{"id":510,"date":"2017-12-04T17:19:14","date_gmt":"2017-12-04T16:19:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dmjsystems.co.uk\/rvblog\/?p=510"},"modified":"2017-12-04T17:19:14","modified_gmt":"2017-12-04T16:19:14","slug":"two-contrasting-destinations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dmjsystems.co.uk\/rvblog\/2017\/12\/04\/two-contrasting-destinations\/","title":{"rendered":"Two contrasting destinations."},"content":{"rendered":"

Talk about two places that are complete contrasts. San Antonio and Fredericksburg, one a bustling city with plenty of history and the second, what the English would call a market town in the Texas hill country, also with plenty of history, but also an incredible main street with lots of interesting things to look at. Who won, I pronounce it a tie.<\/p>\n

First San Antonio, home of that iconic place, The Alamo. I have always wanted to visit it and it did not disappoint.<\/p>\n

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The Alamo<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What I didn’t realise was the mix of nationalities that died defending the Alamo, 11 of which were English, 3 from Scotland, 11 from Ireland and 1 from Wales. So of the 212 people who died 26 were from the UK and Ireland with the largest group\u00a0(31)\u00a0being the group from Tennessee led by David (Davey) Crockett. We walked around the many exhibits in the Long Barrack Museum which is in the Alamo grounds and learnt a lot about the history that led to the defence of the Alamo. In the grounds also were volunteers who manned the Living History Encampment who explained about the average living conditions at the time of the siege, the type of medical help you may get if wounded, and the weapons and armament used during the siege. We had to queue to enter Alamo chapel building the following day as the queue on the first day (Friday after Thanksgiving) was huge, but it was well worth the wait.<\/p>\n

If you ever visit Texas, visit the Alamo you will not be disappointed.<\/p>\n

San Antonio as a city is also a very interesting place to visit. Winding though the city is the San Antonio river and on its banks is a “river walk”. This consists of pathways built alongside the river, next to which are restaurants, shops, malls and almost anything you can imagine. We kicked off our tour by taking a tour of the river complex on an electric tour boat, and it had a funny and very informative guide piloting it.<\/p>\n

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It has been called the Venice of America and I can see what they mean, but it has a very American taste.<\/p>\n

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An electric tour boat – not quite a gondola!!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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We have been very lucky on our trip around the US and we did it again. On the Friday after Thanksgiving San Antonio switched on the Christmas lights hung from all the trees along the river walk and there was also a parade of lit floats on the river. We watched that \u00a0on TV as the river walk seating to watch the parade was already sold out, but we came back in on the Saturday to walk around San Antonio and have a meal in a restaurant under the lights.<\/p>\n

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You can get married on a tour boat – Bride & Groom at front.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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View from our restaurant table<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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More lights<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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And more…<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Even the tour boats are lit up.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Tower of America’s viewing rower was also lit.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

San Antonio is also famous for it’s Missions. In fact they are combined in a UNESCO World Heritage Site that looks after the five remaining missions (including the Alamo).<\/p>\n

We visited one of them from a Hop on Hop off trolley bus that dropped us there – the Mission San Jose. The missions were originally built by the Spanish as part of their grand plan to civilise Texas and were communities in their own right. They were used as fortified villages, each containing a church, a farm and a ranch. The Franciscan friars who ran them brought in a local population, converted them to Catholicism and taught them to live as Spaniards, which helped them maintain Spanish control over Texas. All this came to halt when Mexico was given its independence, as the new state did not have the money to maintain the missions and the friars, and became even worse after the battle for Texas independence was won at San Jacinto. They fell into disrepair but have been gradually restored.<\/p>\n

Mission San Jose was the biggest and is now run\u00a0jointly by the National Parks and the Catholic Church, with the National Parks being responsible for the Missions grounds and out buildings and the church being run and looked after by the Catholic Church.<\/p>\n

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The grounds of the Mission<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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The Church – Bell Tower Left – Dome over the altar right.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Rose window where the Friars gave mass to people not converted.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Young couple in traditional Mexican dress.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Front fa\u00e7ade and door of the Church.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Panels in Church over the altar.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After this we visited a Mexican Market in San Antonio called El Mercado. Lots of Mexican food and all sorts of shops selling everything from guitars to artwork.<\/p>\n

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El Mercado<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We also saw some Mexican Dancing.<\/p>\n