The Heart of Texas

As Mark said before, Day 10 would comprise of a visit with the Webbs before heading out to San Antonio. Realizing that one of the best ways to see a city is to ask the locals, we asked for a recommendation for lunch that would accommodate our traveling with Kahlua. They did not disappoint! We arrived at this funky taco stand with outdoor picnic tables [truthfully the interior was so tiny they were our only option] called TacoDeli. Apparently they won best taco at some point. It was easy to see why -- they were delicious! And they had Coca-Cola in glass bottles -- BONUS!

Following lunch the Webbs suggested we take a hike on the Austin Greenbelt. We were in search of an oasis where we could dip our feet and let Kahlua splash around. Unfortunately, due to the current drought overtaking the state of Texas [at least where we were] our oasis turned into what amounted to a little pond maybe 30 yards across, but it was deep enough for Kahlua to swim around like an otter. He laid down in the shallow end and then swam the length to the other side and back. We didn't have the camera with us, but take my word for it he was adorable! Even though we didn't reach our destination [although many people passed us carrying coolers and the like] it was an enjoyable hike with wonderful conversation and even better company! Bad news was that Kahlua was so filthy we had to give him a bath in the hotel shower after dinner.

Bidding farewell to our gracious hosts it was time to get back on the road to San Antonio. A short drive allowed us to grab a quick shower and dress up before taking a walk to track down the infamous San Antonio Riverwalk. With a little effort we were able to find it -- and every human being in the town of San Antonio. To say it was packed is an understatement. I'm really surprised there weren't people falling into the river given that we were shoulder to shoulder and there were sections of the walk that had no railings. 

I think we also expected to see more shops, aside from the CVS and occasional [read: really non-existent] trinket store it was restaurant after restaurant. To make it worse most of them were touristy chain restaurants. Most of them had half an hour to one hour waits. We did manage to find a barbeque restaurant in one of the hotels that was less populated and was actually pretty tasty. The fresh-made guacamole prepared tableside was delicious. They also had one of the best restaurant tres-leches I've ever had. Doesn't compare to my cousin Evelyn's tres leches, but it was a close approximation. 


Our plan tomorrow is to stop by the Alamo for a few pictures and then set out for our first national park of the trip, Carlsbad Caverns. I'm very excited for it!