2. Getting Around
Most of what you will attend is in downtown Austin. The panels are in the convention center. Most of the films are screened in theaters within walking distance of the convention center (8 or 9 blocks). If walking isnt your thing, SXSW offers a shuttle service between all of the theaters. There were four or five mini buses which ran about every 15 minutes, so your wait was never too long. If you just cant stand waiting, there were lots of options for rides. There was Catch a Chevy. As one of the sponsors, Chevy had cars all around downtown. If they were unoccupied, you could jump in and request a ride. There were also bicycle rickshaws for hire. Or, if you prefer to be in control, there were several bicycle rental services. Some of which were motorized. One of the coolest services in Austin is the Car2Go service. You have to sign up for an account, but once you have one all you have to do is find an unoccupied Car2Go (Smart Car) hop in, drive to where you're going, park the car in any legal parking spot and go about your way. It's .38 a minute and that's only while you're in the car. Pretty sweet. Because you have to sign up, which involves proving you have a drivers license, etc., I did not get the chance to try the service out. I have since signed up and will be ready to go next time Im in Austin. And then there were the Lyft piggy back rides. I did manage to catch up with a couple of them, and heres the story. They really were offering piggy back rides. A hunky guy was accompanied by a pretty young woman. The rides were really just a publicity stunt/photo op. I asked them if they were from Texas (as they all had Austrailian/New Zealand accents), and they said that no, they were not. I then asked them if they realized what they were getting themselves into when they signed on to do this. I mean, everything is bigger in Texas. Their answer: Thats a really good question, followed with a nervous laugh. As one of the big ole Texas boys, I did not request a piggy back ride. I was packing 30+ pounds of gear on top of my ample arse, so I wasnt going to subject them to that. I did ask how far the rides were...
As far as I can handle. The longest has been about a block.
I was gratified to learn that I wasnt the only one who wasnt prepared.
1. Lounges
The lounges are rest areas where you can catch your breath between activities and/or to network with other attendees. Each of the lounges had their own flare, amenities and goodies depending on where they were located and who was sponsoring them. Common to all where comfy seats to rest your aching feet, power to charge your electronic gear and a masseuse. They only give the 10 minute jobs, but after all the walking and standing in lines, a 10 minute massage is heavenly. Im fairly sure they all had WiFi, too. I am not 100 percent sure because the lounge I used was the press lounge in the convention center. Austin is a tech savy/friendly city, and the WiFi in the convention center was free, which leads me to believe they had it available everywhere. So, there you have it, and now you can understand why my previous article was titled
Thud and Blunder in Austin. I knew there was going to be a learning curve, and I was going to be on the low end. Im sure that next year there will be more that Im not ready for, but like the old G.I. Joe cartoon used to claim: Now know, and knowing is half the battle. Were you at SXSW? Share your experiences below.