San Antonio Photos

I went to San Antonio in August with my mom and sisters.

Kaktus Korral: Cactus ranch, period clothing & gun store. Only in Texas. Now, our Deutsch speakers might be asking themselves why the store's name is written in German ("Kaktus Korral" is German for "Cactus Corral" in English). I'm not certain about this, but my guess is that the spelling has something to do with the fact this part of central Texas was a popular area with early German-speaking immigrants to the USA.

We went to Mi Tierra for dinner one night. I stuffed myself with a combination plate that was delicious. Great Mexican food. Man, I miss it. The gentlemen carrying guitars are mariachis.

A cacaphony of colors. These are some of the decorations hanging from the ceilings in Mi Tierra. When we first arrived at the restaurant, we were told that we'd have to wait 2 hours for a table. Fortunately we were seated after waiting "only" an hour or so.

We stayed in a hotel overlooking the Riverwalk, and most of the following pictures were taken in that area.

San Antonio River Walk - I think this is part of the La Mansion hotel, but I'm not certain.

Fire Escape!

Built in 1926, the building now known as the Emily Morgan Hotel is one of several San Antonio landmarks that exhibit a distinct Gothic architectural style (more German influence?).

The Casino Club was San Antonio's first social club and theater. The club was chartered in 1857 by 106 German-speaking male immigrants. I found some relatively interesting history about one of those immigrants, Carl (Karl?) Hilmar Guenther.

I've been on a few Riverwalk boat tours in my times. Take one if it's your first time in San Antonio. It's relatively inexpensive, and will give you a good overview of the Riverwalk area.

San Antonio

Kress was a national chain of variety / five and dime stores in the early 20th century. Kress maintained its own architectural department which was tasked with designing new buildings to fit in with local architectural styles. The San Antonio Kress building, built in 1939, incorporates stylized architectural elements borrowed from Spanish mission architecture (the Spanish constructed a number of Catholic missions in Texas, of which The Alamo is the most famous).

Walgreen Drugs (Apotheke). Serving you since 1936...

The Nix Professional Building was built in 1931.

I think this level of architectural detail on such a modern high rise is pretty impressive. (Nix Professional Building)

When it was constructed, the Nix Building was the tallest hospital in the USA. It's still the 6th tallest hospital in the world.

San Antonio - Can someone tell me a little about the building(s) in this photo?

San Antonio - Another view from the Riverwalk. The building on the left is the Nix building again.

Who can tell me the name of the hotel on the right - the one with the big US flag in the window?

San Antonio at night - including the Kress and Emily Morgan buildings.

That's got to be pretty embarrassing, getting a traffic ticket from a cop on a bicycle...

I believe this is the Riverwalk side of the Hilton Palacio del Rio. Can someone confirm that for me?

San Antonio - historical marker with information about one of San Antonio's notable German immigrants, Fredinand Ludwig Herff.