San Antonio really surprised me. Coming from Southern California, I am used to landmarks and excitement. So when I saw the course previews of the San Antonio Rock n Roll Marathon looking like some of the less glamorous parts of Los Angeles, I wasn't very hopeful.
But San Antonio is a very historical and fun city. And in spite of its 2.2-ish million residents, it has a very small-town feel. This is definitely the most pictures I've ever had in one entry, so I condensed them a little.
To see the pictures up-close, right-click them in "Open in New Window/Tab".
Above: The interior of the hotel. See... bank-ish! Speaking of banks, one thing I really loved about San Antonio was the dominance of Chase banks!
Above: (left) San Fernando Cathedral. I believe it's one of the oldest in the country. (right) O Henry -- a famous American writer -- house.
Above: We went to Market Square on Saturday. It was full of Mexican culture, crafts, and food.
Above: The right picture is a toothpick holder.
Above: We bought snacks here. I will talk about it in the "Food" entry. This place was SO beautiful. I wish I had actually dined here just so I can look at the beautiful ceilings in the dim light.
Above: More sights from around town. There is actually some theater life in this city. And on the very right is the Convention Center, which is HUGE.
Above: Places that reminded me of home.
Above: We did not go to the Children's Museum, but we DID go to this Buckhorn Texas Ranger one. A basic summary of this museum is what you see on the very right. I've never seen so many animal heads in one place...
Above: For example, check out this deer portrait. Is this corn... or rattlesnake rattles?? Assume the worst.
Above: An Australian Dingo. It was SO cute!
Above: (left) Two-headed sheep. (center) Bear encounter. (right) One of the many scene creations... this one is of General Robert E. Lee.
Above: Some old-fashioned fun. Yes, we paid a quarter just to confirm what I already knew. I also got to play bartender!
Above: We took a ride on a boat of the famous River Walk. It was a half hour of boating around. It was such a beautiful day.
Above: After the marathon, we finally got to The Alamo, and also some other surrounding sites.
Above: I took advantage and ran... there's no better recovery!
Above: More sites. (center) I took this picture of a store in the mall for Tea Time. (right) Tower of the Americas. We were told it is the third tallest tower in the world and second in the US.
Above: Speaking of The Tower of Americas, we ate there! This is Chart House, a higher-end dining experience that we had in San Antonio. I will talk more about this place in the "Food" entry, but the views were amazing! Best of all, I did not get sick in this rotating restaurant, which made one rotation per hour.
Above: To end, here are two indoor sights I had: weird water that looks like the Arrowhead that we have in California. And this hotel gym that did NOT get any use during our time there.
But San Antonio is a very historical and fun city. And in spite of its 2.2-ish million residents, it has a very small-town feel. This is definitely the most pictures I've ever had in one entry, so I condensed them a little.
To see the pictures up-close, right-click them in "Open in New Window/Tab".
If you're ever considering coming here... here's a primer for some of the sights!
Starting off the sites is our hotel... As I mentioned in my race post, it used to be a bank. It definitely had that appearance.
Here's the view from the top of the hotel.
The interiors were pretty sweet! Here's some views from the rooms. The beds were SOOOO comfortable that I slept A TON while I was away, while "The Ukrainian" (and I when I wasn't dead sleepy) watched English soccer and football (thank you, ESPN!).
The interiors were pretty sweet! Here's some views from the rooms. The beds were SOOOO comfortable that I slept A TON while I was away, while "The Ukrainian" (and I when I wasn't dead sleepy) watched English soccer and football (thank you, ESPN!).
Next up: The Alamodome, where the Spurs (NBA) play. Since we stayed in Downtown, we walked everywhere, though this was probably one of the further walks away.
The Downtown view.
Above: The interior of the hotel. See... bank-ish! Speaking of banks, one thing I really loved about San Antonio was the dominance of Chase banks!
Above: (left) San Fernando Cathedral. I believe it's one of the oldest in the country. (right) O Henry -- a famous American writer -- house.
Above: We went to Market Square on Saturday. It was full of Mexican culture, crafts, and food.
Above: The right picture is a toothpick holder.
Above: We bought snacks here. I will talk about it in the "Food" entry. This place was SO beautiful. I wish I had actually dined here just so I can look at the beautiful ceilings in the dim light.
Above: More sights from around town. There is actually some theater life in this city. And on the very right is the Convention Center, which is HUGE.
Above: Places that reminded me of home.
Above: We did not go to the Children's Museum, but we DID go to this Buckhorn Texas Ranger one. A basic summary of this museum is what you see on the very right. I've never seen so many animal heads in one place...
Above: For example, check out this deer portrait. Is this corn... or rattlesnake rattles?? Assume the worst.
Above: An Australian Dingo. It was SO cute!
Above: (left) Two-headed sheep. (center) Bear encounter. (right) One of the many scene creations... this one is of General Robert E. Lee.
Above: Some old-fashioned fun. Yes, we paid a quarter just to confirm what I already knew. I also got to play bartender!
Above: We took a ride on a boat of the famous River Walk. It was a half hour of boating around. It was such a beautiful day.
Above: After the marathon, we finally got to The Alamo, and also some other surrounding sites.
Above: I took advantage and ran... there's no better recovery!
Above: More sites. (center) I took this picture of a store in the mall for Tea Time. (right) Tower of the Americas. We were told it is the third tallest tower in the world and second in the US.
Above: Speaking of The Tower of Americas, we ate there! This is Chart House, a higher-end dining experience that we had in San Antonio. I will talk more about this place in the "Food" entry, but the views were amazing! Best of all, I did not get sick in this rotating restaurant, which made one rotation per hour.
Above: To end, here are two indoor sights I had: weird water that looks like the Arrowhead that we have in California. And this hotel gym that did NOT get any use during our time there.
It does look like a pretty city. Its always nice when you are pleasantly surprised by a place, huh? Glad you had fun!
ReplyDeleteHaha to the Primarily Purple store! Can't wait to see the food post. I am more food centric than sight centric. Hehe!
ReplyDelete