Another Day Trip In San Antonio - The Riverwalk and La Villita

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During our stay in San Antonio the weather was typical.  High 90Fs or 30Cs.  It was muggy and humid the whole trip, but that is to be expected for this part of the country.  Our Airbnb had great central air conditional although a new style of thermostat we have seen more frequently.  

I'm sure most of you have been to San Antonio before.  It's a city rich in history, a very large lower middle class economically, and mostly hispanic.  San Antonians are proud of their city and everybody knows how to get just about anywhere you want to go.  The city has expanded quite a bit over the last few decades.  It has five military bases. I may have mentioned that, and that affects salaries as many military retire early and still have another 20 years of work life left taking many of the higher salary jobs.  

It's history dates back thousands of years and Native American tribes such as the Coahuiltecan, Tonkawa, Comanche and Apache inhabited the area.   The Spaniards built a series of five missions in the area and several are state monuments today and include the famous Alamo.  We have been to the Alamo a few times, mostly when we lived there and had visitors.  It's an interesting place with a lot of controversial history.  About that time, Mexicans began moving north as well.  

Because of the heat, we held off doing too much afternoon activity and decided to lie low at home.  On the Sunday of our visit, we decided to head downtown.  Again, being well located, we were about 15 minutes by car, and we could have actually walked.  Being a Sunday, parking was easy.  Tourists are a huge draw in SAT and parking lots abound and so do the prices.   On Sunday, however, street parking is free after 6 p.m.  We parked next to the bus station and off we went.  

Jefferson United Methodist Church 

Methodist Youth Building, my photo versus a professional photographers.

Our first interesting encounter was the Methodist Youth Building around the corner from the church.  The highlight is the tallest stained-glass window in the shape of a cross in the U.S.  It was donated by the Porter Loring family, a San Antonio tradition in the funeral home business. It was pieced together and installed in 1950.  It is 51 feet tall and made of 4700 pieces of stained-glass from Belgium, England, and France.  

By the mid 1960s, the downtown area was run down, full of bars, a drug haven and prostitution.  The 1968 World Hemisphere came to town and gave the city a complete facelift.  It was the city's 250th anniverary and a reason to celebrate.   The fair lasted for six months and included cultural and technological events.   The Riverwalk was developed and became a national attraction.

We enjoyed our stroll along the river.  Quite a bit to see if you enjoy people watching.  The restaurants have pretty reasonable prices and we had a chance to see what people were ordering.  Tex Mex was the most popular and everything smothered in cheese.  The weather was perfect for sitting there and enjoying a glass of wine.

The boat rides are very popular just as they are in Monterrey.  Tickets are a bit expensive but several boats passed us and they were full.   

• Adults: Approximately $14.50
• Children (ages 1-5): Approximately $8.50
• Local Residents of Bexar County: Around $12.50
• Seniors (65 & older): About $11.50

We made our way down to La Villita where in the 1800s squatters built their homes.  The Presidio military base was nearby and provided protection against indian attacks.  Some had small plots of farm land as well.   

During the Texas war of independence, La Villita became the site of revolutionary activity.  Rumor has it that this is the site where Santa Ana's brother-in-law surrendered to Texas forces.  In 1835 after a five day siege, the war had ended and Texas gained its independence.

The buildings you see are actually from the 1800s.  This house in particular, is now a wine shop that offers Mexican wines.  The owners are from Saltillo and have a wine tasting room.  She gave us a tour of the house including what was the kitchen and bedroom.  When she realized we weren't buying anything she politely ushered us out the back door.  

As time passed, people began to settle La Villita again and Mexicans, Germans, and Americans dominated the site and Irish, English and slaves lived nearby.  By the 1870s, La Villita was a thriving part of San Antonio.  Small businesses and shops opened providing stone masons, shoemakers, cabinetmakers and all the skills required for building a city that was growing fast.

As time went on and the city expanded, La Villita fell out of favor.   Here is a picture from the 1970s along with a comment from one of the architects who was responsible for the restoration of the area:

"When I first saw it, it was like 1926, and it was just the worst slum you ever saw. You wouldn't believe there'd be a slum in the middle of town like that--there were 26 families living in there and they had as many wrecked cars as you ever saw in your life, just piles of them." 

"When I first saw it, it was like 1926, and it was just the worst slum you ever saw. You wouldn't believe there'd be a slum in the middle of town like that--there were 26 families living in there and they had as many wrecked cars as you ever saw in your life, just piles of them"

As we walked back to the car the sun was setting and it was time to call it quits for the day.  It was a fun and we both reminisced over the years we lived and have visited San Antonio.  I'm sure we'll go back next year sometime.