One of the things I did on my recent trip to San Antonio was to visit (quite accidently) the largest Starbucks in North America.
The entire first floor of this Starbucks on San Antonio’s riverwalk is what they call Hear Music. You get your java (or not), sit down at a computer station (stylish flat-screen monitors: network PCs, essentially), and start building your own CD.
It’s not a technological marvel – anyone with a CD burner can do the same. But it’s nicely packaged, there’s a cool selection of music, and you can customize the (cardboard) jewel case as well as the liner notes.
Which is cool, and which I did:
It’s the Texas style to commemorate my trip, but the music is much more world than country.
I called my disk John World Funk Mix, and it includes tracks from Adham Shaikh, Afro Celt Sound System, and Orchestra Baobab.
Very cool, a nice souvenir (small, soon-to-be-digital, useful, and memorable) and a great experience, all for about $15.