedals (thankfully you can rent shoes there for $4). I walked into a super dark room with mirrors, fans, and dim lighting towards the stage where the instructor sat. After seeing everyone naturally get on the bikes, I was so thankful I picked a bike in the corner the back row, where absolutely no one could see me!
The class started and I was glad we had a very energetic and intense instructor. We immediately started going with standing while bicycling. I’m not much of a bicyclist, so it felt really strange, but it was definitely a work out! I think SoulCycle is honestly all about endurance, because you go nonstop for an hour and you ultimately determine your work out.
I felt really good after the class and felt that I worked out every portion of my body. It’s crazy how you can incorporate yourself everywhere on a bicycle! I decided to try a second class, but this time it was with a different instructor. I didn’t purposely pick another instructor, but it was just who was leading on the day I decided to go. This time, I didn’t feel much of a workout. I’m not sure if it was me lacking applying myself, but my friend felt the same way, so I now believe you really get your money’s worth not only depending on how well you apply yourself, but also on who you choose as your instructor.
Overall, I think SoulCycle is a lot of fun and I will definitely do it again, but it’s not feasible as a typical work out because it is a little pricey!
At the beginning of September, I was lucky to get a three day weekend for the Labor day holiday! I was so excited because I got time off and then all my friends who got to UT came back for the beginning of the semester. I missed them so much over the summer, so I was ecstatic to catch up. I decided to go out for dinner a few times (at my typical places such as Culinary Dropoutand Shady Grove) and the actually go out to a few bars. I actually hung out at Rainey Street for most of the weekend, going to places like Icenhauer’s and my favorite, The Container Bar.
The first day I went to Rainey was on Friday, and it was like one giant frat party. I literally felt like I was in my sophomore year of college walking into a Sigma Chi frat party. It was a really strange night and I didn’t’ know how to feel about it. Not only that, but a group of guys approached me and my friends who were apparently in Austin from Toronto for a Bachelor Party. I never would have guessed that they were Canadian until I was talking to one of the guys and he said sorry with emphasis on the ‘o’,
The second time I went that weekend was on a Sunday. I don’t think I’ve ever gone legit bar hopping on a Sunday night, so that was a new experience for me. This night was much more subdue and was filled with more working people than college kids, apparently my new crowd now that I’m working full time. It was a really fun night because it actually wasn’t overcrowded for once, but wasn’t as dead as it sometimes is on week nights. At one point, my friend and I even jumped on stage and started dancing. I definitely didn’t have enough drinks for that, but it was fun nonetheless!
I was also super excited in September because not only did I have a holiday weekend, but it’s the true start of football season! My first football game of the season was watching UT play San Jose State. It was obvious that UT was going to win that game since we were playing such a small school, but I wanted to go just for the spirit and a good game!
Prior to the game, I met up with some friends at a classic West Campus spot, Cain and Abel’s! I love getting their Texas Tea and I also go introduced to a new drink that’s orange juice, grenadine, and rum, which was pretty good! It’s always nice to pregame before going to the game to avoid crazy drink prices!
So I saved the best for last; I went out to brunch a couple weekends ago. But not just any brunch, a bottomless brunch! This was something I had never done before and I was pretty iffy on how the food was going to turn out, but it was ah-mazing!
We went to a relatively new Mexican restaurant in Austin, Grizzelda’s. I hadn’t had a chance to check it out until now, but they had a soft opening back in the Spring that I wanted to go to. My friend told me that they offer bottomless brunch on Sundays, complete with a DJ and everything, so it sounded like a perfect time to try! When you get there, you basically pay $20 for unlimited food and then they have cheap drink specials! We both got a margarita for $5 a piece, and the drink was over half way full with alcohol, I swear! When it got time to go get our food, I was amazed at the variety they offered. I was glad that I didn’t eat much the night before because I wanted to try a little bit of everything! They had salad, yogurt, parfaits, Mexican pudding, fruit, enchiladas, tortillas, potatoes, beans, scrambled eggs, nachos, guac, toast with jam or sweet butter, and even more! That’s literally what I could name off the top of my head. If you’re looking for a new brunch spot, I definitely recommend!
Until next time!
xx,
Rachelle
