After the morning site visit at the UT Austin football practice facility, the group went out to In&Out. Everyone was super excited to try it out, especially since for most of the group it was a first-time experience, as there aren’t any in the Midwest. Some of us got hats and t-shirts, and we all got stickers. The burgers were good, but the animal style fries were sadly overhyped. After lunch, we all came back to the Airbnb to relax before we hit up the downtown area. We spent the time playing Smash Bros, catching up on some sleep, and taking walks around the Airbnb. Sadly, we brought the Champaign winds and chill with us today, so not too much time was spent outside. We all packed for a warm Texan spring break, not a 20-40 degree windy day, but we didn’t let that stop us from going downtown for a night out.

To celebrate the first day of our spring break trip, the group decided to go out for a night in the town. We all went out to 6th Street in downtown Austin to get the Texas social experience. This area is known as a historic entertainment district, with live music and dive bars. We got recommended this area by a local that we met the night before, who was originally from Danville. It was crazy to see how quickly we met someone connected to UIUC in Texas. To start the night off, we went out to dinner at a local taqueria. The vibes were pink from the décor to the tortillas. The food was amazing, especially the shrimp tacos and carnitas. Everyone had a great time eating and talking.  

After dinner, we all went out for a night of fun and experienced the Austin social scene. The choice of where we would spend the night was decided as soon as the pool table was spotted. Everyone got in on a few games and spent time bonding over our road trip experiences. The street was lively and decorated with neon signs everywhere. There were a few places with live music and the outside heaters to keep us cozy. By the end of the night, the group walked away with so many memories and just as many rubber duckies. There was a great claw machine where almost everyone won a few duckies. Only a few fights broke out over who got which ducks, but it all worked out at the end. On the way back to the Airbnb, we got to experience the self-driving Ubers called Waymo. Only a few cities in the US have these automated cars, and it was a very cool experience. The car is decked out with  bulky cameras and sensors that look like a bunch of bubbles stuck around the car. It was a super calm ride, and there is no tip necessary.  Everyone had a great first night and was ready to take on the early Tesla Giga factory tour the next day.

Blog by Lily Hinojosa