Moving Pictures

Four days was not nearly enough for me to fully enjoy San Antonio Riverwalk . Our hotel was right on the river. Even though the drive was a few hundred miles to get there, I dropped the suitcase as soon as I got to the room and headed out to explore. The first thing that was immediately apparent, the walkways are right on the canal, the later it gets, the more people there are, and for most of it there are no guard rails. Being from South Florida, I'm no stranger to walking on the water's edge but a little caution is required. The nice thing is you don't see as many people texting and walking as you do elsewhere in our modern world. Not dry ones at least. I asked our boat captain around the third day how many people fall in. The not so surprising answer is about 200 reported a year. He also mentioned that what's reported is probably far less than what happens. Now in Florida, a canal this wide could be anywhere from 20-40 feet deep depending on how much s...

Decision time. I only had a limited number of days in San Antonio. Was I going to commit to a half day trolley ride to see the Spanish Missions . The Alamo was one of those missions and to be honest it was a pretty moving experience. I did not even know the others existed. I chose the tour to Mission San Jose and Mission Concepcion  along with other points of interest to give a more varied experience. I even jumped off the trolley before the last stop to get in a two mile walking tour of some historic houses. I would not really recommend that last part. The last stop is the Tower of the Americas and it was a whole lot farther from the previous stop than it seemed.  Once that Texas sun starts beating down on you - Yeah - just stick with the tour. The missions are around 200 - 300 years old depending on which one you are visiting. At the time they were built, they were the only structures of their type for hundreds of miles. They were built along the San Antonio rive...

Every once in a while I like to step out of my normal and do something completely out of character. I would say The Buckhorn Saloon and Museum would be one of those experiences. I don't drink nor am I a big fan of trophy hunting. I saw this place the night before and it looked interesting from the outside but just a quick peek through the door and I said Nope! Not for me. That's when the old time barker at the front door got my attention. Now I'm no push over and probably a bit confrontational so he had some work to do. Actually he was so slick (I mean professional) he convinced me to give it a try. First I made the point that if I didn't enjoy the place he would give me my money back. I just got a big smile and "tickets are this way sir". He was pretty sure of himself. The first thing I took note of was it's not just an old fashioned bar. It's a restaurant. It was lunch time and there was a discount if you bought a museum ticket so why not...

One of the first things on my to do list in San Antonio was to visit The Alamo . More of a heard about it a lot and what the heck kind of thing rather than a must do. Most of us know a little about the Alamo. The name Davy Crockett comes to mind. I think I saw a John Wayne movie. Yeah - That's all I knew. For some reason I pictured the Alamo way out in a desolate field somewhere. When I went to book a bus tour, they just pointed out the door and there it was- right across the street, right in the middle of town. Except for a vintage hotel, it's surrounded by a modern and bustling city. The Alamo is a 300 year old Spanish mission that has been witness to some of the most important battles and epic historical events of this county. It is like no other historical monument I have been to except possibly a cathedral or historic cemetery. No cameras, hat's off, hush tones, then the exhibits. Within moments you get the feeling you are walking on hallowed ground. ...