Music fills the air as the sun sets on downtown Austin

Austin's unofficial slogan, "Keep Austin Weird," reflects a widely held belief that the Texas capitol's homegrown values have been corrupted by growth and commercialism — particularly during the 1990s tech boom when the city became a favorite venue for computer hardware and software startups.

Even though you can now score a regulation decaf Frappuccino at any of 30 Starbucks outlets within the Austin city limits, the town that gave birth to the Austin Lounge Lizards (www.austinlizards.com) and the annual SPAMARAMA Spam cook-off (www.spamarama.com) remains a haven of individualism and eccentric behavior.

Perhaps more than any other city in Texas, Austin is a place where visitors should make a point of savoring quirky local cafes and bars, of striking up conversations with opinionated natives and of immersing themselves in the town's exceptionally vibrant music scene. Visit the Hard Rock Café if you must, but get out of your comfort zone and you'll have a much more authentic experience of Austin life. Let the weird times roll.