Mid-week, prior to the long Martin Luther King Jr. weekend, Loran (and the rest of his company) learned they had MLK Jr. Day off. We decided to use some of Loran’s hotel rewards and head down to San Antonio for the weekend. We left late Saturday morning, stopping for lunch in Wimberley at The Leaning Pear. We opted to eat on the patio that had been enclosed with plastic and had some heaters. We settled in at a table near a heater, in the sun. Within minutes, the Minnesotans were moving to another table in the shade, away from the heaters, having stripped all extra layers off, while the other Texans enjoyed the heaters, wearing their sweaters.
After a brief check-in at our hotel, we were off to the San Antonio Zoo. We had difficulty finding a parking spot, but after stalking the parking lot for awhile, we snagged a spot. This had us a little nervous that the zoo was going to be overly crowded, we were, after all, in the seventh most populated city in America, according to Wikipedia (do what you will with that knowledge). What if they were all at the zoo? Despite the crowded parking lot, we were able to easily navigate the zoo. It was a great size, not too big that you needed to spend hours there to see everything, but big enough that there was plenty to see. They have an overabundance of reptiles and other creepy things that live in Texas. Loran thought I should study the various poisonous snakes so I’d know what they look like. I assured him that any snake, hose, or piece of rope I saw on the trail would be considered poisonous by me, didn’t matter.
Those are fish feeding on the food the birds drop.
There’s a river that winds through the zoo and you can cross it as you journey through, several ways, including: lily pads, stepping stones and bridges. Our Lily Pad was especially fond of the lily pad crossing. Ella did a stepping stone crossing herself (I held Lily because the steps were pretty spaced out) and upon reaching the end, Ella planted both feet on the ground, one hand on her hip, the other wiped her brow and she let out a loud “Uff-da!” – so funny, and so Minnesotan!
After years, YEARS, of trying to get them to pose together, I’ve all but given up. The girls decided to surprise and delight me by running up to this tortoise sculpture asking if I’d take a picture of them on it, together. Ella tossed the cherry on top when she hugged Lily, without prompting. Awww…
On our way back from the zoo, we stopped at Aldacco’s Mexican Cuisine for dinner, this time we opted for patio dining, but stuck near the heater because it was sunset. We were up on a hill with an impressive vista view. Once back at the hotel, the girls got to work playing and exploring in our room at the Hyatt. It didn’t take long before all of their toys were strewn about and they’d started using hotel décor for their imaginative play. Case in point, a decorative wooden tray became a sled. 65 degrees in San Antonio, and they’re playing sledding. We took them swimming and Ella was delighted to find out she could touch and walk around the shallow three foot end of the pool. They had a blast, but we finally had to pull the plug on the fun when zero-body-fat Lily was shivering uncontrollably. It’s funny to hear her protests at leaving the pool through chattering teeth. “I-I-I-I’m no-o-o-o-o-t-t-t-t c-c-c-c-o-l-d-d-d-d….”
Sunday morning, Lily’s found her spot.
Pre-Alamo history lesson. Ella was thrilled.
Outside the Alamo. Ella insisted the tour book be on her head.
Ohhh…a cannon! What kind of trouble can we get into?
After we’d toured the Alamo (no photos allowed) and grounds, Loran swung through the gift shop to pick up a post card, the girls and I waited outside. They displayed the pained, bored teenager look well. And yes, that is Lily dangling off the sidewalk into the street. A blocked, non trafficked street.
We spent some time wandering along the River Walk, enjoying the sights after eating lunch at Casa Rio, where I’d rate the food as – Meh. I’ve had much better in Minnesota. We loved the River Walk though! The girls were running out of steam after walking so much, it became evident at a McDonald’s we stopped at to use the restrooms when Ella had a major meltdown because they had “automatic flusher potties” that are her mortal enemy.
The girls slept in the car as Loran and I alternated touring Mission San Jose. Situated right in the middle of a neighborhood, it was quite spectacular and unexpected. There are quite a few missions in the area run by the National Park Service.
The girls woke up as we were wrapping up at this mission. We decided to drive to another, so they could tour one. We pulled into Mission Concepcion. The girls weren’t that impressed. There was a nice garden where I tried to get them to pose for a photo. That was a fail.
And then, we found the fire ants…walking through a field towards our car. Loran started hopping around, he made a beeline for the sidewalk. Ella followed him. He removed his shoes and socks and Ella figured this was an invitation, so she plopped down and had her socks and shoes off in no time. Luckily, she was spared bites. I felt the stings and had a few on me and then Lily started the fire ant shuffle. I looked down at her feet and the pattern on her shoes looked like it was moving! So many ants! I brushed them off and picked her up, brushing and shaking them as we got to the sidewalk. Lily only got one bite, I had a couple and Loran had a few. Luckily, the itch and swelling subsided quickly.
We called it a night on tourism and returned to our hotel. The girls tore up the room and Loran headed out for food. We enjoyed some pizza, sushi and salads while watching America’s Funniest Home Videos – rock stars! Followed by some swimming.
Monday morning, we checked out of the hotel and headed back towards the River Walk. As we were walking past the Alamo, Lily was walking funny trying to be goofy. Down she went, tripping on the sidewalk, smacking her face on the sidewalk. I thought for sure her lip would be busted open or worse. I expected to see blood and was hoping all teeth were intact. Thankfully, a little spot of blood on her lip, a little swelling, and a small bruise on her upper lip. I happened to have a sucker in my purse which magically helped resolve the issue. The sucker eventually had to be disposed of after she dropped it several times after savoring it for almost an hour. Eww.
Just after the “Alamo incident”
We enjoyed lunch at Schilo’s Deli and then strolled along the Rive Walk again, eventually walking through Historic Market Square – El Mercado. Lots to see, but surprisingly not very busy. The girls were again running out of steam after so much walking so we caught a bus towards our car. We took the scenic, hilly, route home to enjoy the gorgeous hill country.
The girls liked to make me nervous by skipping twirling near the river, especially the parts that didn’t have a rail. Luckily, the river is about three feet deep. Nobody got wet.
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