30 Minutes in the Life: April 2019

I am not going to lie – this post is more than 30 minutes but I am going to share it all anyway.  This month we headed to San Antonio to meet up with my brother.  Yes he was back again for a conference.  That man puts more mileage on his suitcase than anyone else I know.  We flew in Tuesday and flew out on Saturday.

Richard had spoken to a few people who said two days in San Antonio was more than enough, I had spoken to people who said that there was so much to do.  To be honest we landed on the happy medium – four days was a good fit for us.

It was a good feeling not to run foul of the TSA peeps this time around.  I packed those stupid liquids (most of which are eyes solution, drops, cleansers etc) into the tiny allowed bag, and I managed to get through without any issue.  We always travel with carry-on’s so it makes it very limited to what you can get through. Ha ha, Richard on the other hand had his laptop pulled out and checked.

We opted not to hire a car but rather use local bus transportation.  Kudoes to San Antonio bus system, it was amazing and timely.  We got dropped off 2 blocks from out hotel and walked on down.  We were staying at the Hilton on the Riverwalk.  After checking in we headed out to explore the Riverwalk and find some food.  All of my images today are reflective of our walk.

So what is the Riverwalk in San Antonio.  Some cleaver person decided to add some attractions to the City.  The Riverwalk is a U shaped man built canal created off the main river, the San Antonio River.

While we meandered the Riverwalk looking at what it was about and different restaurants, our goal was to eat.  We had got up at 3am to go to the airport, flew out at 5:30am and arrived at 11am.  We were hungry.  Being of English decent and growing up in a very English influenced home, my go to meal is always a British or Irish pub, and decent pork sausages are what I want.  The USA does not have great pork sausages.

So lunch was enjoyed at Mad Dogs on the Riverwalk with a pint or two.  I got my traditional bangers and mash and Richard opted for fish and chips.

Something that fascinated me in San Antonio was that means of transportation that stood all over the place.  Some of the items were linked to Uber.  Pay your price and scooter all over town.  Suffice to say we did not do that.  I would be hazardous not only on a scooter but on the road as well :).

The River walk has two sections, the busy restaurant driven area, which is a hustle and bustle of people, and river boats, and then the quieter more nature inclined walk area.  At random points there are these beautiful bridges to cross.

Richard took a liking to this wooden chair made out of tree branches.  It fitted in with the beautiful aspects of nature.

Talking nature, the trees in San Antonio were stunning.  The Riverwalk had these beautiful tall trees.  When we were at the Alamo they had gorgeous sprawling trees.  Look out for them in tomorrow’s blog.

I always like to convert some of the images to black and white and I thought the bridges would be a good conversion.  This area is opposite the outdoor amphitheater and was really so pretty.

Artwork always appeals to me and this was a pretty big statue sitting above one of the restaurants.  I am not sure who it is supposed to depict but it certainly got my attention.  San Antonio has an interesting history of Mexican / American occupation but more about that tomorrow when we visit the Alamo.

I cannot resist the beauty of nature in the middle of a city type area.  I think this was a common weed but I kind of liked it.

I loved the mix of old world and new world that you find in San Antonio.  The architecture and aged look are amazing, inside this bustling city.  There were so many places to stop and smell the roses, and have a beer or two.

We did a short walk along the quieter side of the Riverwalk and came across this cattle drive iron works.  I have seen something similar in Dallas on a bigger scale.  The artwork is incredible and depicts the beginnings of San Antonio cattle history.

We did not go far, before we headed back to our hotel, seen below.  The hotel itself had an interesting history.  The builders of the hotel were given a short time frame within which to build the hotel.  The hotel is a 21 story hotel (and we were staying on the 20th floor) and hosts 500 rooms.  This history was that the hotel was being built for a fair in 1968 and the time frame that they had did not allow for the hotel to be built in the normal manner.  They built the first 4 floors and then the rest of the hotel was built offsite as modular units.  Each modular unit was complete with the plumbing, electricity, artwork, and apparently even down to the ashtrays.  The rooms were stacked in 42 days and the hotel was completed in 202 days actually opening 5 days before the fair.   The hotel is situated perfectly for the large convention center across the road and perfect for the explorer wanting to see the Riverwalk.

This appears to be one of the iconic views found on the Riverwalk.  It is a Mexican restaurant.  The colorful umbrella’s can be found on magnets, posters etc.

It is always good to meet up with my brother.  With him living in another country I never know when I will see him again.  So while he is traveling to the US, I plan to meet up with him.  Next time he will be in Philly, and I am considering heading up there.  Probably on my own as Richard does not seem to interested.

Look out for the Alamo blog tomorrow.

Thank you for joining us for another month of 30 Minutes. Just a reminder that this is a circle blog, so take some time to visit my friend Ceri Herd Photography, who lives in the UK, and see what she has for you this year.