Remember the Alamo...Bowl

This week I road-tripped it to San Antonio. I know the I-10 route well but this time I was headed to the Alamo City for fun with my family in tow. Or rather, I was in tow. I somehow got out of driving the three hour trip and instead sat in the backseat of a car remarkably similar to mine.

There are definite bonuses to being a backseat passenger and sharing the road with friends.

For example, impromptu dancing and singing often erupts.

And World Geography knowledge can be tested with the Houston Chronicle's 50 Question Geography Quiz. (No, I've never heard of Nollywood and do not know what US city is "too busy to hate." Anyone?)

Stopping at Buc-ee's is also a different experience as the normal quick in-and-out trip turns into a twenty minute shopping tour complete with a plan to divide and conquer Icees and Beaver Nuggets before reuniting at the car.


In truth, no Beaver Nuggets were bought or consumed, but they are quite a hit with the regulars.
See the link above for more details.

Upon arriving in San Antonio, we check into our hotel located within walking distance of the River Walk - one of my favorite places in Texas at Christmas time.

We stop at the first Mexican restaurant we find, The Original Mexican Restaurant. It was a cold night and as this restaurant did not provide ponchos for the patio (like another restaurant further down), we opted to eat inside.

More bonuses for traveling with family: live Mariachi serenades.

(The song was called Mariscos, which means seafood in Spanish...can't imagine singing such a pretty song about fish. Maybe someone can enlighten me?)

And someone with whom to try on the traditional Mexican garb.

Sharing a hotel room with new family members provided a special treat as I was awoke in the middle of the night to the shouts of a sleep-talking male.

In the morning, we headed straight to the Alamo. As a former Texas history teacher, I was excited to impart my knowledge to my newly transplanted brother-in-law. Like how Bonham Street (a street we had to cross as we walked from our hotel) was named after James Butler Bonham one of the couriers during the 13 day siege at the Alamo. And how the numbers next to the state flags displayed in the Alamo represented the number of men who died from that state in the battle. (The most famous death being that of Davy Crockett from Tennessee who was quoted as saying, "You may all go to hell and I will go to Texas.") I'm not sure my brother-in-law appreciated all the wealth of information I was dumping on him (as you might not),

but as a born and bred Texan - I just couldn't help myself. I was even more excited when I found the DVD version of the movie Gone to Texas in the Alamo gift shop. This is a highly factual depiction of the life of Sam Houston and other crucial events of the Texas Revolution. As a teacher, I had shown my students many clips from this movie. It also helps to explain why Sam Houston did not come to the aid of the Alamo. (He was busy forming a government and training an army that would later defeat the Mexican troops at the Battle of San Jacinto.)

After our Alamo tour and informational video, we headed to the River Walk for our boat cruise. On our ride we were reminded that San Antonio is named after St. Anthony - patron saint of lost things. Perhaps, if my brother had been Catholic, he would have been able to recover the cell phone that slipped out of his pocket and landed in the river four years earlier when he sat down to lunch. As of yet, no such luck.

From the river, you can also spot a glimpse of the San Fernando Cathedral from which the Mexican dictator Santa Anna had flown the red flag of no quarter (no surrender) during the Alamo siege.

As a side note, Santa Anna is often credited for introducing chicle, the base of chewing gum, to America.

Eventually, we made it to the event for which we had come to town - the Alamo Bowl. My parents started the tradition three years earlier when they had hoped their alma mater would be playing - they didn't, but that didn't stop my parents from buying tickets. They had so much fun they decided to keep coming back. This was my second year to join them.

Seeing as I had no ties to either school, I was a little unsure of who to cheer for. Texas or Oregon?

While I was pretty sure Oregon would win (and they did), I was happy to see Mack Brown's last stand...at the Alamo. The Longhorn band even spelled out his name at halftime.

As we journeyed home the next day, I was aware that while traveling with family has its rewards, there's still some give and take. Like how many pitstops are allowed on the drive home. As the oldest and most experienced traveler in my car, you'd think I'd know better. Fortunately for me, I'm a member of a compassionate family who in the end finally showed mercy and let me make an extra stop. All in all, I'll take the give and take any day.