We’d taken a small siesta, gotten all gussied up and were ready for happy hour. The Cork Bar, on the River level of Hotel Contessa, was a lively place. Last minute guests were arriving for a wedding on the Las Ramblas patio and bridesmaids were being lined up for their entrance. Televisions near the bar were tuned to a horse race. Deb and I ordered up a pair of margaritas, then settled in to enjoy the activity.
Vicarious Wedding Guests Watch Acrobatic Nap Demo
The wedding was our first focus. San Antonio is a big military town, so we weren’t surprised that most of the men in the wedding party wore uniforms – and impressive uniforms they were. We didn’t know the groom, of course, but he had to be a tough guy just to carry around all those medals on his chest. The bride was lovely, but being unable to hear through the glass wall of the bar, we soon brought our attention into our immediate surroundings.
We chatted about how much we loved the hotel, how great the service was – especially the doormen and commented on the decor. About that time a woman came down and tried out a large upholstered bench close to us. She was in town with her adult son and joked about the luxury of not having to take him to the potty as she had when he was young. After several attempts at sitting on the bench in different positions she decided the appropriate one for enjoying that particular piece of furniture was to lay down, but she didn’t want her son to catch her. So her little nap was only a couple of minutes long.
The Triple Crown
The wedding continued, but we recognized quite a buzz around the bar. Someone had turned up the sound on the TV. We were almost irritated until we figured out it was the Belmont Stakes and American Pharoah was poised to win The Triple Crown. The last time anyone had done that was back in the 1970’s.
As the pre-race coverage gave us the background stories leading up to the Belmont Stakes, Deb and I reminisced about our own horse racing experiences. Chief among mine were George and Ruth, my very Baptist parents who followed the Triple Crown religiously every year, “betting” on who would win. Soon the newly married bride and groom, led their guests to a mezzanine nearby, but we noticed several guests lagged behind. It was almost race time.
American Pharaoh was a clear favorite, but the commentators hedged their bets by pointing out potential spoilers. American Pharaoh would have none of that. When the gate opened she was out and away. No one even got close. It was a thrilling outcome. When the race was over, the wedding guests made their way up to the mezzanine and the others in the crowd wandered away. Dinner time was upon us.
Thanks to the VIA trolleys Deb and I were visiting San Antonio attractions we would’ve never reached by walking and we weren’t having to hassle with driving and parking. That’s the way to enjoy sightseeing.
The day was drawing to a close, but we had energy enough for one more attraction. We walked out of the San Antonio Botanical Garden just as the VIA trolley pulled up to the curb and rode over to the Japanese Tea Garden.
Brackenridge Park
Both the Botanical Garden and the Japanese Tea Garden are part of a larger complex of attractions called Brackenridge Park. Included in the Brackenridge Park Conservancy is a zoo, a golf course, the Witte Museum and other recreational activities. Brakenridge Park is an important part of what makes San Antonio such a wonderful place to visit.
The Witte is undergoing a major overhaul right now, but on a previous trip, Bill and I had thoroughly enjoyed the museum with its South Texas Heritage Center. My last trip to the zoo was decades ago, long before I was blogging. Though small in comparison to some zoos, like San Diego for instance, it was quite charming. What sets it apart from other zoos, in my mind, are the beautiful animal sculptures sprinkled throughout the exhibits.
Visiting the Japanese Tea Garden
As I planned this trip with my bestie, I hoped we’d have time for the Japanese Tea Garden. I kept telling myself that surely somewhere along the way I had been there, but I could never recall a specific occasion. So, I looked forward to refreshing my memory. The VIA trolley rolled up to the entrance, I took the obligatory picture and then my bestie and I climbed the hill to the garden.
The Pavilion
Once we reached the top and walked over to a pavilion where other tourists were madly snapping pictures, I realized I had never actually been there, because if I would have been, I would never have forgotten the view!
San Antonio’s Japanese Tea Garden was re-claimed from a quarry and the results are dramatic. From the pavilion you look down into a verdant landscape with two large pools. Then your eyes travel to the far side of the garden which features a cascading waterfall.
Garden Needs TLC
Since I’m always honest with you, I have to tell you, this is not a pristine garden like, Portland’s or Fort Worth’s Japanese Gardens, but the landscape is so unique it is still well worth a visit. As I was writing this series of articles and pulling up sites for linking, I noticed the Brackenridge Park Conservancy urging San Antonio’s citizens to come to a meeting about a new Master Plan. After seeing the condition of the Botanical Garden and the Tea Garden, I have to say they need a Master Plan.
A wedding ceremony was underway beneath the falls when we arrived so access was limited, but we made our way down the hill to the pools. One pool has perfectly clear water (well mostly clear water) and the other is clogged with some sort of algae or plant. Hopefully the new Master Plan will include clearing the murky pond.
When the wedding concluded and we were allowed back under the waterfall. The site, which had been so impressive from the pavilion, lost some of its charm up close. Like the Botanical Garden, the Tea Garden suffers from lack of maintenance. No one has loved either of these gardens well enough in quite a while. Enjoying gardens the way I do, it was sad to see what once must have been a stunning garden struggle to stay alive.
Back to the Trolley
We made a circuit of the garden, stopped in the tea shop for refreshments and headed towards the trolley stop. Truth be told, we were pooped. With the exception of a few quick trolley trips we’d been walking all day. Deb wears a Fitbit and when she told me how many tens of thousands of steps we’d made, I was suddenly even more exhausted.
The trolley finally showed up and we dragged our tired bodies into our seats, but the day wasn’t over. After a short respite in our wonderful suite we were rejuvenated and recharged – just in time for happy hour and dinner. Come back next week and I’ll tell you about that!
OK, I admit it. The Dallas Arboretum has me spoiled. That and all the amazing gardens I’ve visited throughout the US and the world. Still this was not my first visit to the SABG, so my expectations were not completely unrealistic. The gardens still managed to underwhelm me.
A Previous Visit
My last visit was back in 2001. I was living in California at the time and came back to Texas to take my parents on a little road trip. We had a blast and the SABG was one of the highlights I remember the Conservatory Gardens were closed at the time due to some kind of maintenance, but I also remember loving the gardens. Mom was a real garden aficionado and she liked it, too.
The Garden Today
The last fourteen years have not been good for the gardens. Gertie’s Garden, the entry area, was sharp looking and well-tended. The Wisteria Arbor was charming. But as we ventured out into other areas, it just looked like the garden had not been loved. Things needed paint; chains were rusty; gardens had weeds and dead flowers – it was disappointing.
The first disappointment was a little Japanese Garden tucked away in a corner. I love Japanese Gardens. One of the things I like is that the good ones always look as if the gardener just finished trimming. Everything looks perfectly manicured. This garden looked as if they’d let the plants go for a while and then tried to trim them back. Things just didn’t fit well.
We went on to the Conservatory, where it looked like half of everything had died and they really needed a good window cleaner to come in and go after the glass panels. Then we headed to The Overlook where the lack of maintenance was even more evident. We blew off the nature trails because we figured if the rest of the garden looked overgrown, then the nature trails would really be wild.
I think the real problem might be M-O-N-E-Y. It takes a lot of it to keep a garden of that scale going, (just ask DABS). So, here’s what I want you to do. I want you to go visit the SABG and send them donations. I remember this place as being beautiful. They’re going to have to tear out a lot of overgrown plants and do a lot of replanting to save the charm of the place. They also need to work on the panes of the conservatory.
This wasn’t our last garden of the day and the next one was a pleasant surprise. Come back next week and I’ll tell you about the Japanese Tea Garden at Brackenridge Park. In the meantime, in spite of some negligence, it was a garden and there were still some pretty things to see at the SABG. Here’s some shots I took.
From MFA.org the site of the Museum of Fine Art in Boston
TRAVEL THERE: WYETH NOT VISIT THE SAMA?
Sorry for the pun but I couldn’t resist! From The Pearl we crossed the Riverwalk’s Museum Reach and entered the San Antonio Museum of Art in its Lone Star Brewery digs. This is a museum I love, but so far in this multi-year journey I haven’t told you much about it, in spite of the fact that I have visited.
My Love Affair with the SAMA
I first visited many years ago when it was in a warehouse downtown. I’ll confess I loved their installations in the old space. They had less room, so they were very creative with their displays. The old antiquities exhibit was one of my all time favorites. The entire ancient world was represented in one room. Many different pieces were suspended in the air inside one large area. I would always lose count of time as I considered each piece and compared to the others nearby. There was less to see, but I liked that I could take it all in during a fairly short visit – if I didn’t spend hours in the antiquities section.
Their new digs are so spacious that I have yet to make it through the modern art section. I always start with the antiquities and European Art and before I get to the modern stuff I’ve worn myself out. This, of course, is not the SAMA’s fault. I feel a little guilty about always opting for the classics, but not guilty enough to do anything about it.
My Recent Visit
Tip of the hat to my Dallas Museum of Art(DMA) membership which got us free admission. The guy manning the entry booth at the river didn’t know anything about the VIA trolleys, so they first thing we did was trot over to the “official” information booth. They said the trolley had just been by, so we had almost an hour before they would be back again. We discussed our options and chose the Jamie Wyeth exhibit.
When you say Wyeth to me, I immediately think of the patriarch of the Wyeth artists, N.C., an illustrator whose colorful plates graced classic tales like Treasure Island and Robinson Caruso, but he spawned a litter of artists, all of whom have created beautiful works. The DMA once had a Wyeth retrospect exhibit featuring masterworks from the father and his talented offspring. I knew Jamie for a famous portrait of JFK – not the official one, but this one.
I’ll have to say that much of Jamie’s art is a little odd and introspective for me. Bloody seagulls are just not my thing. I am, however, glad we had the chance to take in the exhibit before the trolley showed up. I have, after all, been looking at the museum’s own collection for a long time. Unfortunately, if Deb wants to see it, we’re going to have to go back another time (and you know how much we’d hate that!).
If you want to see Jamie’s work, you’ll need to go to Bentonville, AR and see it at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. But Crystal Bridges is the last stop on the tour, so get there by October 10th.
Hopping the VIA
Back at the SAMA, not wanting to miss VIA’s once hourly trolley, we arrived at the stop early and enjoyed the break. When the trolley showed up, we climbed on and wanted to pay for a $4 all day ticket, but neither of us had singles and they don’t give change. So our $4 tickets were $5 each. Inconvenient, so don’t make our mistake. However, we were ready for a lift.
Next stop in the San Antonio Stroll? The San Antonio Botanical Gardens. Come back next week and I’ll give you a tour.
TRAVEL THERE: ON THE MUSEUM REACH OF THE RIVERWALK
So, on a bright Saturday morning, we strolled from the Hotel Contessa to the point where the Riverwalk connects with Museum Reach. We took a flight of stairs to the River level and made a right.
Morning on the Museum Reach
To our surprise, we pretty much had the Museum Reach all to ourselves. We saw a few bicyclists and joggers, but in a tourism city like San Antonio we were amazed more travelers weren’t enjoying the river. (Maybe the others went to the VIA Informatiaon Office and were on trolleys.) Forget tourists, why aren’t the residents flocking to this lovely pedestrian thoroughfare.
It was cooler down by the river. An occasional River Taxi offered to take us further, but we were minding our pennies. By walking we were able to enjoy the lock and dam. We saw the VFW post I’d read about, but I guess it was a little early for their libations. Gardens graced each side of the river and there were a number of interesting art installations, including some sort of grotto.
Lunch at The Pearl Farmer’s Market
It wasn’t a hard walk, but we were certainly happy to arrive at The Pearl when we did. There’s a big hotel under construction right by the Riverwalk, so we had to do some maneuvering to get past, but I’m sure it will be great when the hotel is finished.
First, stop was the NAO taco stand. NAO, the Culinary Institute of America restaurant, is one of my very favorites in San Antonio, but it’s not open for lunch. However, they do serve tacos from a stand at the Farmer’s Market. My research indicated that we had plenty of time to get our tacos, but we were hungry, so we headed on over there. We didn’t find it right off, but we should have known, it was the booth with the big, long line.
We grabbed a bit of the sidewalk and shuffled along with the slow moving line. You might assume that tacos from a food booth would be fast food, but there was nothing fast about the service. They were making some sort of beverage by hand and the aroma of cooking meat was amazing. The folks in line were both patient and congenial. We wished for some shade, but were otherwise happy to be there.
Then someone announced there were only a few orders of left. Five to be exact. There were more than five people in line ahead of us, so I was terrified we were going to miss this treat. Thankfully, in one group ahead, only one person wanted tacos. Everyone else was there for the beverage. Then the pair immediately ahead of us got an order of tacos to share and some beverages. WE WERE IN! We ordered our tacos and white sangria, paid the rather hefty price and were given a ticket for our tacos. We approached the grill and traded small pieces of paper for heaven.
We found a table on the plaza, but were still wishing for shade. There was a sort of arbor, but the vines they are trying to grow on it haven’t made much headway. (Note to self: bring parasol next time.) Then we bit into our tacos and sipped our sangria. All other thoughts disappeared. It was suddenly well worth the trek to have the delicious treats. There were only one or two orders left when we picked up our tacos, so we were grateful to the Riverwalk gods for getting us there in time.
There was a Farmers Market going on and I had planned on checking it out, but our stroll along the Museum Reach had used up our shopping time. We decided to head back to the San Antonio Museum of Art, which was right across the river and catch a trolley there. We still didn’t know when it would arrive, but we had all of the SAMA to enjoy while we waited.
Don’t Miss Dessert!
Go ahead and take a Lick
On the way back to the river we did make one detour – Lick! This little shop offers what they call “honest ice cream”. Everything is organic, vegan, non-GMO, etc. and some of it is even gluten-free. They use honey instead of sugar. I’m not that big of a fan of ice cream (which is a good thing or I’d have more weight challenges than I do), but they did have chocolate, which I love. Deb on the other hand adores ice cream and she assured me this was equal to if not better on the ice cream scale as the NAO tacos were on the taco scale. I’m sure you can trust her opinion.
Next up? The SAMA! Will we or won’t we connect with the trolley? Come back next week and find out!
TRAVEL THERE: JUST A COUPLE MORE SAN ANTONIO MARGARITAS BEFORE THE SHOW
After the Margaritas at the Menger Bar, we took ourselves on a tour of the Menger Hotel lobby. They have extensive displays related to the history of the hotel and you can tell from the architecture she’s a grande olde dame of the accommodations world. If you like staying in historic hotels, which I usually do, I’m sure it’s quite a treat, but I’ll be staying at the Contessa for the foreseeable future.
Touring the Menger Hotel
The front of the Menger is graced with a collection of retail establishments. The antique store, which looked amazing, was closed, but we did go into a toy soldier store and an exotic trinket store. When I say toy soldiers, I’m not talking plastic bags of green army men. I’m talking historically-correct, hand-painted metal soldiers. A chapter of Deb’s life is tied to these interesting collectibles, so we usually stroll through establishments that sell them. The exotic trinket store offered interesting junk that has nothing to do with San Antonio, but it was filled with marvelous aromas and Deb found a bracelet she liked.
Dinner at Casa Rio
Our next stop was dinner and for that we went to one of my favorite places, Casa Rio. I’m not going to tell anyone that it’s the best Mexican Food in San Antonio, but it’s still on on my list of favorites. There is something about sitting there on the Riverwalk, drinking Margaritas, eating Tex-Mex and listening to live Mariachis. I’m sure there are several places to do that along the Riverwalk, but this was the first place to offer it a very, very long time ago and it’s one of my San Antonio traditions, just like pictures of The Alamo.
I have to scold them a little bit though, the Margarita was awful, even though we paid a dollar extra to get the premium tequila. Shame on Casa Rio! The food was great though and we are grateful to each person that paid the Mariachis for a song, because we sure as heck weren’t going to fork over $20!
Every time I go to San Antonio I’m reminded of all the things I want to do there that I haven’t quite gotten around to. The Casa Rosa dinner boats are on that list. You need the minimum of ten people to reserve a dinner boat to ply through the waters of the Riverwalk as you eat your tostadas and tamales. I guess that’s a pretty silly thing to want to do, but there you have it, I’m a sucker for a party. I think I’m going to serve Caronas on my boat though. I’m still upset about our awful Margaritas!
Buckhorn Saloon, Museum, Arcade etc. etc. etc.
With dinner out of the way, there was just time to squeeze in one more thing. Deb had gone to the Menger Bar for me, so I wanted to get to the Buckhorn Saloon for her. It was one place she mentioned having an interest in. Now if you’d wanted to visit the original Buckhorn back in 1881, according to my official Centennial edition of their souvenir book, you would have gone to Dolorosa Street. The bar would have been right across the street from the old Southern Hotel.
The Buckhorn Saloon
When I first the Buckhorn, sometime around its Centennial, it was out at the Lone Star Brewery, which is now the San Antonio Museum of Art (SAMA). When the SAMA took over, the Buckhorn had to find a new home. So nowadays, you’ll find it right around the corner from the Majestic Theater, just a hop, skip and a jump from the Riverwalk.
The Buckhorn establishment now has a very long name, because it houses two different museums, a saloon and an arcade, but when Deb and I arrived, the museums had closed for the day and the bar wasn’t yet patronized by the evening crowd. Nonetheless, Deb and I ordered up Margaritas (for the sake of research you understand) and made ourselves at home in the virtually empty bar.
Memories, Margaritas and Rattlesnake Tails
Rattler Tail Art from the Footnotes of the Buckhorn Souvenir Book
As we sat there comparing notes about our previous visits to the Buckhorn over the years, we agreed the museum part of the Buckhorn is a treat for kids – particularly the rattler tail art. I started my visits to the Buckhorn when I was knee-high to a Longhorn steer and Deb brought her sons when they were young. The whole Texas Ranger thing we can’t attest to. We think the Texas Ranger Museum in Waco is the place to go for history of that sort, but you’ll have to follow up on that, because it was now time for the show.
Come back next week and find out about the best $15 dollars we each spent in San Antonio – and it wasn’t on Margaritas.
Deb and I knew one thing as we planned our San Antonio Stroll: We were staying on the River. That wasn’t a very restrictive idea. The Riverwalk is chock-a-block with great hotels.
Riverwalk Hotels
The first Riverwalk hotel in my memory bank is the La Quinta Riverwalk, but that was way back in high school and the river was several blocks away in those days. I’d been selected as a delegate to a convention by my Home Economics teacher. ( Don’t laugh, I’d just won an award for a table setting. I still can’t sew a hem that will hold.) I stayed at this La Quinta several times since high school, but never since the Rivercenter Mall was next door and since then the hotel has grown into a high rise. It was once just a little La Quinta.
I’ve stayed at the Marriot Courtyard Market Square several times, because it’s convenient to downtown and the Riverwalk, without having the Riverwalk price. (It doesn’t hurt that I can use the points from my Marriott credit card there.) On the trip just before this one, I stayed at La Mansion and that is an experience everyone should enjoy, but I have a new favorite – Hotel Contessa.
Choosing the Contessa
As Deb and I perused our Riverwalk choices, the words “luxury suites” kept bringing us back to The Contessa. So we booked one of their suites, but being the frugal ladies we are, we didn’t opt for a Riverwalk view. We figured we needed to stay on the Riverwalk, but that didn’t mean we had to see it from our room. Besides, we congratulated ourselves on our wisdom by pointing out to one another that some people had complained of the noise on the Riverwalk side.
Due to my research, I knew the only parking for the hotel was valet parking and it was quite a chunk of change. I also read there was a huge, much cheaper, parking lot catty-corner to the hotel. So we pulled into the big public parking and rolled our suitcases across the street to the Contessa, like paupers approaching their liege with all their earthly goods in a wheelbarrow.
Royally Welcomed
There is nothing about the outside of the Contessa to signal what’s inside. It’s just another building. If it didn’t say it was the Contessa, you’d wonder why someone had built a new office building right on the river. Then you walk inside. The bustling lobby has a cool chic that says, “You’ve arrived!” On your left is a huge full-length portrait of a lady in Spanish-looking garb – the Contessa I presumed. Further to your left is registration.
The registration desk was busy, but not hectic. I didn’t have to wait long. The greeting was cordial and the clerk asked me the reason for my visit. I explained it was a belated birthday celebration – and then I got my birthday present: an upgrade to a River View room. Hot diggity dog!
The elevators are glass, giving you a view of the inviting atrium as you glide to your floor. We went to 401, a corner room which overlooked the Briscoe sculpture garden on one side and looked over the Riverwalk on the other. Heaven!
But the view was only part of the charm. It really was a luxury suite. The den had a sectional sofa,a large coffee table, a tall side table with two barstools and the requisite TV. The next room was a sort of dry kitchen connected to the bathroom, with the honor bar, frig, coffee pot, ice bucket etc. We used this area as a second vanity, because though the bathroom is quite luxurious, it’s really not set up for two women getting ready at the same time. That worked fine, because of the huge mirror over the honor bar. And there was a TV.
The bedroom was functional, not palacial, but adequate. The accouterments were luxurious. There were lots of drawers, but closet space was limited. And there was a TV.
Because of the other generous spaces, the bedroom seemed a little tight by comparison, but how much space do you need to sleep? You could get in on both sides of both beds, so what more do you need? This is not a complaint, just a description of what you’ll find.
We loved that room. The whole hotel has a very modern feel, but on the warm side of modern, not the sterile, “”don’t-move-that-magazine” modern. On the following night, we would come back to the hotel right after dinner, just so we could luxuriate in it. We also enjoyed the Cork Bar, down at the river level. Las Ramblas, their Spanish restaurant on the same level as the bar, also looked marvelous. We just ran out of time. We also didn’t make it up to the pool on the roof or the spa. That’s for next time – and we will make sure there is a next time!
I read a lot about extraordinary service when I was shopping the hotel. I’d have to agree and my favorite guys were the doormen. Once we parked the car, we didn’t go back to until we were ready to go home. We’d set forth from the hotel with all sorts of questions and the doormen would have answers for us. They also had a warm greeting for us every time we came “home.” Yep, I liked this hotel.
There are great reasons to stay at all the wonderful riverside hotels, but for my travel dollar, the Contessa is the queen.
TRAVEL THERE: KING WILLIAM HISTORICAL DISTRICT IN SAN ANTONIO TX
If it’s art, I love it. If it’s Decorative Arts, Architecture and History, well I’m there. That’s the reason we spent our first morning in San Antonio at the McNay. It’s also the reason our next stop was the King William District.
The Guenther House
To be exact, our next stop was The Guenther House, because I also like food. The Guenther House is one of the jewels in the crown of The King William District. The Guenther Family founded the Pioneer Flour Mills. Ever hear of Pioneer Biscuit Mix. Yep, that’s them.
The mill is still producing and you can sample their wares at the restaurant, right there at the home of their founder. The home also serves as a museum and has a great gift shop. Deb and I took a look at it all while we waited for a friend to arrive.
I met Clark in my SFA days and stay in touch on Facebook, but it’s always great to get a chance to chat in person. We were able to get a seat right there on that covered patio. Deb had a salad, I opted for the Champagne Chicken Enchiladas and Clark just kept us company.
Of the two dishes, I think Deb chose the better one. Not that mine was bad – it just wasn’t everything I’d dreamed of when I read, “Tender slices of chicken breast and Monterey Jack cheese wrapped in Pioneer’s White Wings flour tortillas. Baked in our special sauce made from San Antonio River Mill Champagne Chicken Gravy mix, garnished with jalapenos and cilantro.” The tortilla was a little tough and by the time the melted cheese made it out to the patio, so was it. The flavor was great, but I’m a real stickler for texture.
The Steve’s Homestead
The King Willam Walking Tour
Soon Clark had places to be and I had the map a walking tour of King Williams in my hand. Now I’ve been to the King William District numerous times, but I’ve never been to San Antonio with anyone else who is as patient with my passions as Deb is. Every time I’ve been to San Antonio I’ve told my traveling companions how great it would be to walk through the district and spend some time looking at each house. So far no one had taken me up on it. I’d been through it on a trolley tour, I’d gone on the Steves Homestead Tour and I’d driven through on the way to Guenther’s, but walking tour and San Antonio had not clicked with any of my potential walking tour companions.
Villa Finale
Of course, Deb thought it was a great idea and it turned out to be just that. We left Guenther’s and figured out where we were on the walking tour map. Then we did just what I’d wanted to do, strolled along and discussed all the beautiful homes with the Walking Tour Map & Guide as our reference. Along the way we did take in the Steve’s Homestead Tour – delightful, by the way. We were a few minutes late for Villa Finale, so we just enjoyed the grounds. As beautiful as these homes are they only scratch the surface. Each home in the five block area is a treasure.
So, yes, if you go to San Antonio you should do the walking tour. San Antonio is notoriously hot and humid, and we walked the whole thing in ninety something weather, but it was fine. In fact, the tree-shaded sidewalk made it very pleasant. On the way back to Guenther’s we dropped down to the River and enjoyed the serenity. This is one of my favorite memories of this trip.
But the Riverwalk was calling. We had reservations at Hotel Contessa and we wanted to see the Fiesta Noche del Rio at the Arneson River Theater. Come back next week and I’ll tell you all about it! In the meantime, enjoy these pictures from the King William Walking Tour.
In the Villa Finale Garden
The Joske House – important because my Mom worked for Joskie’s Department Store for years.
The view at Chart House atop the Tower of the Americas
TRAVEL THERE: SAN ANTONIO’S CHART HOUSE RESTAURANT
If there is one thing I hate, it’s a reviewer that can’t find anything good to say about any place they stay or eat. I wasn’t loving the place we stayed the first night in San Antonio, but I wasn’t going to let that color the rest of my experience.
Going with the Flow
I was the one who wanted to stay in a cheap hotel, but I had high hopes for the rest of the stay. One of the reasons I’d opted for the first night in a bargain was because I really didn’t expect to arrive in San Antonio until late that night, but travel is really all about dealing with change.
I’d expected sight-seeing in Austin, another town I love, but taking the tollway just got me to my favorite city a little faster. Having a meal in the Tower of the Americas had been on my list for a long time and the change in plans gave me the opportunity to do just that.
The Way It Was Before
Way back in the summer of 1968, on a family visit to the Hemisfair, we did not have dinner in the tower. If memory serves me right, I’m pretty sure we didn’t pay the price of ride up the elevator either. I think something like that would have stuck with me. I remember the wonder of walking through all of the amazing pavilions and adored the Institute of Texan Cultures, but all my memories of the tower are from the ground looking up.
In subsequent visits other things kept me from visiting the tower:
budget
bad reviews of the restaurant
not enough time
traveling companions who thought it was a tourist trap
I thought that the “not enough time” issue might come into play on this trip, too. I always have so many favorite things to return to in San Antonio that it’s hard to find time try new experiences. Arriving hours before I expected to, paved the way for an experience I’d wanted to have for a long time.
The Way It Was This Time
With a map, instructions from the hotel clerk and a GPS we set out for downtown San Antonio. Just as the clerk promised we found parking at RiverCenter Mall with no trouble. Somewhere inside my head is a map of the Riverwalk, but it always takes a little while for that map to sync with all the development around the popular attraction. We could see the tower and my mind told me where we should go, but we kept running into obstacles that my old mental map didn’t know about.
It didn’t help that the “You Are Here” map provided by the city next to the river did not have the promised red dot telling me where we were. Still it was only a minor irritation, because I followed my gut around the obstacles and soon recognized we were on the Hemisfair grounds – then all we had to do was look up.
The tower at night
If I was ever in San Antonio with time to kill, I think I’d kill some of it just enjoying Hemisfair Plaza. It’s a very pretty place, but I had my eye on the top of the tower. There was a booth selling elevator rides and the ticket salesmen pointed us to the other side of the tower for the Chart House Restaurant. We sidled up to the desk and asked if they had room for us. To my great joy, they did.
We had to walk back around the tower to the elevator, but this time we were inside. After a short wait and a quick conversation with a couple of guys who were also on their way to dinner, we arrived. From the picture above, you can tell that it was a pretty spectacular experience. The view alone was amazing. The restaurant was also nice.
I’ve been in Dallas’s Hyatt Regency Reunion Tower and the Westin’s Peachtree Plaza Tower in Atlanta, so I can tell you that the experiences are very similar. It wouldn’t surprise me to find out that the same architect designed them all. I can also tell you that this was not just a me-too experience. San Antonio is a town very different from Dallas and Atlanta. The spontaneous opportunity turned into a evening I won’t forget for a long time.
We were not seated immediately, but that was OK. We hadn’t had reservations and it was obvious that a lot of other people did. What was not OK, was that if I was going to wait I would have liked to enjoy a drink. The hostess pointed us at several groupings of leather chairs and told us to wait. I assumed it would be a short wait. There was an observation deck above, which may or may not have had a bar, but if I’d known we’d be cooling our heels for a while I would have at least gone exploring.
Still, I wasn’t an unpleasant experience. I sat in the big comfy leather sofa and enjoyed the view. I also enjoyed the arriving dinner patrons. Many were dressed to the nines, suggesting the meal was a special event. The restaurant was also recovering from a big busload of diners. Observing them go down the elevator in batches of a dozen was somewhat interesting.
After the noisy bus tour was back on the ground, a sort of calm settled of the restaurant and I smelled a fragrance I couldn’t at first identify. I pointed it out to Deb and we agreed it wasn’t a food smell and kept trying to guess what it was. Saddle Soap!! The leather sofas had been recently cleaned with saddle soap. There was no residue and the fragrance was subtle, but I enjoyed the little smell association game. Finally, they seated us.
Seated at the Top of San Antonio
We were looking north-ish when we first sat down – sort of toward our lovely Microtel. Not that we could pick it out from up there. As the evening played out we enjoyed the view until we were south-ish, but by then the city had disappeared into the darkness and all we could see was the lights. One disappointment was that you cannot see the Alamo for the big Marriot which is attached to the RiverCenter. That would have been quite wonderful.
What was wonderful was the food. The prices were a little steep. Not that they were expensive for what they offered, they were just more than I usually pay for a meal. We made choices around the outskirts of the menu, not so much for the cost, but because that’s what sounded good. And of course, we ordered Margaritas!
I started with Lobster Bisque – thick, creamy and delicious – just the way I like it. It was not the best I’d ever had, but it was a treat. Deb chose a salad and it was HUGE. Our next course was side orders – sauteed mushrooms, asparagus and an OMG order of Lobster Mac & Cheese. Good thing Deb and I had decreed that nothing had any calories during this entire weekend, otherwise we would have just scored about two days worth of them. OH – and we had a souffle for dessert. My mouth and stomach were in heaven and the view was out of this world.
Farewell to a lovely experience.
Since this trip was my belated birthday celebration, when we met Cousin Brenda she had a belated birthday present for me. Along with some lovely fragrance gifts for my house, she also gave me one of those gift cards you can use for whatever you want. What I wanted was dinner at the Tower of the Americas. Thank you Brenda. We didn’t have to wash dishes to leave the tower.
Maneuvering back to the car was no problem. My internal map had synced with the city. We did have an adventure getting back to the hotel. First the GPS couldn’t figure out where we were when we left the parking lot and then there was the back road approach to the hotel, but all’s well that ends well – right?
Our next stop? The McNay! You’re going to love it, so come back next week.
The lovely picnic area, right next to the rusting dirt movers!
TRAVEL THERE: MICROTEL SAN ANTONIO NORTHEAST A DANGEROUS BARGAIN
We all know that if it’s too good to be true, then it’s probably not true – and with few exceptions, you get exactly what you pay for. Deb and I wanted a cheap hotel for our first night in San Antonio and that’s exactly what we got, so no surprise here.
Decision Path to Disaster
Now I’m not so cheap or adventurous that I’d purposely stay in an awful hotel, but I will look for bargains. In fact, I’d first planned to stay somewhere in San Marcos or New Brunsfel, but all the reviews of their bargain hotels made it sound as if these hotels had served one too many drunk river rafters – dirty and smelly being the biggest clue.
But I know Microtel. I’ve stayed at several of them and they have all been great. They weren’t always the latest and greatest, but you got a lot for not so much dough and they were clean. Enter Microtel Inn & Suites by Wyndham San Antonio Northeast. I know, for $45 a night in San Antonio I should have figured out there was a problem, but I didn’t.
How about a cookout?
Maybe our first clue should have been how difficult it was to find. On the map it looked as if it would be easy to get to, but maps can be deceiving, because what’s in a convenient place might be hard to reach. Our GPS had to take us around and around and around until we finally broke a few laws and made it to the parking lot. Then there was a sigh of relief. The outside looked as if it had been freshly painted and the landscaping was under control. The cars all looked as if they were driven by people with a sense of propriety and the lobby was nice.
Checking In
There was one couple ahead of us in line, but I was more interested in the breakfast bar than I was this anonymous couple. That was until I figured out who they were. He was a rugged type, with a beard that was a day or two old. He was wearing a black t-shirt with “The Trucker’s Prayer” emblazoned on the back. I found that to be at least a little bit interesting, because they’d arrived in a crossover van. It didn’t seem as if English was his first language. In comparison, his companion was a beautiful young woman with cafe au lait skin. Her hair was in a semi up-do. She had on great shoes and a cute short set with very, very short-shorts which showed off a pair of perfect legs. She flashed me a great smile.
And that small blue awning across the parking lot. That’s over the pool with it’s great view of the highway.
Though I was not listening carefully, I figured out that the clerk was trying to explain the hotel’s cash policy to the man. If you pay cash, you have to leave a $50 deposit at the desk. When you’re through with your stay, they inspect the room to make sure everything is OK and then you get your $50 back. It seemed reasonable on the surface and then the woman cooed, “Just put it on your credit card, baby.” Something clicked in my brain and I figured out what most of you had already realized. This was a hooker with her john. That made them very interesting.
The conversation went on for a few more clicks, but the baby was not going to put it on his credit card and the Microtel wasn’t going to change their policy, so eventually the pair left. The funniest thing was that the female half of the pair turned around at the door and said, “We’ll be back,” in her outdoor voice. I want you to know I do not hold this episode against the Microtel. They can’t help who walks in the front door and they had a policy in place to keep that kind of stuff at bay.
Unloading
The clerk was very nice to us and very helpful with suggestions and directions to the Riverwalk. It also wasn’t the hotel’s fault that I don’t drive those luggage carts real well. Deb helped me load our bags and walked ahead to open the door. Unfortunately, the cart decided it was more interested in the swimming pool than it was the interior of the hotel. Nice clerk person appeared out of nowhere and got me going in the right direction.
The clerk had given us the very first room past the lobby, so that gave me a pretty secure feeling. Deb stuck her card in the door, but it took both of us to shove the door open. Whoever chose the carpet, which was still pretty new, had selected a style that was too deep for the door. Each trip in and out was like a tiny weight resistance session.
We didn’t pay much attention to anything else, because we were ready to head to the Riverwalk. More about that later, but coming back to the hotel AFTER the Riverwalk, now that was an adventure. The hotel is in a sort or industrial area, which is part of the reason it’s so hard to reach. The GPS on my phone discovered another way to get there on the return trip. We exited and the GPS told us to take a street that on any other occasion we would have avoided, but the GPS showed that it was the most direct route. We feared a repeat of our earlier around the world experience, so we ignored those little voices in our head and crossed into no man’s land – or maybe I should say no-woman’s land.
The narrow two lane street had thick vegetation on each side and at a certain point the vegetation gave way to junk yards and re-cycling centers wrapped in chain link fences – or at least that’s what it looked like. The road got very rough and suddenly it felt like the car had fallen into the Grand Canyon. Deb kept right on driving and said, “If we get a flat, I’m gonna keep on driving. We’ll just worry about it in the morning.”
We didn’t have a flat and, with the exception of that too-thick carpet, had no other troubles getting to our beds. We were soon happily asleep. Now I know the Microtel can’t be responsible for the condition of the streets around it, especially small back-roads the GPS decides you should take and they certainly can’t help who walks in the front door, but the odds were starting to stack up against them nonetheless.
Morning Ministrations
The Yuck Factor
Mornings for me mean a bubble bath and that’s when the real trouble started – nasty tub corners. When it comes to the hotels and motels of this world, I consider cleanliness my primary concern. I laugh my way through bad decor, small rooms, rude desk clerks – in fact most of the foibles that you can run into, but you better be clean. This is where the Microtel missed the mark.
Really?
Then there was the hair dryer. I guess they must have a problem with losing hair dryers, so now they hard-wire them in place. I can understand that, but did they have to cover up the other plug. I had to wander around the room looking for another plug with a line of sight to a mirror, because I needed some curling iron therapy to cope with my wild hair. (I don’t blame the Microtel for my wild hair either. I explained all that a few posts ago.)
The nasty tub corners sort of ruined my stay, but I got cleaned up and we headed to the breakfast bar for a bite, anyway. Like most of the things we’d experienced at the Microtel, the breakfast bar was more than decent. They had boiled eggs, which I like, and an assortment of other things, so it more than satisfied the need at hand. The morning clerk was a grandmotherly sort and that really made me want to like this hotel better, but the specter of the nasty tub corners couldn’t be erased.
More yuck!
Deb and I have a certain cure for everything. It’s called laughter. We started to enjoy all the little quirks we found. We even went outside and shot these pictures so you too could enjoy our stay.
Come back next week and I’ll tell you all about our dinner at the Tower of the Americas – but don’t stay at Microtel Inn & Suites by Wyndham San Antonio Northeast, unless grime is your friend.
jane sadek 