Texas

I’ve been to many beautiful places in my life, but the most unexpected so far has been the San Antonio Riverwalk. I never expected to see such lush greenery and beautiful water in the middle of Texas. The architects who designed this area were inspired and talented. This river runs below street level in the middle of the city and is flanked by sidewalks, restaurants, shops, and hotels. There are also several beautiful water features that bring the soothing sound of rushing water to your ears while you dine or sip coffee. We took a riverboat tour along the route and learned a few little historic details – very few of which I remember.

The first morning we were there, I got up early and went for a stroll along the Riverwalk. It had rained earlier in the morning and all the restaurant employees were out sweeping the water off the sidewalks. It was quiet, very few people were out, and it was warm and humid. So much for fixing my hair. I captured several pictures of the water features for a new friend who creates beautiful ponds – hopefully these will be inspiration for her.

This next photo makes me think I should be somewhere in Europe. According to the tour guide, that hotel (can’t remember the name) is one of the top rated hotels in the country.

I love the use of stone all over the place. Gorgeous, but bumpy if you’re riding in or maneuvering a wheelchair.

Yes, we ate at the Hard Rock, and I bought a really cool sweatshirt/hoodie from there – it’s COLD inside the stores!

I love how this water feature runs underneath the stairs.

This next water feature is underneath a street overpass.

Just a little cool architecture.

Notice below how the sidewalk goes up a bit. There are lots of those instances along the Riverwalk. That, and all the windy curves made for a great workout when pushing my mom around in the wheelchair. Some people though are really oblivious to the disabled – they ignore wheelchairs. I often had images from Weekend at Bernie’s, afraid I’d turn just the wrong way and tip my mom into the drink! LMAO. That would not have been funny.

This was a little outdoor theatre on the Riverwalk (below). Apparently it was used in the movie Miss Congeniality. The five bells represent the five missions in San Antonio. (I hope I remembered my facts correctly.) The seating for the theatre is on the opposite side of the Riverwalk. Very cool.