Deep in the Heart of Texas Part 2

Ok, so after leaving the Schlitterbahn Waterpark, we went to San Antonio. I have to say that San Antonio was my favorite part of the trip. Our hotel was just a block down from the Alamo and only a couple of blocks from the River Walk (along the San Antonio River). San Antonio is just a really nice city.



Since we got there so late on Monday, we just freshened up and walked along the River Walk. We had dinner at one of the (many) Mexican restaurants along the walk and did the Riverwalk Boat Tour..highly recommended. Any of the restaurants along the Riverwalk are going to be pricey. On average, for the 4 of us (and the kids shared a meal) it usually was $80 for dinner. The boat tour is a must. It runs around 35 minutes and for us 4 is totalled $26.75. It was very informative and fun.



The next day we, naturally, did the Alamo. Remember, there is NO basement in the Alamo! Texans are very very serious about the history surrounding the Alamo, so much so that it is considered holy ground in Texas. So, when you go there be RESPECTFUL! It's not very big but it's a must see for anyone visiting San Antonio. Alot of neat artifacts from good old Davy Crockett and in the gift shop there's a short history of the Bowie knife. The gift shop actually is one of the best gift shops I've seen. They had a great selection of items and reasonably priced too (you don't see that too often either). If you're hot after your Alamo excursion, right outside in the plaza there are many many snow cone vendors!


After the Alamo, we crossed over to the visitors center and picked up some day passes for the Trolley. We rode down to Market Square which is a bunch of little shops carrying hand made Mexican items. Most shops carried the same things but you could find some one of a kinds if you looked hard enough. There's a great little cafe across the way with a huge bakery. I will warn you though, some shops (only a couple) sell some items you will not want your kids to see.


After Market Square, we went over to the Buckhorn Saloon for lunch. Food was ok, more like your local sandwich shop. But, it's the atmosphere you are there for. Cowboys twirling their lassos as they greet you. Inside there's every animal head imaginable on the wall. The kids and my husband just loved that. There is a museum in there which we did not go through, a very tiny game room and a gift shop. This is a good place for the kids. After lunch we headed back to the hotel for a bit of R&R.

The evening was spent walking around the Riverwalk shops, La Villita (the original village of San Antonio which is now all shops), the River Center Mall and dinner at the Saltgrass Steakhouse. There weren't as many shops as I was hoping for. The majority of the Riverwalk is all restaurants and bars. It's a family friendly that's for sure.

Wednesday, July 1st, we had to make our way back to Houston to come back home. But, not before taking a slight detour to Shiner, Texas and the Shiner Brewery (home of Shiner Bock beer). Tours are only given at specific times and only on weekdays. We were a bit late (tour started at 11am and we got there at 11:07am) and it's very short. No pictures allowed by the way. Then you go back to the gift shop where you get 4 samples of their beer. They had some good items in the gift shop from tshirts to Steins. I got myself a Shiner brewery cookbook and the recipes look damn good! Oh, and they have lemonade for the kids so again, another "family friendly" place.

Well, that was the trip. There was so much more we could've done in San Antonio had we stayed longer but alas this was all the time we had. I hope this review helps anyone who's thinking of going down there...I do recommend you wait and do not go in the summer if you can help it.

New reviews coming soon including some very unique jewelry I found on Etsy. Have a great day!