After driving through California, Arizona, New Mexico and half of Texas, my wife, Sarah, and I departed Fort Stockton on day seven of our road trip and headed to San Antonio, the final destination and midpoint of our two-week journey.
It was here Sarah checked in to the 16th Tri-National Conference in Defense of Public Education, where Mexico, Canada and the U.S. meet every two years in various spots. She visited area schools, was brought up to speed on current matters and took in a mighty dose of cultural mingling, group meals and lectures.
We checked into the Courtyard Marriott Hotel in San Antonio Downtown Market Square.
On our first evening out, clad in light jackets, we walked into town and settled into a table at the Tokyo Cowboy, 135 E. Commerce St., where classic Texan aesthetics blend with Asian-inspired Japanese street food. Joshua, our friendly server, helped steer us through the diverse menu into choosing their brisket egg roll, dashi corn waffle and tamarind crispy chicken. For drinks, I ordered a Mexican coke while Sarah had their Yuki Tora Snow Tiger Nigori. Everything was superb and different, a great start for our three-night stay in a city steeped in rich colonial history.
This is home to The Alamo, the 18th-century Spanish mission, now a museum—the place of the 1836 battle for Texan independence from Mexico.There’s also the famous River Walk, 15 miles of intriguing paths that meander along the San Antonio River, over and under bridges, beneath archways, and past countless cafes, shops and restaurants. Towering over the city is the HemisFair Park’s 750-foot Tower of the Americas. This is a city that celebrates Black, Hispanic and German heritage, cowboy and LGBTQ+ cultures and features an annual Yanaguana Indian Arts Festival. As Sarah attended the conference I hit the streets with my camera and notepad, mostly using the River Walk as a guide in and around the downtown hub.
On Nov. 11 I stumbled on the Veteran’s Day Parade and marveled at the 100+plus entries that filed along Houston Street to the cheers of thousands along the route.
In the next part of this series I dig deeper into San Antonio and then we head off to Deming, New Mexico.
