Jeff had one of those birthdays he won't soon forget on Saturday in San Antonio, Texas. We spent his 38th birthday at the Alamo and along the Riverwalk.
When we arrived, we landed right in the middle of a fiesta fun theme of the Houston Street Fair and Market. This event happens monthly with different themes each month. There were many art, craft, novelty and food vendors along the road. Kids were bungy jumping in the street and dancers with wildly colourful feathers were entertaining collections of passerby's as they walked along. A variety of music played - as it did all day wherever we were. It was a welcoming scene and it wasn't long before we found our way to the Alamo right around the corner.
The line wasn't too long to get in as it was late morning, later in the day we noticed much longer wait times. Right away, we noticed a ranger- cowboy hat, boots and all- pacing around protecting the area. Also, many marines in their uniforms waited to go and pay their respects inside the mission building. You can't take pictures inside the shrine of the Alamo and all hats come off along with hushed voices used. This location is considered the shrine of Texas's Liberty following the battle in 1836 with the infamous Crockett, Bowie and Travis, leading the brave and common men in battle to sacrifice their lives for the Independence of Texas. The facts and figures seem to fluctuate depending on who you talk to and what you read. We heard anything from 172-186 men fought and died that fateful day against an army of 4000-7000 men.
I learned that some of the names listed don't belong there while others need to be added. I also inquired about David Crockett's resting place and discovered that the bodies were dragged and burned and that no proper burial was made. There is a story that some bones were found and boxed by a pastor/minister and was potentially discovered 100 years later, hidden in a church, but the facts surrounding that story are sketchy.
So, we saw Bowie's knife and Crockett's beaded vest and rifles...we stood in the room where the women and children stayed for safety during the battle and gazed at all the flags, names of those who died and signed the book to say we had been there to bear witness to this historical place while paying our respects to the dead. It was very interesting and we took it all in to share with my Dad who has always wanted to go to the Alamo. Every smile in every picture was dedicated to Grandpa Goodman.
Outside was lovely with beautiful landscaping and very old trees. There were commemorative plaques, gardens everywhere, a museum, a mill, a speaker to share the story of the Alamo in a courtyard and so on. There was much to learn there and plenty of places to sit and enjoy a sunny day to contemplate what life would have been like long ago at the Alamo.
Wandering outside, ice cream called our names as we passed by horse drawn carriages. As we left the shop, ice cream in hand, we sat near a huge gazebo and soon heard the sounds of drums and people calling as an activist march came by... several different groups passed by, waving their signs, playing their instruments and calling out for peace, justice and equality. It was very moving despite not being familiar with what all the causes were about.
Jeff noticed a sign for the Riverwalk, so we went to check it out. It was so pretty and we found it very inviting to go and walk around. We've never been to Europe, but found it had that kind of flavour with boats gliding along the river, statues of saints, restaurants with outdoor umbrella seating, musicians playing to young couples, people strolling, flowery landscaping, old trees and church steeples, shops and ducklings with their mamas. We tried on cowboy hats, saw the sights, got sore feet and walked some more. Later, we went to the Lone Star Cafe overlooking the waterway where Jeff enjoyed a Texas burger and our highlight was hard shelled ice cream and apple cobbler a la mode.
We topped off our day at the movies which we hadn't been to since Christmas.... I must say I did not see the whole picture as I was snoozing through half of it. My bedtime gets earlier as I get older!
Thanks to Ali and Maddy for taking Willow out so we didn't have to worry about her on our special day.
Happy Birthday Jeff!
