I made my first journey to San Antonio and it was most
definitely too short! I am excited to go back and spend a longer period of time
there to explore the city. My great friend from Bethel, Sarah, just moved there
(two days before my visit) and I wanted to take the opportunity to go see her
new place and help her get settled.
The reason the trip was so rushed was because it was in the
middle of my workweek. I worked three nights, had one night off, and then
worked again the next night for three more in a row. It was this one night off
that I decided to make the three-hour drive to SA. Perhaps a little ambitious. I
arrived in San Antonio around five in the evening and Sarah gave me the tour of
her cute, little apartment! It’s on a quiet street full of large, old homes and
Sarah’s building has been turned into four apartments. Her apartment is full of
charm and detail.
After the tour, we decided food and beverage were of the
utmost importance. Just down the street from her place was a hole in the wall
joint called Mary Ann’s Pig Stand – quite possibly one of the kitschiest places
I’ve been to? It was chock full of pig statues, pig photos, stuffed animal pigs,
etc. Sarah ordered their signature item, the Pork Sandwich (which has been on
the menu since 1921) and I made the mistake (again) for ordering country-fried
steak. Now, this southern delicacy always sounds amazing when you’re looking at
the menu, but don’t be fooled. It is a thinly pounded steak, breaded,
deep-fried, slathered with a thick gravy and usually accompanied by some kind
of unnecessary carbohydrate like a baked potato – which you naturally respond
“yes!” to when the waitress asks if you want the potato loaded. After ingesting
most of this plate full of food, I could barely walk away from the table and
was promptly searching the yellow pages for the nearest cardiologist. This is
the second time I have ordered this meal, become so incredibly full, and then
regretted my decision later. Maybe the third time is the charm?
After dinner we waddled to the car and drove downtown to
scope out the Alamo. It was a pretty impressive building, but more so because
it was smack-dab in the middle of the city. Had it not been 38degrees and SO
windy, we would have stayed longer. However, we decided warm alcoholic
beverages were in order so we could thaw out some. We made our way to the river
walk, which is a highlight of San Antonio, and it absolutely beautiful. Google
it. It has this amazingly European feel to it. Surrounding this small river are
shops, restaurants, and bars; all with ample outside seating to enjoy the
water, the lights in the trees, and the tour boats floating by. Because the
atmosphere was so lovely, we posted up under one of those outdoor gas heaters
so we could enjoy our beverages in what little heat there was to have.
Eventually, the cold drove us out and we made our way to a very eclectic bar
closer to Sarah’s apartment. We fed the jukebox, watched football (Sarah was
the main participant in this activity), and chatted the night away.
After waking up incredibly early the next morning we went to
a Mexican place for some breakfast tacos – which were quite delicious. It seems
that here in Texas the only places to get breakfast (outside of IHOP and Waffle
House, of course) is in small Mexican restaurants. While, I would love a bit
more variety in my dined-out breakfasts, I’m not complaining about the
breakfast tacos. They are legit. After some hugs and well wishes, I was on my
way back to Houston so I could work that night. All in all it was a wonderful,
yet short, trip to San Antonio. Like I said before, I can’t wait to go back to
explore more – and to see my amazing friend, Sarah! It is making me realize that
I want to spend a few more weekends in both San Antonio and Austin, but that I
only have two more months here. I guess I have some work to do!
