Austin is a city of over 700,000 in the Hill Country region of the American state of Texas. It's the capital of Texas and a college town, and also a centre of alternative culture away from the major cities on the American coasts, although the city is rapidly gentrifying with its rising popularity. Austin's attitude is commonly emblazoned about town on T-Shirts and bumper stickers that read: "Keep Austin Weird." Austin is also marketed as the "Live Music Capital of the World" due to its large number of venues.

Home of the University of Texas campus, Austin life is closely entwined with the energy and enthusiasm of its students, but this city that has been a state capital since 1838 does not ignore its history.

Young people are drawn here too by the array of live concerts that are held frequently around the shores of Town Lake. Most famous of these events is the annual South by Southwest music festival-conference held each March. Visitors wanting to tune in to Austin's live musical repertoire, which spans everything from blues and country to reggae, simply have to drift down the famous Sixth Street strip of pubs and clubs any night of the week.

The Texas state capital is quickly becoming known as a centre for independent arts culture and the nation's premiere city for live music, not to mention a great place to get your BBQ on (that's beef brisket in Texas, just so you'll know).

Austin's laid-back attitude lends itself to the great outdoors, and the city has miles of hiking and biking trails linking parks, preserves and greenbelts adding to the ambience of its leafy streets.