My Second 'First Thursday.'

As the sun was setting and I started walking down Congress Avenue around 7 p.m., the sky had faded to a milky blue and the few wispy clouds that remained shone a dazzling pink and gold. It was the perfect setting to my visit to First Thursday, the popular street festival that occurs on South Congress Avenue on, as the title implies, the first Thursday of every month. The street comes alive, more alive than usual. The shops stay open longer, the side alleyways and vacant lots fill with vendor tents displaying everything from handmade jewelry, t-shirts and crafted, wooden witch-dolls. Yeah, witch-dolls...I know. (The maker, apparently, lives in a house in the woods without Internet, a telephone or a T.V., just making these neat, yet creepy little dolls out of sticks, fabric and buttons.) Of course, live music is always a plenty as bass players, fiddlers and singers set up camp on street corners and play to anyone who will listen. The restaurants are slammed. Unfortunately, some of the shops do not even stay open very late though and you would think they would. The ones that do, however, often have special sales which are worth looking into (Strut, for instance.) Home Slice was disappointingly closed for a break this Thursday which is usually a good place to catch an authentic NY-style slice of pizza from the take-out window (Being from New York, I even recommend this place and I have had some good pizza in my life. I would recommend the Margarita.) It is a definite must for those who have never been, especially to get a feel for the Austin-vibe, meet some creative, eccentric street vendors with good stories to tell and enjoy a decadent red velvet cupcake from Hey Cupcake! But even on the second visit, it can become a little repetitive and dull after a couple of hours, especially if you have perused the South Congress shops before.