San Antonio

We purchased a trip to San Antonio at a charity auction. It was a weekend hotel and airfare package and we had never been to southern Texas, so we thought this was an excellent opportunity to visit the area while helping to boost the auction results.

The most obvious location to visit when you're in San Antonio is The Alamo. In the 1700's five missions were established in the area around San Antonio with the goal of converting the native Coahuiltecan bands to Catholicism. Over the next century populations and politics shifted and ultimately The Alamo became a military outpost in the first half of the 1800's, with the siege and battle of 1836 as the apex of activity, cementing it firmly in the history of Texas. While the physical form of The Alamo is more modest than anticipated the façade is more elegant than the impression gained from most photographs. I was captivated by the drama of the nighttime lighting and spent a fair amount of time experimenting with angles and exposures to capture the drama I saw using my camera. The grounds surrounding The Alamo are beautiful in springtime with an abundance of flowers to complement the fountains and shaded benches. Time spent strolling the perimeter will be rewarded.

Mission San Jose, located about 6 miles south of The Alamo, is the largest of the Missions and was restored nearly to the original design in the 1930's by the Works Progress Administration. Founded in 1720 and now part of the National Park Service, the "Queen of the Missions" is still home to an active parish and visitors are welcome at the Sunday mass. Irrespective of your religious (or non-religious) tendencies, the Mission and the church provide a portal to the life and architecture of the 18th and 19th centuries. It's not difficult to imagine children running around, kicking up dust, while their mothers attend to chores in the shade and the men work the crops in adjacent fields. We didn't have a rental car for our visit, mostly due to the brief nature and the concentration of attractions on the riverwalk. A cab ride to Mission San Jose was easy to manage several years ago, if you're a Lyft or Uber user expect to pay about $8 each way, plus tip.

The jewel in the crown is the San Antonio Riverwalk. Now winding some 15 miles through downtown, most people think of the "loop" when speaking of the riverwalk, but that's just a taste of what it offers. Museums, shops, restaurants, bars, and galleries stretch the full length of the 2020 acre park (larger than both Central Park and Golden Gate Park.) Water taxis are available as well as boat tours. The Riverwalk is open 24 hours, operating hours for the various businesses vary, so be sure to check before making plans. There are activities planned in the river and along the Riverwalk various times of the year, check the calendar for exact details.