San Antonio, The Fiesta City or the Alamo City
San
Antonio, the only major city in Texas founded before it won independence
from Mexico, was once populated by Spanish missionaries and militiamen,
German merchants, Southern plantation owners, Western cattle ranchers and
Eastern architects. Their existence is still felt in the city's downtown
area and is evident in the current culture and cuisine. San Antonio is
largely known for three things: its parties, its eclectic architecture
and the Alamo.
San Antonio hosts many celebrations, some comparable to Mardi Gras. Here
they might break confetti eggs called cascarones, listen to oompah bands,
and cheer rodeo bull riders in festivals that mingle all the area's
cultural backgrounds. It is also America's capital for Tejano music, a
unique blend of Mexican and German sounds. The city's
architecture also reflects its multi-ethnic history in an eclectic
mixture of different styles.
Most fiestas take place just a few steps below the streets of downtown
San Antonio. The River Walk (Paseo del Rio) is alternately relaxing and
exhilarating, depending on where you choose to explore. The 4 km (2.5 mi)
cobbled area of winding riverbank, shaded by cypresses, oaks and willows,
exudes an exotic and sultry tropical aura. The River Square and South
Bank sections, crowded with pavement cafés, gourmet restaurants, lively
bars, modern hotels and a large shopping complex, have a festive,
sometimes frenetic feel. Tour boats, water taxis and floating picnic
barges regularly ply the river, while local festivals and parades fill
the river's banks with revelers.
The Alamo, the most visited site in Texas, is San Antonio's most famous
landmark. The small, graceful mission church is where 188 Texas
volunteers repelled Mexican dictator Santa Anna's much larger force for
13 days in February and March 1836. All the men, including Jim Bowie and
Davy Crockett died, their deaths inspired Sam Houston's cry, `Remember
the Alamo!' which rallied his troops to beat the Mexican army at San
Jacinto a month later. The Alamo has largely deteriorated and currently
the mission displays the Long Barrack, formerly the missionaries' living
quarters and the mission church. The Wall of History offers a helpful
timeline explaining the events that took place here.
