Day 30: Speed bump on the summer road trip

DAY 30: Austin, Texas
Miles traveled: 4,175
States visited: 15
Weather: 93, sunny

We had our first vehicle mishap on Monday. While trying to drive to San Antonio for the day, the van lost power and died on the freeway. We called AAA and had it towed back to Austin, where it stayed overnight. We feared a transmission problem, which would’ve required either the purchase of a new van or termination of the trip, but it turned out to be the alternator. Not cheap to fix, but it fit inside the “emergency van repair budget” I had set aside.

Since we were without a vehicle we walked around downtown and took a nap on the lawn of the state capitol.

Then we went to the Alamo, a famous movie theater where they offer food service at your seats. We caught the latest Star Trek movie, which we rate 4 out of 5 stars.

We’re now staying with Christopher, our couchsurfing host who lives near the University of Texas. This is a fun area – it has lots of coffee shops and restaurants, including a place called Slices and Ices, which offers both pizza and ice cream. Score!

We have another full day in Austin before moving on. More to come from here!