Day 1
- Flight--Jet Blue let me load first, with scooter and crutch; we eventually find Gommie, Pop, and the cousins at the airport; cousins have grown and are excited and chatty (my team is a bit tired since being up at 3:30 CST but happy to finally be there.)
- lunch at Hoover's--a great first Texas meal--chicken fried steak, pinto beans, cowboy beans (have ground beef), potato salad, mashed potatoes, greens, green beans, candied yams, these amazing cinnamon sweet potato biscuits, buttermilk pie, coconut custard, and an incredible blackberry cobbler!!!
- Buc-ee's, "the cleanest bathrooms in Texas" and one of my favorite tourist spots--great (and tacky) Texas souvenirs and snacks, great photo ops, and iced tea in huge cups. Sis got a cowboy hat for the trip and some Buc-ee nuggets, of course.
- reunion in SA--we meet up with Aunt Banana and Uncle Soccer at our hotel--we're all together!
- Emily Morgan hotel--she might have been the infamous/famous Yellow Rose who distracted Santa Anna, but the 1930s building is Gothic Revival and like the Flatiron building in NYC; we have a great room overlooking the Alamo complex.
- evening walk by Alamo, which was closed, and protected by a Texas Ranger; Mama and I got a tamarind snow cone like the one we enjoyed in SA the week of Banana's wedding; I had forgotten how gorgeous the trees are in the hill country
- Riverwalk--it hadn't changed much; there was even a marker for the old Kangaroo Court restaurant, where we used to get great cheesecake; the same boats cruise the river; I had forgotten some of the 19th-century architecture and, again, those trees.
- dinner at Schilo's, a German place off Alamo Plaza--German pretzels and beer cheese, schnitzel, German (think IKEA) meatballs and mashed potatoes, red cabbage, German potato salad
- Menger Hotel--Mama, Sis, Banana and I swazu through the hotel on the way back, admiring the elaborate 19th-century architecture and the famous bar visited by Generals Grant and Lee for the Mexican-American war and also by Teddy Roosevelt; barbed wire was first demonstrated outside in the square
Day 2
- Missions! Well, we chose a hot day to see the missions, but then everyday was a hot day. I remember visiting all 5 of the missions in college, perhaps once I had my car; I think I went with my roommates. I know I'd also visited some of them with beloved Aunt Sis, but now they are a National Park (though, NOT the Alamo.)
- Mission San Jose: the main mission, where the visitor center is, was our major mission stop; I had thought we'd see all 5, but with the heat, my ankle, and interest, we focused on this one. It has great walls and living quarters for the indigenous Coathiltecans with a well and a few bakery ovens still around, ruins of the convento where priests lived, and of course the church, with its elaborately-carved door (for which there was a whole legend, about pomegranates, etc, all symbols of pilgrimage and salvation) and side chapel to the Virgin of Guadalupe. We came across several images of Guadalupe, including paintings in several chapels, a cement yard ornament, some souvenirs, and projected on the cathedral in a light show. I remember seeing her on candles and car ornaments when I was a kid and, after class last semester, I have a much better understanding of her role in Mexican culture. I forgot to mention it, just like I forget to notice in--we missed the Rose Window on my first walk around the mission; it's not stained glass but an elaborately carved window frame. Beautiful! I'm glad I went back to see it.
- lunch at the new Liberty Bar: The classics department would take speakers to Liberty Bar after lectures of the SW chapter of the AIA. It was in a leaning-over, wooden building on Josephine Street, complete with tilted floor. I don't remember the entrees, but I loved the coconut custard! Which is like flan, but denser and with no sauce. And it was exactly the same! The restaurant is in a new place, an old convent; still has lots of charm and character. We had a great meal--Minguichi queso (with feta, goat cheese, cream cheese, parmesan, and bell peppers), ceviche, Ensalada Emiliano (a bean on arugula with feta salad, so tasty), a sauteed tenderloin and peppers Puntas Nortenos, grilled potato slices with garlic aioli, and a chicken alfredo with shaved brussel sprouts. And of course, that custard, plus geranium cream with blackberry sauce and shortbread cookies, and rum and sour cherry ice cream! There was also a tasty Karkade hibiscus and mint tea with ginger and white grape juice, and an amazing limeade.
- Mission Espada--we were hot and tired but I wanted to see the bell tower. So we split off, our four plus Gommie and Banana. The locusts were singing their "it's hot" song. It was so hot. But the garden at Espada was beautiful and the inside of the chapel, so peaceful. I'm glad we stopped.
- Concepion--we waved at it as we drove by (well, I hopped out for a picture.)
- San Antonio architecture--I forgot how much I like the various buildings of SA--the big Gothic revival buildings like our hotel, the Spanish-inspired architecture like the McNay, the Victorian gingerbread houses, all the 1920s-era craftsmen cottages, and the one-story stucco houses with porches and slanted roofs. I took a great class in college about American architecture and went around photographing buildings, including the Scottish Rite temple, the red stoned Bexar County courthouse, the interior of the Majestic theater, and one with Islamic influences. I saw some of those buildings again.
- Tejas Rodeo! Yes, we went to a real Saturday night rodeo in Texas. I'd been to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, and swear I'd seen Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton singing from the back of a circling pick up truck. I'd also been to see a rodeo my cousins competed in. But the kids and Mama had never been. It was very Texas--very kitschy Texas--with windmills and rough wooden buildings, neon, and even a mechanical bull! We sat in bleachers around a covered sand arena, eating great festival snacks. And my beloved wife brought me Frito Chili pie!!! I love Frito chili pie. There was also sausage on a stick, nachos, chicken fingers, etc. The rodeo itself was fun and very local. There was precision drill team work (with flags!), bull riding, calf-roping, and cloverleaf barrel racing. Such talent on horseback, even if we never saw anyone stay on a bull for 8 seconds. When Sis rode the mechanical bull afterwards, she stayed on for more than a minute!! (Boy cousin tried--on a slower speed--and was so cute!) There was dancing afterwards, with a local band. Girl Cousin and Aunt Banana danced and then Banana danced with Pop. Bud and I danced out in the yard, too shy to be observed.
- The landscape as we went out to the rodeo was beautiful Texas hill country--barbed wire fences, scruffy fields, clumps of beautiful live oaks and cedars and pecans, lots of wildflowers (thought not THE famous ones.) There was a stalky purple flower that almost looked like a bluebonnet; kinda looked like thistle, too. I realized later it was horsemint. There were also some small sunflowers, some primroses, and other plants I can't identify. Plus tons of flowering crepe myrtles in whites and pinks and purples. Beautiful.
Day 3
- The Alamo! You can't imagine how small the Alamo is until you see it in person. It's about the size of a McDonald's front, barely two stories. And it's just right there, in front of a small plaza, across the street from stores and hotels. Which is funny because the church used to be inside a mission like at San Jose. You can still see the outlines and some of the walls of the old mission. Inside, it's a plain white stucco church with flags and some labels, envisioned as a shrine to Texas liberty and the sacrifices at the Alamo, but not in quite the same TEXAS way it used to be (they've toned down the mythology--the line in the sand and Deaf Smith and the women survivors; it's not exactly states' right and anti-Mexico; I like that they've balanced the history of it responsibly, like in the movie, which really went through the whole Spain/Mexico timeline.) We saw that one person from CT died at the Alamo--William Gordon Cummings Jr (I think.) But less focus on bullet holes and where people died. Outside of the small church, we walked around the yard with the gorgeous huge trees, so beautiful. I liked the exhibit in the other building, with the Bowie knife and rifles and uniforms and the like. And we met up with some of the Australians who were in the rodeo the night before! So I got to tell them how great it was.
- Whataburger, pronounced "water burger." Yes, with the orange and white stripes. I didn't go much as a kid--there weren't really any in suburban Houston. But I've been since then. Chicken bites, Texas toast, fries, sweet tea (now mixed with unsweet because I can't handle full sweet!), burgers. And the GRAVY! Yep, we had this for lunch. With a Dr. Pepper float!!!! So, so good. Mama and I used to stop at Whataburger on the way to see Aunt Sis--they're tasty and everywhere and open 24 hours a day. And you can't get Texas toast in Connecticut.
- Natural Bridge Caverns: I remember going a few times as a child and then once in college in my geology class (when part of the caves had flooded and then we hiked Enchanged rock afterwards.) But I didn't go into the cave this time--with my ankle it wasn't going to work. So I sat with Pop. Bud joined us because he wasn't feeling well. But everyone else went and saw the Hall of the Mountain King, the "fried egg," the bat guano, and all the stalagtites and mites; they didn't turn off the lights in the cave though. So Pop, Bud, and I enjoyed the breeze and the trees, and two little humingbirds flitting around, and a long stick bug right by us. Bud practiced juggling Koosh balls. The crew liked the sights but thought it was steep and hot and humid.
- THUNDERSTORM I woke up to thunder a little after midnight. And I immediately race to our wall of windows looking south over SA. What a view! Lightning flashes constantly, thunder too. Hard rain. For more than an hour or two. I even saw the strikes a few times even though the main storm was out of my sight; and because it was dark, I couldn't see the dark sky. It was just a regular summer storm, nothing major, but it was more lightning that I've ever even seen in CT. And we saw some of it again the next day. But watching it that night with Mama was extra special.
Day 4
- I spent most of the day with Bud, who still wasn't feeling well; we think it was a small bug. He was better after a day of rest.
- Mama, Sis, Aunt Banana and girl cousin went horseback riding in Bandera along the Medina river. The rain delayed their ride, so they had time to check out a bunch of the tack shops; yep, there was more than one. Sis got a beaded rope halter for Patience; she also tried roping a calf model (Sis said the roping in a rodeo wouldn't be her thing, just the riding.) They rode in the afternoon, having a great time along the river and the main road in town. Mama's horse liked to eat; Sis had good control of her pony, Concho. The leader rode a white mule.
- I stepped out for a bit with Gommie, when Bud was feeling better. I grabbed a good sandwich at the local chain Jimmy John's--good bread! Across the street was Rocket Fizz, a shop filled with regional sodas from all over the country. There was Ranch soda, which I'd heard of but would not try. I got a Jasmine ginger tea soda I get here in CT; I know not adventuresome. Mom got a couple of coconut and lime ones. And I got Mama the Sprecher's root beer which we liked in Chicago. I got Bud some Dr Brown's cel-ray, which he likes. A nice distraction.
- When Mama and Sis got back, I left Mama with Bud, and Sis and I went to the Riverwalk with everybody else. We rode one of the touristy river boat cruises; I even got a touristy paper flower garland like we used to see at Fiesta, which I wore the rest of the night. I actually enjoyed the cruise, which I must have taken as a little girl. We heard about the Coathuitlecan peoples living there when Spaniards arrive, the old Mexican village at La Villita, the aqueduct system, the witness tree of Ben Milam's sniper during the Texas rebellion, the 19th-century warehouses and hotels and restaurants and institute for boys, the saving of the river in the early 20th century as well as the flood, and the World's Fair in the 1960s. Beautiful.
- Boudro's: We ate on the Riverwalk at a old standard. We had grilled vegetables, black beans, fresh bread, and Sis and I had rosemary chicken; we took home some gumbo for Mama. For dessert, coconut flan and creme brulee.
Day 5
- Bud felt better!
- We were headed to the SA Zoo in Brackenridge Park and randomly stopped for breakfast, at two places side by side, doughnuts and breakfast tacos. Mama and Gommie got some award-winning breakfast tacos which were very good. The rest of us hit the doughnuts--citrus lavender, chocolate brownie, unicorn, orange cake, maple bacon (Sis's favorite!), blackberry, blueberry--and this great strong Mexican coffee with tons of cinnamon. Serendipitous.
- Oh, my dear old San Antonio Zoo! I went as a child and so often with Aunt Sis, sometimes after watching cousin John juggle in the park. There were koalas then and those melt-a-molds that made blue koalas! It's built in the same quarry as Trinity, now on the other side of the highway. It looked good--the trees were bigger and the zoo had been updated (you could spot some of the old habitats.) It was hell on my scooter, though, and oh so hot. But we stayed a long time. I got henna--I can't pass that up. We did the butterflies--and they had so many blue morpho butterflies!! And at least one landed on my hat! As Mama noted, it was the very first time we went in a butterfly exhibit that wasn't really hotter than the outside; it was the same temperature! (That's not what happens in NY or CT or MA.) I loved watching them flit around and brush past me; I wish the kiddos didn't get competitive or disappointed that the butterflies didn't land on them. I even loaned girl cousin my flower garland, which I'd brought for fun. Maybe I just sweat better. And we rode the carousel--I rode a panda (because the kid in front of us beat me to the manatee!) I love carousels. We finally made it to the KOALA BEARS!!! And they moved, both of them. One considered its lunch; the other scratched its ear. So cute. Mama had seen them once before in San Diego. But it was a first for the kids. I used to watch them a long time, when they were always at the zoo (they're in a special exhibit for the summer.) It's why we went to the zoo. Because otherwise, it was too hot and humid. So hot. Too hot. But henna, carousel ride, butterflies, and koalas made it pretty awesome nonetheless.
- Alamo Heights--after the zoo, our four went to wander my old area, stopping first at beloved Aunt Sis's old house at 826 Cambridge Oval. The yard was totally different--a little cactus garden that she would have loved--and the house was so well cared for. I recognized it, of course, but it didn't look like hers anymore. No windchimes or little statues on the porch. No gravel driveway. No overgrown plants. A new garage. But I could picture Otto the dachsund on the porch and cousin John outside and Aunt and Uncle on the porch. And all the cats. Good memories, not many tears. Then we drove around to see the pizza place EZs which was next to a Bookstop back then and was our Friday night hangout, the McNay villa and now museum where I took a museum studies class and often visited with Aunt, the Witte (where those AIA meetings were), SAMA in the old brewery where I had my first museum internship, the so incorrectly named ghetto and gucci HEBs. We didn't see Earl Abel's; I think it had moved. But we did drive through the Olmos Dam area to get to the other side of 281N.
- Taco Cabana--the very first! With its brick patio and vinyl walls and tiny order counter. We got bean and cheeses, steak and peppers, iced tea, chicken quesadillas. Oh the bean and cheeses. Oh, good old TCs. Bud really liked his steak tacos.
- Trinity--my, how I was so happy those four years at Trinity. A perfect fit. I enjoyed my classes, liked my friends, enjoyed my service fraternity APO; it was just great. And it was fun to be back, even if it was a bit different and really too hot to walk around. The fountain has moved and a few of the buildings redone. But there was the tower, the Magic Stones, the "Mom" sculpture, the fabulous collage in the library about the world's civilizations (and the columns were yarn-bombed and there was a Starbucks in there!), the (relocated) fountain, the Esplanade, the red brick, the beautiful trees (not bigger!), the various buildings I'd taken classes in, the Coates student center, and the relocated bookstore where we bought some souvenirs. Okay, it was their least favorite part, but only because it was so hot.
- Mi Tierra's in El Mercado--is it the best Mexican food or the best restaurant in SA? Nope. But it holds lots of memories. Aunt Sis and I went to El Mercado, where there are little shops selling Mexican crafts and Texas souvenirs; and so we went and picked up some things, including cascarones, those Fiesta-time confetti eggs. The restaurant itself is crazy decorated--lights and colors and decorations everywhere, like nothing you've ever seen, with a long bakery counter filled with buns and topped with grainy sugar pralines that I remember. There are roaming mariachi bands, which we paid to play a song for us, in the room with the mural of famous Mexicans, including Frida, Selena, Henry Cisneros and sons, Roy Benavides (purple heart recipient from El Campo), the restaurant founders, and many many more. The food is average Tex-Mex, which is to say a lot of cheese, but way better than what we get up north. The cheese enchiladas even had the right meat sauce (yes, I got the combo with the taco, tamale, enchilada, beans, and rice.) We had nachos with everything and then soapapillas and tres leches cake for dessert. It was a lovely, memorable night, just like I'd hoped. Because you just can't forget Mi Tierra's.
- Walking out through El Mercado, with the colorful paper flags flying, we cracked some cascarones on each other. The I got the kids, the kids got Pop and then got me. Loved it.
- We went home in separate cars, so that my crew plus Gommie could stop by the projection and light show on the facade of San Fernando Cathedral. We couldn't find parking and only Bud and I got out to see the little show about SA history. If it had been less hot and we had been less tired, it would have been fun to take everyone. There was mariachi music, polkas, and "Ashokan Farewell" during the Civil War part. And so ended our time in SA.
Day 6
- We made a morning HEB run, the big, amazing Texas grocery chain where Uncle Soccer works. It's about the size of a Target, probably bigger, and has everything--we even got water shirts and those sunscreen shirts. Plus premade lunch and tons of snacks, like kimchi pork rinds! (Talk about mixing cultures.) I didn't know it would be such a production to go to . . . .
- SCHLITTERBAHN all day! Yep, the huge Texas waterpark that started as a few slides next to Landa resort and has now taken over New Braunfels. I'd been a few times as a kid--even split a swim suit on the water slide and later had heat exhaustion--and liked it (balanced with being scared of the dark water and the snake I saw hanging from the tree above the river.) I liked eating at Oma's Haus (gone, but home to my first Boston Cream Pie!) and also breakfast at New Braunfels Smokehaus (with slanted floor.) And Nagelin's bakery! Which I saw in a movie some years back and it looks the same. We stayed at the park way longer than I expected and so didn't get to see anything else, but it was worth it. The kids did some of the rides and shutes while I rode the lazy Kristal River in an innertube all day. All day. I bet I went around, straw hat and long-sleeved sun shirt and all, about 100+ times. I think I even fell asleep more than once. I liked the rapids and the slow parts, watching the sun on the water, watching the trees nearby, just the feeling of floating and having nothing to do. Best parenting day ever. I got out a few times to eat and drink and go to the restroom. But that's it. Me and the lazy river, with or without someone (and I pretty much traveled around with everybody at least once), all day. I had the most fun with Mama, who liked the water more than she expected.
- We ate more Whataburger on the way to our new hotel, a tiny room in a suites near Aunt Sis's house, where we crashed.
Day 7
- It was a slow morning and we didn't get to Aunt Banana's house til almost 11, which made it too late to really do anything before our boat rental. Probably just what we needed, truthfully. So we watched soccer, played games, admired the house, and just generally hung out.
- That night, we headed to Just for Fun boat rentals on Lake Travis, where we had a pontoon boat waiting, for four hours. We had drinks and snacks, and all the swim gear from the day before. The lake is human-made, a thin, deep ravine with very expensive houses high on the sides (with little trams from house to dock.) The breeze was lovely and I always love a boat ride. And we got out to swim twice, at the shore of an island. Though it was clear, the bushes (which grew during the drought) under the water freaked me out. I managed to enjoy floating as long as everyone helped me avoid the bushes. I like it better than salt water for sure. A nice refreshing evening.
- Rudy's barbecue take out for dinner--brisket, ribs, beans, potato salad, white bread. Great!
- And then, the kids had a sleepover and . . . Mama and I went back to the room and packed before falling asleep (this is when I first noticed that I had a cold, when my throat began to be so sore.)
Day 8
- Last full day in Texas.
- Bullock Museum and the La Belle: I hadn't been to the Bullock before but had been hearing about it and the La Belle from Gommie for years. The museum was new and huge and spacious, with good balance--straightforward acknowledgement about slavery and the Native Americans who were devastated by the Europeans--and clear labels (though the path through was not clear nor linear; you already needed to have a pretty good grasp on TX history.) The La Belle, excavated from my mom's bay, is impressive, with wooden timbers and rope and 1.5 million surviving artifacts (mostly military, but also supplies for settlement; and some skeletons.) Reminded me of some of the Viking ships we've seen. Mom asked if it was the oldest shipwreck on view in the US and I think it is. We took a break in the cafe--good Texas chili (no beans, lots of spice, though a little tomato) and good salsa (though it was pureed and possibly from roasted or sun dried tomatoes.) The shop was great, too. But by the end of it, I was done, between my ankle and my cold and the knowledge that the trip was ending.
- We hung out at Banana's house some more, with Bud introducing everyone to BTS choreography and videos. We had pizza, which Banana and I fetched while having a good chat. We also got a giant cookie and some treats to celebrate everyone's birthday.
- And then we all said goodbye. The trip was everything we could have hoped--family time and a lot of Texan culture.
Day 9: Departure
