Mission Concepción

The last mission we went to was Mission Concepción. It is the best-preserved and has some beautiful original frescos:



This is the cord that rings the bell in one of the towers.

Day 10: The Alamo

On our last day in San Antonio, we went to the biggie -- the Alamo, the fifth mission in the city that is better known for the tragic battle that happened there between a tiny band of insurgents fighting for Texan independence (including Davy Crockett and James Bowie) and the Mexican army.

Although the Texan defenders lost, Texas would win its independence in 1836 and become a country of its own. They didn't join the US until 1845. Did you know that?? I think I forgot from US history...

Mexican Food in San Antonio

We're having quite a lot of Mexican food here in San Antonio, as you might imagine. Rosario's last night was pretty good. Today was a mixed bag.

For lunch, we scored at an awesome, awesomely random place in a depressed part of town called Taqueria Guadalajara (top). From the road you just know it's good, because there are a lot of cars in the parking lot (while every other place is deserted). I had some pretty yum carne guisada (beef tips in gravy) and an horchata.

Dinner at Casa Rio on the Riverwalk was a miss, though (bottom): My tortilla soup and tamales smothered in Texas chili con carne were too salty.

I'm Obsessed with Mission Doors

Day 10: The Missions of San Antonio

There are four missions here in San Antonio (not counting the Alamo), and today Kaii and I went to three of them. San Jose is the one we spent the most time at, if only because we decided to take a free tour with the most long-winded volunteer docent EVER. He was like that elementary school teacher you had who was an OK guy but was prone to uttering "witticisms" and going off on long tangents. I almost lost it when he started reciting a poem by heart from the biography of Sam Houston -- something about how the Indians "lived and loved under these same skies, wooing their dusky women." Dusky women!

Suffice it to say, I didn't learn a whole lot so I can't really tell you anything about these missions but look -- pretty pictures! Lots of them!

Dinner at Rosario's

Actually, we ended up going to this Mexican place called Rosario's, which the hotel concierge described as being "four blocks away." Yeah, more like 15 New York city blocks! Everything IS bigger in Texas.

San Antonio seems pretty cute. On our (lengthy) walk to the restaurant, we got psyched to see it in the daylight. The Hispanic influence seems much more pronounced than in either Houston or Austin.

Anyway, by the time we got there, it was 8:50 and we realized to our dismay that the restaurant closed at 9. The owner was nice and seated us anyway.

The food was great. Any time I see Mexican-style beans looking fluffy, like maybe they had a lot of interaction with lard, rather than completely whole and swimming in water, I know they're done right. I had enchiladas in a green sauce, while Kaii had a yummy grilled tilapia Veracruz (olive, caper & tomato sauce). The chips were amazingly addictive.

San Antonio Riverwalk

San Antonio was only a 1.5-hour drive from Austin! We made it just after the sun set.

In our quest for dinner, we checked out the so-called Riverwalk area just at the foot of our hotel. Kaii had seen it while parking the car and described it as "Disneyland" -- which it kind of is, but I mean that in a good way. When you come out the bottom level of the hotel, there is a miniature river there -- almost like a Venetian canal, with small tour boats! -- and restaurants and bars on either side. A remarkable marketing concept for an area that totally could have been dingy and gross.