One Awesome day in San Antonio (12-3-11)



The Tamale Tent

      Of course, we were actually in San Antonio for a few days, but only one was awesome.  The first day we got there it rained most of the day so we did things like buy groceries, return cell phones and surf the web.  My new phone doesn’t work very well at all, so I returned it and have gone back to my old one for now. 


listening to music on the river



   Saturday was the day of our planned excursion to the Riverwalk with Julie and Mike. The weather forecast wasn’t the best, but the rain did hold off for us and the temperature was  perfect for being outside.  Julie and Mike are staying in a campground outside the city so they got a hotel room on the Riverwalk and we met them there.  Our first stop was to the newest section of the Riverwalk, called Museum Reach. On the way there we passed by the local VFW where we were invited to partake of the $2 bottles of Dos Equis they were serving.   We assured them we’d stop in after we’d had our fill of tamales.  We were headed towards the 2nd annual Tamale Festival at the Pearl Brewery.  There were venders all lined up in a huge tent, selling tamales for $1.00, as well as other tasty dishes.  The price was such that we could graze and were able to try several different kinds of tamales and other Mexican dishes.   In addition to the food (and drink) there were several venues providing live music with performers that changed every hour or so, and a row of booths with people selling crafts. 

holiday lights on the Riverwalk

                                                                     

After listening to music for a bit, we took advantage of the free riverboat rides that were being offered and got a waterside view of the Holiday lights.  The boat drivers were tour guides to an extent and shared information about  the river, the locks and the art that we encountered along the way.  Our driver was kind enough to drop us off at the VFW



Paul and Mike investigate the art



on the way back, and we joined the ongoing party.  On any other night we would have loved to have just stayed there and listened to the live band that started playing while we were there.  But not tonight.  We wanted to get to the other end of the river to see the luminarias, the lights and the Christmas Carolers.

                              Along the way we decided we were hungry for dinner and chose La Paloma Restaurant. The only good thing about the restaurant was the outdoor seating along the waterfront. I only mention the name of the restaurant so everyone can avoid it if they go to San Antonio! We elected to pass on dessert, but stopped later in the night to get something.  We never did make it to hear the caroling, but it was such a fun and full day, I think we would have been hard pressed to add anything else to it!