San Antonio, so lit up!
Trip Start
Oct 23, 2009
1
22
27
Trip End
Nov 24, 2009
San Antonio, Texas
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Never have I ever seen so many oil derricks. (sp)
Sumner did the city driving and we butted heads with GPS vs. Atlas up in front while the Brits scoped the TVs in the back. San Antonio surprised me by being a smaller, clean and tidy city. After circling the city a few times and seeing the same bank 3 times, we parked Lola next to the Amtrak station thinking it'd be a safe spot. Driving through the city, I couldn't help but notice how colorfully lit up it is. Orange and pink lights under bridges, blue and green lights illuminating buildings, yellow lights shining up walls, all of that jazz.
The Brits and I decided to take our last few hours of the night and try to hit up some of the San Antonio nightlife. We left our Lola and strolled beneath the blue bridges of the overpass, into downtown and took over the first loud bar we came across. There was a Cowboys jersey wearing, beer drinking, acoustic playing fella strolled up on their outdoor patio. The 3 outdoor walls of Pat O'Briens were decked out with beautiful New Orleans murals, large ornate gates, and fiery water fountains, all together creating good vibes for the outdoor bar. Through this trip, I've continued my interest in microbreweries and tried to stick with ordering all of the locals brews while crossing the country from coast to coast. Although no micro-brew was at the bar, Lone Star "The National Beer of Texas." classic.
We wandered back to the streets past hotel parking lot structure, Hard Rock Cafe, tall banking buildings (blech), Cowboys gear shops (spit outside for you Jamie), etc. etc. San Antonio things. blah blah.
I stopped a couple times to ask 2 separate groups of people recommendations on a decent dive bar in the vicinity. Neither had any great suggestions besides a place called "Howl at the Moon" or a Martini Bar...neither one quite what we were into. (When we walked by howl at the moon there was a line halfway around the block consisting of guys in button down shirts and girls in stilettos...what part of "dive bar" was confusing?) Anyway...we continued meandering...
We crossed the River Walk, just a glimpse, as we were set out for bigger and better things of the night. Into Acapulco Sam's (really?), for Ladies Night (free, thank you) and not as free for the fellas. It was an abundant mix of people in an odd mix of a place. Girls in gym shorts and sneakers, slow motion blacked out go-go dancer girls with tie-dye backgrounds playing on all of the TVs, biker chicks in glitter and knee high boots, legal inside smoking, the Electric Slide, guys in tight pants, Soulja Boy, a great indoor/outdoor mess. Somehow each of us got charged a different price for all the same drinks...that's still a mystery to me, guys. The outdoor beer girls didn't like her job, but was cool as could be.
The night progressed as it naturally would, we saw both sets of people I requested recommendations from on the street, their recommendations apparently ignored by both parties. Some middle aged guys were thrilled with our journey and for drinking 2 dollar PBR's (for my purchase at least) with a bunch of guys from England. Sometimes entertaining. I met a series of 3 or 4 Katie's, each unnecessarily more excited than the last. One had an interesting life as an airline attendant; mixing travel and work (what a enthralling balance!) There was a purposely stationary elevator next to us which was suddenly being overtaken with a group of close to 15 dancing people intending to get downstairs...we just let it happen as it should and enjoyed the entertainment before making them realize. Mocking the elevator group later in good fun form, I was promptly dismissed from the elevator by a large bodyguard with something funny saying on the back of his shirt. I was taken a fool by Tom's 'taking a piss' of a joke about Sumner and some 39 year old bird he picked up....eh, too gullible to be hanging with Englishmen, my point re-learned, haha. Tom's ID eaten up by Lola, the passport out on safety watch. A couple guys got carried out by bouncers, even though the barclub was pretty empty. ego trippin'. We headed out sometime, and, with bellies unhappily empty, retreated to Lola. I tagged Sumner with a bright green "Just Painted" sign scooped up on the way home.
Falling asleep to our beloved spa channel was far more difficult than could be expected. In retrospect I can only chide myself for not one of us realizing that we were parking our beds within 50 yards of multiple train tracks. Though it's no excuse, I'm blaming our stupidity on the tall row of shrubs dividing our view from the tracks. Lame us. So loud, all night. So hot, all night.
We awoke, packed up with Gatorade's, and went to scope San Antonio daytime styley. San Antonio is a little Venice-y now, isn't it? We now found out what all the "River Walk" signs were signaling towards. San Antonio has had some serious flooding issues back in the 1920's and soon after, but it was all solved when engineers built a series of dams and bypasses to control the water flow into the city. Since this all took place back in the day, the corporate side of America has taken over and built Hilton Hotels, trendy elite shopping, clubs and bars, restaurants, etc. 3 or 4 stories high along the banks of this concrete jungled river. Don't let my scoffing discredit the centerpiece of the city, it is indeed a very attractive area. A quaint sidewalk runs along each side of the river, 1 story below the street traffic. Tree's have been built in slats along the river as it winds and weaves under bridges of the overhead traffic. Partying in this place was awesome too, looking down is the murky greenish tint of the still beautiful San Antonio River, and straight across and all along each side is the bright lights and lively music of each bar, club, and restaurant pumping along with the night.
We followed the River Walk for awhile, each section making the morning walk more and more enjoyable. Some bridges were ornately designed, with beautiful curving stone steps coming down from the street. Sections of the river had different dams which some birds happily crested upon its wires, while other ducks swam along with their families. Different tour represented river boats lined the inner city riverbanks while the calmer out-skirted areas featured a beautiful array of flowers and plants lining the sidewalk. One section even had a stage on one side of the river and the state seating on the other side. What a way to see a play!
The River Walk led us to the famed Alamo, where, in 1836, 187 men from Texas and around the world, took on a force of over 5,000 Mexican troops in the fight for independence of Texas from Mexico. What I just stated in the previous sentence is more than I could have told you prior to my learning it quite recently. I thoroughly enjoyed the Alamo Mission with its museum of paintings, weapons, and other various artifacts from the era of the Texas Revolution. One room of the center had a very large detailed diorama recreating the famous Texan Battle. The main welcoming center had flags from all over the country and all over the world detailed with a number, and, upon prompting a guide, gathered that the number signified how many men had perished. I also heard some. Davy Crockett died in the Alamo, that was a name I hadn't had a brush with in a while. I also had a bit of confusion with John Appleseed at this time. As it goes...
Randoms:
-Fosterrrrr, I'm seeing some serious Texas loving in accordance with that tattoo you got up on your arm boy.
-Sumner's loving the Chipotle.
CHOWDERFOOT!
