The Texas State Flower: The
Bluebonnet.

A statue of a famous musician
inside an Austin park.

The arch bridge on Highway
360.

Austin City Council.

The Texao State Capital
building in Austin.

Fo Guang Shan Hsiang Yun
Temple in The City of Austin

The Colorado River runs
through The City of Austin

Members of the Austin-
Taichung Sister Cities
Committee (ATSC)

High school students form
Taichung city take a group
photograph with the Austin
city mayor.

Taichung's Sunny Sister City: Austin, Texas

Words and photos by Taichung City Government
Translated by Ann Lee

The Austin-Taichung Sister Cities relationship was established in 1986 and now has 23 years of history. A closer look shows that there are many similarities between the two cities.

The City of Austin was founded in 1838 in honor of Stephen F. Austin, who colonized Texas and was referred to as the "Father of Texas". Texas officially became an American state when it joined the Union in 1846. Since then, Austin has become the state capital. Its population grew from 629 in its earliest days to 680,000 today, with 1.31 million people living in the entire metro area, making it the fourth-largest city in Texas (after Houston, Dallas and San Antonio) and the 16th-largest city in the U.S. Austin is also currently the second-fastest-growing city in America, in large part to its high-tech industry. Computer maker Dell's headquarters is also located in Austin. Due to the fact that a growing number of high-tech corporations like IBM, Intel, AMD, Motorola and Microsystems have located to Austin, this city is now known as "Silicon Hill", resembling "Silicon Valley" in California.

Geographically, Austin is located in the center of Texas, in the Central Texas Hill Country, occupying an area of 1,060 square kilometers. Dallas is 192 miles north of the city, while Houson is 162 miles to the east, and San Antonio is 80 miles south. This position helps consolidate Austin's reputation as the political, economic and cultural hub of Texas. Its population is 52.9% Caucasian, 30.5% Hispanic, 9.8% African-American and 4.7% Asian, making it a truly multi-cultural metropolis. The average temperature throughout the year is around 20 degrees Celsius, and its mild climate sees about 32 inches of rainfall and about 300 days of sunshine per year. In the winter, it rarely snows and the city boasts numerous attractive grass fields and parks, making it an ideal living environment.

The City of Austin has a council-manager form of government. The City Council comprises six council members. One of member is appointed to a managerial role (the City Manager), with overall responsibility for the hiring and management of all city employees, and the administration/promotion of all City Council affairs. The mayor and council members are elected at-large for staggered three-year terms. After a term in the office, citizens of Austin elect a new team of City Council members.

Music & culture in the City of Austin
There are a total of five universities within the City of Austin. Of these, the University of Texas at Austin (U.T. Austin) is the best-known institution. The Republic of Texas City Congress promised to build "an outstanding public education institute" in Austin back in 1839. Starting with a donation by Congress of 40 acres of land, many years of development and expansion have today resulted in the largest public university in the entire United States. There are about 50,000 students enrolled at U.T. Austin, including a good number of Taiwanese students. The university's football team, the Texas Longhorns (aka. "Texas", "UT" or the "Horns"), represent U.T. Austin during the college football tournaments, and are known as one of America's strongest college football teams. The team's Longhorn mascot represents the endless fighting spirit of the bull.
Tourists visiting Austin must make a stop at the State Capitol building, located in the heart of the city. This tall building is mainly constructed of pink granite and is not only a favorite architectural landmark among Austin locals, but is also the largest state capitol building in the United States. It has less square footage than the National Capitol in Washington, D.C., but is 14 feet taller. Near the State Capitol you'll find another popular landmark, The Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum, housing a complete collection of Texan historical relics. The Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library and Museum is also within a stone's throw, and both of these attractions are worth checking out.

Austin is also known as the "Live Music Capital of the World" with various bars and nightclubs located on well-known Sixth Street, where visitors can always explore different types of live music past midnight.

The mountain vistas and breath-taking lake views of Austin
The City of Austin is surrounded by ample hills and mountains, giving the city's geography a variety of elevations. The Colorado River flows right through downtown Austin, forming lakes of varied sizes and beautiful, breath-taking scenery. Master Hsing Yun of Taiwan's Fo Guang Shan (Buddha's Light Mountain) once visited Austin and, being very impressed with the city's natural landscape, expressed a wish to build a temple there for local worshippers. With monetary donations from overseas Chinese residents in Austin, the Fo Guang Shan Hsiang Yun Temple was officially opened in the mid-1990. Hsiang Yun Temple is located near Mount Bonnell. With an elevation of 785 feet above sea level, the mountain--the tallest overlooking the city--offers a beautiful panoramic view of downtown Austin, the Colorado River and surrounding hills. Famous American writer O. Henry once climbed to its summit and was quite stunned by the view of the surrounding mountains turning purple at sunset, as the hills formed a violet crown around the city. Consequently, he dubbed Austin the "City of the Violet Crown".

Mount Bonnell is no doubt a well-liked tourist destination for many, and there is a total of 99 steps that every hiker has to climb to reach the summit. Interestingly enough, there are quite a few romantic legends about this magical place. Legend has it that after climbing all 99 steps to the top for the first time, a couple will fall madly in love within a very short period of time. After their second visit, it is time for them to "tie the knot" of marriage. However, legend also has it that lovers who climb this summit a third time are destined for some type of tragedy, such as a break-up.

Sister-City Bonding: A great friendship starts here!
There are about 2,000 overseas Chinese living in the City of Austin, and Chinese community/groups there include the Austin-Taichung Sister Cities Committee, Taiwan Entrepreneurs and Investors Association, Austin Hakka Association, Austin Taiwan Association, and Austin Chinese Club. The chairman/founder of the Austin-Taichung Sister Cities Committee (or ATSC), Huang Jun-she, was the key person for promoting the beginning of a sister cities relationship between the City of Austin and Taichung back in February, 1986. In June of that year, then Austin City Mayor Frank C. Cooksey led a delegation team of 12 people on an eight-day visit to Taichung. The following year, then Taichung City Mayor Chang Zhi-yuen led a team of his own to visit Austin, solidifying what has remained a great friendship.

ATSC is a non-profit organization established and operated under Austin City Council supervision to serve as a bridge between Austin and Taichung. There are 10 committee councils and about 20 members. The current ATSC chair is Steven Yau, and the deputy chair is Dr. Catherine Farris. Back in April, 2005, the committee dispatched a 15-member Texas Industrial & Commercial Delegation to Taiwan, visiting Mayor Jason Hu in Taichung City as well as other related organizations. Resulting from this visit was a signed agreement with the Taichung City Chamber of Commerce chairman to publish a sister-cities newspaper, which may be read by overseas Chinese in Austin as well as Taichung residents.

In 2007, about 30 Taichung city high school students joined a three-week Summer School English Camp, traveling to Austin for a program that included learning English and touring around the city. The ATSC helped to arrange schools and other tourist/learning activities for the Taichung students. The most memorable experience for them was a trip to the Austin City Council Building, where they had a face-to-face encounter with Mayor Will Wynn, who greeted them and presented each student with an honorable citizen certificate. All the young scholars were excited about taking a group photo with Mayor Wynn, undoubtedly an unforgettable part of their English camp experience.