From Barbara

I am really excited that people want to come to Austin, and there are
many places I would enjoy showing you. However, neither of the earlier
dates will work for me. We have planned a trip to California and Utah
and don't expect to be back until about the 11th, or maybe the 12th. I
had assumed the reunion would be later. So if it is one of those
weekends, I'll help plan--but I won't be here!

On the places to stay, I went by the Carrington's Bluff B&B, and it is
just as charming as the pictures on the website. And the location, just
off MLK Blvd and up the hill from Lamar, is great. We could easily tour
the Capitol and do other things downtown. We could get the Writer's
Cottage all to ourselves. Assuming there were 8 people, I think it
would be about $92 per night per person, including breakfast (served in
the Main House). We would have three bedrooms (one with two double
beds) and a living room and kitchen. If we chose week nights, it would
be $78 per person per night. I know this is more than the website
shows, but the innkeeper said there is 15% tax and a 15% group fee (I'm
not sure I like that "group fee" thing!). If we had more than 8 people,
we would probably want to reserve one or more rooms in the main house.
They can arrange spa services if they have advance notice.

The Crossings and the Lost Pines resorts are both outside of town. If
we stayed there, I think we would mostly want to do things there, rather
than driving into Austin. Both are fairly expensive--The Crossings
rates start at $175 per person per night. Lost Pines rooms seem to
start at $319 per night. They both have websites you can check out.

Looking forward to hearing what you all want to do.

Love,

Barbara