Today started late as Shawn Reece and I couldn’t sleep last night partly due to the time adjustment, but mostly due to the rain, wind and thunder outside. However, he did jump up promptly for breakfast when his mother offered. No matter how much sleep he has had, Shawn Reece will never turn down an offer for food.
We didn’t know much about where we wanted to go today, however, we did know that we wanted to see the Alamo and the River Walk in downtown San Antonio. We also knew that this week is Fiesta in San Antonio, so we hoped that we might stumble upon a party or two. We did enjoy our day immensely.
The site of the Alamo is very interesting as it sits in the middle of a very modern downtown area. In fact, downtown San Antonio is a diverse mixture of old stone buildings and very new modern high rises. At the Alamo, there isn’t much left other than a couple of the buildings from the original compound. Inside, was a memorial to the men who fought there, along with a display of items dating back to the 1700s and 1800s. The grounds are beautiful and the historical significance of the buildings was definitely felt, but we didn’t spend more than 25 or so minutes there.
After leaving the Alamo, we decided to head down to the River Walk. Before we arrived there, we spotted one of my favorite restaurants and decided to go in and have lunch. Jasmine, Shawn Reece and I really enjoyed the burgers and with full stomachs we proceeded to our destination.
Descending below street level to the River Walk, we noticed a mixture of sidewalks, landscaping, shops and restaurants that were very appealing to the eye. I saw a brochure highlighting river tours via boat, so we decided to seek out the dock. When we found it, we decided the price was acceptable and boarded the boat for our tour around the river. The tour was very informational and gave us a nice historical perspective on downtown San Antonio.
When the tour ended, we spent the next hour and a half touring the River Walk, along with a mall that sits adjacent to it. With our exercise for the day completed, we decided to head back up to street level to explore a little. While walking around, we found a park which had one of the Fiesta celebrations. Plenty of booths lined the walkway and a live band was playing on stage. We stayed there for a few minutes and then decided to move on to a play area across the park. We felt this would allow Shawn Reece to expend some of his almost limitless energy.
This play area reminded me of when I was a child. We had a very similar playground made of wood with a sheet metal slide at the apartment complex I grew up in. I remember getting splinters from the wood and burns on my leg as I went down the scorching hot slide in the summer. I couldn’t resist giving it a try. At least I had pants on and the slide didn’t burn me today!
With our playtime over, we decided to get back into the car to drive around the city a little. We went to the outskirts of town and saw Sea World from the outside (I was wishing that I could ride the roller coasters). We then basically cruised around for a while longer taking in the city. We do still need to figure out where we are going to live when we come back. I think between Austin and San Antonio I would rather live in Austin but this city is still great. Heck, on the way back to the hotel we made a startling discovery. Who knew! We only saw 6 McDonalds today but they are adding up.
We want to thank everyone for the comments and emails. Your support is truly appreciated and keeps us going.
The Coomer Family
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I remember the Alamo! I almost moved to San Angelo (about a hour NW of San Antone) for a job a few years back. Glad you guys are having fun. We used to count states on license plates when we trvaeld as a family growing up. I guess counting McDonalds is pretty cool too.
Congrats to Shawn Reece, a very inspiring piece of art work, your photograph is awesome. Have fun and be safe. Phyllis
Hey Shawn and family,
This is so fun cruising around with you guys and reading every step of the way that you are traveling and seeing the photos especially like the scenic pictures! Glad to see you are all having such a good time!!!
Talk you later
Sandy