Victorians and Missionaries

We toured the Steves Homestead, which is a 1877 three story Victorian home with original interiors and lavish period furnishings, some of which belonged to the original owner. Unfortunately, photographing the interior was not allowed. The house was constructed by a German emigrant who started a lumber business, and he soon amassed $12,000 which paid for the house and the land. Things were a bit cheaper back then; for example, the Newell post, at the foot of the stairway cost $12, and is made of solid walnut with elaborate carvings.

Victorians seem to have had a bit of a human hair fetish - they made “hair jewelry” and arranged it into elaborate creations they displayed in shadow boxes hung on their walls. The deceased had their locks trimmed to be kept as family mementos. They even had dedicated ceramic boxes with a hole in the top in which to put hair that had been removed from brushes!

The house had an enclosed swimming pool that held 70,000 gallons which was supplied by an artesian well. When the water became dirty, they simply replaced it. No chlorine or chemicals, but likely more than a few germs.

This afternoon, we explored 250 year old (and still functioning) Mission Nuestra Senora de la Purisima Conception. This is one of five missions that were financed by the Spanish government to spread European culture into the New World as part of their program of conquest. Ostensibly, their purpose was to help the natives. Many of the Natives had been decimated by white man's diseases and by other tribes that raided their villages on horseback. Seeking refuge in the the mission, the locals were required to give up their own religion, culture, and traditions – even their names. They were expected to become Spanish. Despite this, elements of their native lifestyles blended with the Spanish and Catholic cultures. This blending lives on today in the cultural heritage of the San Antonio area, which is very much Hispanic.

The mission is one of the oldest functioning churches in the US – masses are still held , even though the site is under the direction of the National Park Service. Although the exterior is weathered and blackened by time, the interior is remarkably well preserved, with original the frescoes and other painted decorations still evident. Some of the outbuildings are still intact, including a storeroom, a sleeping cell, and a library. All now contain exhibits explaining the history of the site.

19th Century Extravaganza

We explored San Antonio's historic King William neighborhood today, which consists of several blocks of mid 19^th and early 20^th century homes in various states of preservation. Many have been restored to pristine condition, and a few are literally rotting into oblivion. The houses range from mansions to bungalows. The ones dating from the 1870's through 1900 are highly elaborate with filigreed decorations and elaborate iron or wood work. One 1876 house, known as Villa Finale, has been restored to its original condition, complete with coach house, and wash house. The servant's quarters are now the ticket office for tours. Many of the houses have neoclassical detailing in the finest Southern tradition. It is a truly amazing display of diverse architectural styles.

The original village settlement of San Antonio, La Villita, has been preserved as a quaint shopping area near downtown. Many of the buildings date from 1830-50, and have all of their original detailing. Most are now art galleries and antique shops. After lunch outside on the Riverwalk at a dog-friendly restaurant (with Cooper being a very good dog), we walked to San Fernando Cathedral, which is the oldest cathedral sanctuary in the US, dating from 1731. It is in perfect condition and contains a very elaborate altarpiece that is entirely covered in gold leaf. The bones of the Alamo Heroes, including David Crockett, and Jim Bowie are contained in a large marble sarcophagus just inside the church's entrance.

River Walk and the Alamo

We rode a city bus from our RV park to San Antonio's downtown to visit the Alamo and the famous River Walk. The route took us through a very poor, older section of the city with small, mostly run-down houses. The city center is another world built around the River Walk, which extends for miles along both sides of the San Antonio River. The River walk was created as a WPA project in the 1930's, and was the brainchild of the local womans' conservation group who fought against having the stream put entirely underground. It is Southwestern version of Venice, with meandering canals, soothing, splashing water features, and many varieties of plants and trees. It features scores of fine hotels and outdoor restaurants on its banks. We took a barge tour of the area which is much more extensive than we anticipated.

The Alamo is the centerpiece of San Antonio, and is regarded as a shrine to the bravery of the men who fought and died there. This was originally a Spanish mission that was constructed in 1724, and operated for 70 years, at which time it, and the other missions in the area were secularized. It then became a garrison outpost for the Spanish during Mexican revolutionary period during which an independent republic was established. We were surprised to learn that the Mexicans actively invited Americans to settle in the area to increase the population. The required conditions were that the settlers had to agree to obey Mexican laws, and convert to Catholicism. After a while, to the consternation of the Mexicans, the Anglos outnumbered the Mexicans by a ratio of 10 to 1. The Anglos (known as Texians) did not particularly care for the repressive, autocratic government of the republic, so they rebelled and went to war in what was known as the Texas Revolution in 1835. After a garrison of Texians were killed in the siege of the Alamo by General Santa Ana, this inspired others to regroup, and they were able to eventually route Santa Ana's army. Texas then became an independent republic for the next 10 years; after that it became part of the US.

It would be easy to spend an entire day exploring the Alamo site, and reviewing each of the hundreds of exhibits. Most of the barracks buildings are long gone, and the site now consists of an enclosed square, the Mission church, and part of a barracks in which the Texian soldiers made their last stand after Santa Ana's men had breached the perimeter and had overrun the fort. The roof of the church, which had collapsed long before it became a military installation, has been restored.

The Texas Barbeque Experience

Oh, one other fact about the Texas Senate rules for speaking: the person speaking cannot use notes, computer, or other memory aid of any kind. All speaking must be done extemporaneously. They just have to watch out for the two second pause exclusion rule I talked about yesterday.

Last night, Donna and I experienced authentic Texas Barbeque. This is an experience that is totally foreign to Californians like us. To start off, the Barbeque joint is usually combined with a gas station and a country store. The place we went to, Rudy's, came highly recommended. The place is enormous, with acres of lined-up tables with checkered vinyl cloths, and a gargantuan brick smoker with several compartments that looked to be about 20 feet long. You step up to the counter and place your order. In our case, the attendant yelled, "newbies", and proceeded to tempt us with samples of each of the barbequed meats they were cooking that night - lean brisket (very dry), moist brisket (lusciously juicy and smokey with lots of saturated fat!), and smoked turkey. We went with a shared order (1/2 pound) of the moist brisket, with sides of cole slaw, potato salad, beans, and chocolate pudding for dessert. The meat was served on coated butcher paper, along with 2 slices each of Wonder Bread. The idea is that you put the meat on the bread and then saturate the whole thing with barbeque sauce from a squeeze bottle. Tasty! I have to say that the meat was melt-in-your-mouth tender with a wonderful salty, smokey flavor and campfire aroma. The beans and cole slaw were also excellent. Very Texan!

We drove to San Antonio this morning and are set up in a park that is about 3 miles from the River Walk. It feels good to relax this afternoon. Donna is doing laundry and Cooper is sleeping. It will be good to get some reading time. It is very warm today, with highs in the mid 90's with high humidity. The trailer is a cool respite. Tomorrow is supposed to be cooler. We'll see.

Texas Sized Lessons for California

We are now in Austin, the capital of Texas. The city is lush and green, with many imposing plantation style homes close to the city center. Many of the houses are constructed of native limestone, which underlies the entire area.

We toured the state capital building with a very knowledgeable guide who provided some great insights into the legislative process, Texas style. In fact, California politicians could take a few lessons from Texans on how to run a legislature. Let's start with the Senate's rules: Meet once every two years, and limit the session to 120 days! (Prevents tinkering by limiting how much they can do!!) There is no limit on how much time a senator can speak; however, there are some restrictions - 1. He or she must stand away from their desk, and not touch it in any way (prevents leaning on the desk for support) 2. Must stay on the posted topic; 3. Cannot pause any more than 2 seconds, or he/she will lose the floor; 4. No bathroom, water, or food breaks for the person speaking or those senators present in the chamber if they want to vote on the issue. The record for a senator speaking before the assembled chamber is 40 hours! Imagine!! The person speaking must have had a secret weapon - Depends? Or, maybe a bladder the size of a basketball.

The capital building is a monumental pink granite structure completed in 1889. Since that was during post-Civil War reconstruction, there was no money to do it since the state's economy was ruined. A unique solution was devised - barter the construction of the capital in exchange for thousands of acres of land. When the deal was sealed, the exchanged land became the world's largest cattle ranch.

Cowboy Capital and LBJ Ranch

3/24: We visited Bandera, which is the "cowboy capital of the world", complete with lots of big pickup trucks with very aggressive looking bolt-on bumpers, and guys walking around in full western regalia. Not a horse or a cow in sight, however. No pix today, as I forgot to remove the camera's SD chip from the computer and re-install it in the camera. Oh, well. Tomorrow, we hit the road again for the short hop to Austin - only 120 miles. I was able to wash the trailer and the truck this evening, which was long overdue after about 2,000 miles. The RV resort we have been staying at has been great, and I don't want to leave.

3/25: Drove to Austin today, and it was a great trip. We stopped at the Lyndon Johnson State Park and Historic Site, which includes the LBJ Ranch. It turned out to be a great experience, which started with a visit to a functioning farm circa 1915, complete with a staff of re-enacters who were engaged in typical activities of the period. The kitchen smelled wonderful, as the noon meal was being prepared on the woodstove. (The staff eats free!) The house is fully outfitted in period furniture. We were amazed to learn that the area did not receive electricity until 1955, and that horse plows outnumbered gasoline powered tractors until 1957. I recognized many of the antique tools like those that belonged to my grandfather. I continue to use them at home.

The LBJ Ranch is very much a working facility, with a herd of cattle and feed crops -managed by the National Park Service. The Johnson family still has access to it, and continues to visit regularly.

We were able to take a free (CD guided) tour of the LBJ Ranch, and then go on a guided tour of the "Western White House", where the president spent 25% of the time while he was in office. It was fascinating, and filled with memorabilia. The president sat in a comfortable, rustic office which he shared with two secretaries and his chief of staff. Outside there was a small house that accommodated the Secret Service, and some trailers that housed the flight crew for Air Force I. The ranch house is furnished exactly as the Johnsons left it - comfortable, unpretentious, and cozy. The ranch features a long air strip, and the original Lockheed Electra jet plane LBJ used to fly in. Overall, it is a beautiful, peaceful place that lent itself well to meetings with world leaders in an informal atmosphere.

The Most Beautiful Area in Texas?

Today we drove through the Texas hill country to Lost Maples State Park, which is described in brochures as the "most beautiful area in Texas". We drove along the Guadalupe River, which is stairstepped almost continuously with small dams that seem to have no purpose other than creating flat water for canoeing. The deciduous oaks and maples along the way have not yet sprouted their spring finery, and the remains of last year's grass are a parched appearing brown. The many wild flowers, including blue bonnets, that bloom in the spring time along the roadways have not started to bloom due to the lack of rain. Almost no rain has fallen here this winter; however, the rainiest months are April and May. This place usually receives about 30" of rain annually, and the low bridges at highway stream crossings all have "flood depth gauges".

Saw some interesting things, such as the fence with a used boot atop each post. The property's name was "The Last Resort". Maybe "Boot Hill" was nearby!!

Lost Maples State Park did not turn out to be very beautiful after all. Compared to the beauty we take for granted in good old Shasta County California, Texas so far does not even come close.

It was in the low 80's today, and Cooper had a great time running through the streams. He is a dirt and sticker magnet, so Donna gave him a bath in our shower this evening.

Texas Hill Country - Reminds Us of Home

After another day on the road, bucking 30 mph. winds nearly the whole way (so much for good gas mileage), we arrived at Kerrville, TX. We are staying in a great park with lots of grass, open space, lakes, and friendly people. This is the heart of the famous Texas hill country, birthplace of Lyndon Johnson and Admiral Nimitz. The area was settled by emigrants from Germany around 1840, who built the nearby town of Fredericksburg to resemble their homeland. Their original rustic stone houses are still scattered about the countryside. The place still maintains a distinct Germanic atmosphere, with restaurants featuring bratwurst, sauerkraut and German beers. It has great bakeries with authentic European goodies. German was spoken in the schools here until the outbreak of World War I.

An old guy at the town's museum - older than me that is, told of how the residents of Fredericksburg were opposed to slavery and sided with the Union during the civil war. The Confederates demanded they sign a loyalty oath or leave for Mexico. About 60 men left, but were ambushed and killed by the Confederates anyway and left as food for the buzzards. Their bones were later recovered and transported back to town for burial.

The Texas hill country looks very familiar as it consists of oak woodland reminiscent of Shasta County. The 2 lane roads here have a 70 mph speed limit! You can legally drive 80 mph on I-10 - wow.

We climbed a 450 foot tall pink granite dome known as Enchanted Rock this afternoon - the second largest granite mass in the country. The wind was blasting more than 40 mph on top, but the view was magnificent. Cooper climbed it with no difficulty.

Just noticed we have put 2,100 miles on the truck since we left Redding.