Some Like it Hot - Wed., Aug. 14

If you're someone who likes it hot, then San Antonio, Texas, would be right up your alley. Early morning temperatures in the summer are 82° degrees. Today, the high is expected to be 99° with a 20% chance of afternoon and evening thunderstorms. When you plan to do an 11K (6.8 mi.) walk in the mid-summer Texas heat, it's best to start early.

I was up at 5 a.m. with a plan to start my Volksmarch in the Broadway neighborhood by 7 a.m. Didn't happen, but I did make it by 8 a.m. (It is said, the pathway to somewhere hot is lined with good intentions.)

If you like it hot, then the Broadway Daily Bread Company would be a good place for you to get your morning coffee and some pastry while it's fresh. That was the start point of the walk.

Thankfully, this walk spent about 80% of the time in the deep shade of old live oaks or on park walking trails. Having long morning shadows helped too.

The walk started by going around the block behind the bakery in a stately old neighborhood, through a small shopping center, past HEB's Central Market and onto the campus of University of the Incarnate Word. The university is getting ready for new student orientation on August 19. Construction workers, early new arrivals with their parents, and those preparing for the arrival of new students were out and about on campus today. It wasn't very crowded.

Photos at University of the Incarnate Word:

Cemetery at the University.

Beautiful iron bridge.

 Do you think maybe the mascot at this university might be a cardinal??

This cardinal was nice enough to strike a pose.

Cardinal sculpture at Benson Stadium.

A meditation maze on the side of a footpath.

Below is a photo of St. Brigid's Oak, a live oak tree that is approximately 600 years old, dedicated to St. Brigid of Kildare (451-525 AD).

Live oak (Quercus virginiana)

Fall???

"In Celebration of Children's Play," by Joe and Betty Frost.

"Classmates," by Paul Tadlock

1881 school insignia in walkway.

Below is the lovely Jordan Carillon Clock Tower. I got to hear it play music at 9 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.

Jordan Carillon clock tower.

Stained glass as seen from inside the clock tower.

Another perspective.

George Washington Brackenridge Villa with sculpture.

From the university, the walk took me down Broadway just past the Witte (pronounced witty) Museum and into Brackenridge Park. I love walks in Brackenridge Park on tree-shaded trails. Here are photos of the park and surrounds.

Gate to the Witte Museum grounds.

The start of the San Antonio River.

Turtles sunning.

A photo from the old days taken in the San Antonio River.

The restaurant below looks like good place to eat. We'll have to try it. It's called Bombay Bicycle Club Grille.

Next destination in Brackenridge Park: the Chinese/Japanese Tea Garden. This garden is built on the site of an old quarry. Don't you just love all the rock work?

The Japanese Garden waterfalll

Japanese Garden Pavilion

The pond surrounded by rock work and filled with koi.

Koi polloi.

Another koi.

Lotus blossoming.

Lotus blossoms.

Pavilion.

So, I'm walking along the trail toward the San Antonio Zoo. Off to my left, I see a wooden enclosure with two furry critters in it. At first I think it's a rabbit pen in the middle of nowhere. Didn't make sense. So I zoomed in and found that someone is feeding stray cats here. One of the cats spooked when I turned on my camera and beat feet out of there, but I was able to get a photo of one of them.

Stray cat feeding station.

Agave in bloom.

Dragonfly on water lily pad.

Water lily in bloom.

On the opposite side of the river people and their kids were feeding the ducks. The two youngsters below were as still as stone. I almost missed them. But when I zoomed in I realized they were ducklings. Beautiful!

The pattern of falling water.

Wilderness Trail in Brackenridge Park.

Grass seed pods in morning light.

I did this walk by myself. Even though it took two hours and 45 minutes (because of all the stops to take photos) to do 6.8 miles, it didn't feel near that long because of all the things to look at. When I'm out walking I'm always glad I got out and did it. It's so easy to stay inside in the air conditioning and watch movies, read magazines and blogs, but it's essential for me to exercise and enjoy the natural world. This particular walk is an excellent one to do on a summer morning. I like it hot, but I also like shade.

Travel Bug out.

The end.

Rising to New Heights -- Sun., Mar. 24

Off on our adventure at 10:30 a.m. First destination the Japanese Tea Garden at Brackenridge Park. But it wasn't always the Japanese Tea Garden. Here's the unfortunate history.

In the early 1900s the San Antonio City Parks Department wanted to beautify the old Portland Cement quarry. A Japanese Tea Garden was conceived to fill the space. Japanese artist Kimi Eizu Jingu was enlisted to assist in the design of an authentic Japanese Tea Garden. Numerous plants from gardens in Japan were imported to imbue authenticity. A house was constructed on the site using rocks from the old quarry and the Jingu family was moved in to become overseers of the facility. In 1926, the Jingus opened a tea house in the upper level of their home. Mr. Jingu became famous internationally for his knowledge of teas.

The Jingu family remained in their home in the garden until shortly after the December 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor. The resulting general fear and resentment by the American public caused the Jingu family to be removed from the garden and the name was changed to the Chinese Tea Garden. It was at that time the Chinese-style entry was added bearing the inscription "Chinese Tea Garden." The name was not changed back to Japanese Tea Garden until the 1970s!

Trumpet flowers.

"Entrance to Chinese Tea Garden"

The Pavilion at Japanese Tea Garden

Koi polloi.

Texas Gold Columbine

Jerusalem sage (phlomis fruticosa)

Japanese Garden bridge and waterfall.

Jan, Bob, Mom--Looks warm, but it was COLD!!

Grasses and bridge.

Blue plumbago flowers (?)

Turtle swimming underwater.

Trail from Japanese Garden to San Antonio Zoo.

We took a 20-minute miniature railway ride through Brackenridge Park.

Brackenridge Park

Mom, me, Jan

Brackenridge Park

We wanted to show Mom and Jan another part of the Riverwalk so we parked at Pearl Brewery and walked to the San Antonio Art Museum. Along the way, we saw the artwork of Carlos Cortes (designer of The Grotto using Faux Bois [false wood] technique), and the fish sculptures hanging under the freeway.

Black-bellied whistling ducks.

Black-bellied whistling duck at Pearl Brewery Riverwalk.

American coot.

San Antonio Riverwalk at Pearl Brewery Complex.

Interesting grasses.

Concrete art of Carlos Cortes.

San Antonio Art Museum from Museum Reach on the Riverwalk.

Fish art under a freeway.

Ducklings with no momma duck. Awwww.

Carlos Cortes art at The Grotto.

What type of flower or bloom is this?

Upon finishing our loop walk, we stopped in downtown San Antonio to walk another part of the Riverwalk. We quickly visited The Alamo, watched the movie and walked the grounds. All of us were very hungry so we went back to our respective dwellings to eat and relax before Mom's birthday dinner tonight.

Explosive new growth on cacti at The Alamo.

For our evening entertainment, I had purchased a Groupon a couple of months ago for admission to Tower of the Americas Observation Deck and Skies Over Texas 4-D theater experience. Before dinner we watched Skies Over Texas. What a hoot that was! All of us enjoyed the experience.

Then we took the elevator to new (for us) heights--the Observation Deck of Tower of the Americas. Tower of the Americas at 750' tall was built in 1968.

It was a beautiful, clear afternoon and our 360-degree panorama was unobstructed by clouds, humidity or dust. The Observation Deck has photos around the inside identifying city landmarks we could see. Texas history write ups lined the walls. Mom was most amazed by camels in Texas. She had no idea camels had been imported for use in the hot, arid conditions. That idea did not work out in the long run because camels apparently smell horrible, have cantankerous personalities and the horses who had to work with the camels were terrified of them. Oops.

An outside observation area is available as well. However, howling, icy-cold winds kept us inside, except for a foray outside to take a couple of photos.

Looking south from Tower of the Americas.

Reading history of Texas.

The Alamodome as seen from the Tower.

Jan, Bob, Mom

Jan, me, Mom

Dinnertime...we took the elevator down two levels to the Chart House. Our reservation was just before sunset so we saw evening turn to night and watched the city lights come on. Truly beautiful.

Bob, Susan, Jan, Mom, and San Antonio at night.

So, after dinner we headed back to see Skies Over Texas. The show was so much fun we wanted to see it again.

Bob and Mom hamming it up in 3-D glasses.

The wind had died down so we walked a little on the Riverwalk. It certainly looks different at night! Fun to see it with all the people gone and the city lit up.

Waterfalls in Hemisfair Park outside Tower of the Americas.
We think there was a BASF convention in town.

Tower of the Americas at night with moon.

Part of the Convention Center.

Riverwalk Mall neon and lighted bridge--Riverwalk.

The end.

Travel Bug out.