Austin, TX

Today, Diggity is actually in Austin, Texas.  Austin is a pretty great city.  Many people don't like Texas....the Texans would say "they're just jealous" ; )  However, Austin has a unique blend of Texas culture, a thriving "college" feel, and a healthy arts community (particularly music).

My company has a very large presence here in Austin, as all of the top executives are based here - along with a large amount of engineering and development.  Our company just moved into a brand new campus.  It's really nice, but a little on the boring side (how could it compare to my office?).

You should try walking between buildings in 100+ degree heat...

I'm actually here for several reasons, but the most important is the Austin Game Developers Conference (AGDC).  This is an annual gathering of a large number of game developers.  Austin has a large number of game developers, concentrating mostly on online games (like World of Warcraft).  Anyone outside our industry would simply say that it's a Nerd Fest:

 Just remember that this is a $9 billion industry...

When I travel around the world, I love to try the local cuisine.  Some of it makes me nervous, but I'm willing to try most things....once.  Here in Texas, sometimes it feels like you're in a foreign country ; )  Everyone knows that Texas is a GREAT place to have BBQ.  My favorite BBQ joints here are County Line BBQ and the Salt Lick.  You can find a steakhouse on every corner.  Tonight, I tried something brand new.  Fried Pickles.  Yup, you read that right.  It was actually good.  If you've had Fried Zuchinni, then you'll understand what it's like.  You take dill pickle spears, and lightly bread them.  Deep fry them - and make sure you have Ranch dressing for dipping.  The result is a great appetizer that I will look forward to, each time I return to Austin:

Better than it looks....

To continue my descent into what some would call White-Trash Cuisine, I found this for sale:

No explanation needed...

Austin is famous for a variety of other things.  First, it's the capitol of Texas.  The Texas State Capitol Buiding is an amazing site.  They say that everything is bigger in Texas - this building is no exception:

Now, if you are easily "creeped out", then hold someone dear as you read on.  Across Town Lake, there is a bridge.  No surprise there.  Every year - around mid-summer, hundreds of people flock to this bridge every single night.  No big deal.  What are they there to see?  Bats.  Over one million bats, to be specific.  The Congress Bridge houses approximately 1.5 million bats in the summer.  In the spring, the female makes her way north to roosting sites in the southwest U.S.  They each have a baby - and the baby can fly at five weeks-old.  Every night, the bats take off for their nightly feeding.  It takes up to 45 minutes for all the bats to exit the bridge!  Authorities estimate that they consume between 10,000 and 30,000 lbs. of insects EVERY NIGHT.  Yeah, it's creepy.  But for many, it's creepy-cool ; )

Congress Bridge, before the bats leave for the evening...

Just a small snapshot of the whole thing...