Sunday with a Mission

Helen had never been to see the missions in San Antonio. Since it was over a year since we took the grandkids there (before Helen arrived in San Antonio, we figured that Sunday would be a good day to hit the mission trail.

There are five historic missions in San Antonio with the Alamo being the most well known. They are all part of the National Park System (NPS). The NPS maintains the grounds while the San Antonio Catholic Diocese renovates and maintains the churches themselves. It is a unique partnership that works very well. The churches all have regular services unless they are being renovated. You are welcome to go inside and look around unless services are in session. We didn't include the Alamo on this trip so we started with Mission Concepcion. It has been many years since I had been there and it was everyone else's first time since we only did Mission San Jose last year.

Church services were in session so we did not go inside the chapel part but got a good look at everything else.

People and doors were much shorter in the 1700's.

Our next stop was Mission San Jose which is a must see for this group of missions. The NPS has a headquarters here with a movie, exhibits, gift shop, and ranger led tours. These missions were so much more than churches. They were whole self supporting communities with farmland.  The Spaniards also utilized these missions to establish their position in the area. The Indians were given Spanish citizenship and they were considered Spanish colonists once they learned Spanish and became part of the mission life.

If you only have a couple of hours, visit Mission San Jose, watch the movie, and take a ranger led tour.

Next we were off to Mission San Juan Capistrano. We weren't able to get right up close to this one because it is under renovation.


Each of the missions has a different look.  One tower, two towers, bells......

The final mission is Mission Estrada.


The Espada Aquaduct and dam are also close by for viewing.
     

I definitely recommend a visit to the San Antonio missions. It will be well worth your time.

A Day with Karen-in-the-Woods and Stevio

What an exciting day!  Two of my favorite bloggers are in town for just a day and we get to meet up.  I've been following RVing: The USA is Our Big Backyard for quite a while. There have been some changes in their lives over the last year or so and you may remember it as RVing: Little House...Big Backyard or think of it as KarenintheWoods.  When I saw they were coming to San Antonio, I immediately thought of my friend Susan from Travelbug and a three way meet up.  I contacted Susan to let her know they would be coming to Travelers World RV Resort.  And guess where they ended up....right next to Susan.  Karen and Steve's Serengeti Safari is even prettier in person than on their blog.

After battling traffic due a an accident enroute, I finally made it and we all headed across the street for lunch at Taqueria Guadalahara.

 All the ladies had Enchiladas Verdes and Stevio had Chicken Fried Steak.  Just so you non-Texans know, that is not chicken; however, I have to admit that I have never seen it served with french fries and rice.  lol.

The plan was for Karen and Steve to head downtown to see the Alamo and the Riverwalk later in the afternoon to take advantage of San Antonio's free city parking after 5 on Tuesdays.  So we headed down the road a very short distance to show them Mission San José y San Miguel de Aguayo which is one of the 5 National Park Missions in San Antonio.  The Alamo is also one of the 5.  You can see the church part of the mission behind the very animated ranger.

It is very pretty and still in active use as a Catholic church.  The San Antonio Diocese maintains the church itself and the National Park service is responsible for the rest of the buildings and grounds. Both times I've been there, the rangers made this very clear so that no one would get any wrong ideas. The whole entrance area was recently renovated.

This area is part of the outer wall/building.  See the cacti growing out of the porch area?  The outer area is comprised of limestone and was rebuilt.

Susan and Karen were busy snapping pictures.

I caught Steve here in the granary.  This wasn't open when I was here the last time.  They had a large display area with lights and narrative in one corner.

This jug is embedded in the wall.  Since the walls are so thick, you could pour water into the top of the jug to keep it cool.  There is a spigot at the bottom.

The gate was open to go out and see the mill and the acequia this time too.

This is inside the ground level of the mill.

The front alter area of the church has been recently repainted and guilded.  It is really beautiful. The church is open for public viewing as long as there are no services or ceremonies in session.

I did get to see this area last time.  It is the corner of the outside wall where defense was conducted.  The small holes on top were where guns would provide the protection while the larger holes near the floor area were for cannons.  I guess they had to shoot blind once the weapons were in the holes.

We watched the film in the Visitor's Center after realizing that it was 4:15 and the Alamo closed at 5:00pm.  We headed back to the park where Karen graciously gave us a tour of their rig and we got to see many of the neat modifications that Stevio has made.  It has a great layout with lots of light.  We also got to meet Duke and Duchess (Duck).  Karen had them do the treat on the nose trick which they did impressively.  Then she put the other half of the treat on their paws.  After a minute, she told them they could have the treat and they just sat there.  She tried several different time but they sat there like stone statues.  I can so relate to doggy tricks on their human pack leaders.  lol.

As most of you know, Karen is an accomplished weaver and knitter.  Susan and I were both surprised and thrilled when she gifted us with a pair of socks that she knit on her sock machine.  They are so nice.  Karen has an etsy store The Loomatic Works where she sells her beautiful items.

After following Karen's blog and being Facebook friends, it felt like we were already good friends.  Be sure to check out the posts from Karen and Susan because no two posts on the same subject are really the same.  Karen and Steve headed down to the Riverwalk after we left but you will have to read about that on RVing: The USA is Our Big Backyard.

We'll see you down the road and please come back to San Antonio real soon.

A Whirlwind Tour of San Antonio

Since I was gone all day Friday, I missed the email message from another Women RV forum member saying she would be in town on Friday on her way from Florida to California.  Thank goodness she texted me Saturday morning when she was about two hours away.  I gave her directions to my house and a little later she arrived.  She said she really hated to just pass through San Antonio without seeing the Alamo and the Riverwalk so, after a little backyard time for her dogs, we decided to make that wish happen.  My son Steve and grandson Cameron said they were always up for a trip downtown too so off we went.  It took just a bit of time to find parking as this was a three day weekend and people were in town to take advantage of it.

This is Carol demonstrating how small you have to fold up a $10 bill to get it into the slot for your parking place.

We walked down the street and through the courtyard of the Hyatt Hotel to the Riverwalk.  We enjoyed a nice lunch at a table right on the river.

Cameron was peaking down at us from the bridge next to the restaurant.

After we walked around part of the Riverwalk, we headed topside to see some of the city.  San Antonio is the City of Yellow Roses.

This was taken on the Main Plaza which has the Bexar County Courthouse on one side and San Fernando Cathedral on the other.

San Fernando Cathedral is the oldest, continuously functioning religious community in the State of Texas. The Cathedral building has the added distinction of being the oldest standing church building in Texas, and for all of its more than 281 years, has been serving the people of the Archdiocese and San Antonio.  From its founding on March 9, 1731 by a group of 15 families who came from the Canary Islands at the invitation of King Phillip V of Spain, this church was planned to be at the center of the life of this city. The church was completed in 1749 and the original walls still stand today forming what is now the sanctuary (the area around and behind the altar) of the present church. These walls are the oldest standing structure in the State of Texas. The dome of the original church was the geographic center of the city and the point from which all mileage was calculated to San Antonio.

In 1793, the Alamo, Mission San Antonio de Valero, was secularized and closed as a church. It’s people became members of San Fernando. The total population at the time was just over 1,000. The next year the other four missions in the area, San Jose, Concepcion, Espada, and Capistrano were also secularized and their lands divided among the Indians. In 1824 Missions Concepcion, San Jose, and Espada were made a part of the San Fernando parish.

The Battle of the Alamo in 1836 began after Mexican General Santa Ana raised the flag of "no quarter" from the tower of the church. In the back of the cathedral today there is a marble coffin with an inscribed plaque that the remains of William Travis, Jim Bowie, and Davy Crockett defenders of the Alamo are buried there.  This was the first time I saw this.

Our next stop was the Spanish Governor’s Palace. This building was the original Commandancia (residence and working office) for the Captain of the Presidio. After the threat of French encroachment in East Texas was gone, King Carlos III appointed the Marquis de Rubí inspector of frontier presidios. Rubí’s inspection resulted in the Royal Regulations of 1772 that ordered the capital of Spanish Texas be moved from the Presidio at Los Adaes, east of Nacogdoches, Texas, to the Presidio de San Antonio de Béjar. Rubí’s orders also stipulated that the captain of the presidio at Béjar serve as Governor of Texas.

By the time Spain lost control of Mexico and Texas in 1821, the Presidio had ceased to function as a military post. However its owner and former captain Ignacio Perez and his descendants continued to use the building as a residence through the mid-1800s. The building’s function changed from residential to commercial in the mid-1870s and through the 1920s it housed a variety of businesses including a pawn shop, a wholesale produce store, saloons, and a clothing store.  It was restored in the 1930's and is now owned by the city of San Antonio.

We didn't go inside because Carol wanted to see as much as she could and preferred to read about the buildings outside.

Next we had headed down the street to El Mercado.  Not a great picture but a fun place to visit.  We walked around the inside of the Mercado building and took a quick peak at the bakery and inside of Mi Tierra.  Mi Tierra and La Margarita next door are both very popular restaurants open 24 hours a day.

After our time at the Mercado, we headed back in the direction of the Alamo.  Carol really enjoyed all the unique architecture of buildings along the way.  There are a lot of old buildings and many of them are being renovated and repurposed for continued use.  My camera battery died just before we got there so I had to pull out this picture of the Alamo.  There were actually a crowd of people visiting with a long line to go inside the church portion.  Of course, those that know their Alamo battle history know that the church was no longer in use when the famous battle was fought.  It didn't even have a roof at that time.  We walked around inside the stone walls of the courtyard.  There is an enormous tree there that was actually moved there when it was 40 years old.

We spent about 4 hours and many miles walking around the downtown area and it was time for us to head back home to let all the dogs out.  We sat out on the patio at home and talked about all the sights to see.  I told it was such a shame she was going to pass through without seeing any of the Hill Country.  Plans are made in jello and the next thing we knew, Carol decided she wanted to see Fredericksburg.  So, rather than spend the night and leave very early the next morning to head for Fredericksburg, she decided she would rather drive in that direction and boon dock near Comfort.  She also decided that she would probably change her return plans and come back through San Antonio instead of further north.  So, with hugs and promises to see her again in the next couple of months, she was off.  It was a great "get acquainted" visit.  

Mission San Jose National Historical Park (Jr Rangers)

Saturday we were looking for an interesting activity to enjoy with the grandchildren.  We found it at Mission San Jose National Historic Park in San Antonio.  Founded in 1720, the mission was named for Saint Joseph and the Marqués de San Miguel de Aguayo, the governor of the Province of Coahuila and Texas at the time. It was built on the banks of the San Antonio river several miles to the south of the earlier mission, San Antonio de Valero (the Alamo).  You can see the mission in the background but first we went into the Visitors Center.

Once inside the Visitors Center, there is a wealth of information available.  The missions were more than just churches, they were whole communitities.

There were lots of pictures to look at depicting early life in the missions.

There was also a relief map of the San Antonio River area which showed where the missions were located.

We arrived in time to be part of a ranger led tour of the mission.  Our ranger guide was young and very personable.  She tailored her narration to the whole group including the kids.

This is the entrance to the mission grounds with the church on the far side.

The ranger did a great job of telling the group about the kind of life the inhabitants of the community led.  The missionaries were there to teach the Indians a whole new way of life in addition to converting them and it was very clear who was in charge at these missions.

Here the kids and their Dad were inside of the defense post on the corner of the grounds.  The hole in the background was for a cannon.  Up above was a ledge with smaller holes for guns.  There were usually only a very few soldiers to defend the mission but the mission was well built and very secure.

This was one of the many ovens scattered around the grounds.

This is a side view of the church with the quarters for the Franciscans located on the right up above.  Down below were classrooms used to teach the Indians trades.

This is a front view of the church.  Although this is a National Park, the church itself is owned by the local diocese which has a unique partnership with the park.  This church is in use for regular services.  The ranger told us that we were welcome to go inside and look around as long as services weren't in progress but she would not give her narration in there and disturb people who might be there using the church.

You may have noticed the folders that the kids were carrying as we looked around the visitors center and during the tour.  They were participating in a great national parks program for kids called the Junior Ranger program.  They had to fill out their booklets and turn them in to the ranger in the visitors center.  Our tour ranger saw them talking to another ranger at the desk and quickly came over to say that she wanted to "swear them in" and present their badges because she enjoyed having them on her tour.  They each received a badge and a really nice cloth patch.  She also stamped their booklets and then had them each stamp their own booklet with a special mission stamp.

The kids were thrilled with the whole process and I highly recommend this program if you are traveling with kids from 6 to 12 years old.  They had a "special set-up" for picture taking of new rangers so naturally we had to take advantage of it.  Here are our new Junior Rangers.  It was all they could talk about the rest of the day.

We finished off the trip by stopping at a nearby "panaderia" which is a Mexican bakery.  It was quite small from the outside but the whole inside was filled with cases of interesting looking cookies, donuts, and breads.  We let everyone choose what they wanted and the kids picked out big cookies with colored sprinkles on them.  Unfortunately I missed getting a picture which is too bad because it was a very colorful and friendly place.  Every time my son asked what something was, the lady behind the case wanted to give him a sample one so he could try it.  We walked out with a bag of goodies.

Although it was cool and very overcast when we visited the mission, there is a park with picnic tables for a lunch if you like.  We only had time to see this mission but the others are not far from there and I look forward to visiting them at another time.