Monday, March 16, 2015 - Austin, TX

Our major reason for staying near Austin was to visit the state capitol building.  You know if it was in Texas it had to be big - it was that and more!  I think it was also one of the most beautiful capitol buildings we have seen. 

The capitol sits on one of Austin's highest points.  Views of its dome are protected from being obscured by state law.  Exterior walls are "sunset red" granite, quarried in Texas.

The Texas Capitol is the largest of all state capitols.  It is smaller in gross square footage than the National Capitol in Washington, D.C., but rises 15 feet taller.

Most capitols cordon off the center of the rotunda, usually to protect a mosaic.  With no such restrictions, I had a rare opportunity to stand square in the center for my photo.

We were so fortunate to happen upon a concert in the rotunda featuring the McAllen High School Mariachi Oro State 5A Champions of 2014.

The music echoing around the walls of the rotunda was breathtaking.  The sound so sweet, it brought tears to my eyes.

The collective talent was palpable!

Standing on the ground floor of the rotunda, the star is so high overhead that you can not tell that TEXAS surrounds the star!

The woodworking was over the top!  The doors below were typical of the millwork on every door on every floor in the building.  The custom hinges let you know money was no object as the place was being built.

The 8" x 8" door hinges weigh over seven pounds each.  Note the security screws to thwart souvenir hunters.

As we were studying the trim work in the governor's reception room one of the guards gave us a hand out detailing the woodwork.

According to the 1888 specs for furnishing the Capitol, more money was spent on the carpeting, draperies and furniture in this room than any other space in the Capitol.

Taken from the Senate Gallery

We were allowed access to all four floors of the building.

Just a few blocks from the capitol past the Governor's mansion was a beautifully maintained old neighborhood.  We thought about walking around the area but two hours of touring the capitol building and grounds had us ready for lunch so it was "good-bye" downtown Austin. There was a Cheddars on the way home calling our names.

The Bremond Block Historic neighborhood stands in stark contrast to the high rise buildings that surround it.  The Victorian houses were constructed between 1850 and 1910.

The Pierre Bremond House was built in 1898.

The John Bremond House was built in 1888.