As a military child, I’ve moved several times. Although I have favorite things about each place I’ve lived, I don’t have a favorite per say. I have lived in the great state of Texas for the longest amount of time out of all of the places I’ve lived. In the spirit of summer and the possibility of road trips, I thought I would do a little blog series on fun things to do in some of the places I’ve lived. I hope that these little posts are helpful for those of y’all who are traveling this summer and might stop at these places and are looking for fun places to shop, eat, and explore. First up, SAN ANTONIO!
I lived in San Antonio, TX, during my junior and senior of
high school and was able to explore a lot while living there. My house was on
Fort Sam Houston and close to the downtown area, which was nice for exploring.
I’ve narrowed the list down to just a few things, so without further ado, here
are my top five things (in no particular order) to see & do in San Antonio!
1. Historic Pearl Brewery
The Historic Pearl Brewery is such a cool place! It‘s on the
end of the famous river walk and has so many fun things to do. There are cute
restaurants and cafes, gift stores, specialty stores, the culinary institute,
Aveda hair school, a yoga studio and so much more. On Saturdays during the
summer, there is a quaint farmer’s market with lots of foods, flowers, and
other vendors (and pets are welcome). When I was a senior in high school, I
actually took my prom pictures at the Pearl.
2. Original Donut (& Taco) Shop
Hidden on Fredericksburg Road, only the lucky know where
this gem is! This place has the best glazed yeast donuts in San Antonio hands
down. Being a good Texan, I love a good breakfast taco. I’ve had my fair share
of good and bad ones in SATX. I love the Original Donut shop because it is also
home to some of the BEST breakfast tacos I’ve ever had. The tortillas are
homemade right in front of you and are soooo good. Definitely a must try!
3. Bird Bakery and Alamo Heights
Alamo Heights and the Olmos Basin area of San Antonio are
some of the wealthier areas. The houses in each of those areas are so beautiful
and fun to drive past. Alamo Heights is on the outskirts of Fort Sam Houston
where I used to live. My family used to frequent that area for shopping and
eating out. There are several cute boutiques and specialty shops in Alamo
Heights. One of my favorites is the Bird Bakery on Broadway St. Armie Hammer
and Elizabeth Chambers (bother actors) own it. This bakery is the definition of
cute and offers delicious baked goods, sandwiches, drinks, and many other
things. They’ve recently expanded their space to offer more seating and a place
for small bridal or baby showers. Two of my favorite places to shop in Alamo
Heights are Bless Your Heart Giftique and the Sunset Ridge Hardware Store.
There is another shopping area with more options (i.e. Ann Taylor, Nordstrom
Rack, Restoration Hardware, James Avery, Francesca’s) and restaurants (P.F.
Chang’s, Fire Bowl, Urban Taco, Chili’s, Canyon Café, etc.) called The Quarry.
(The mini cupcakes, when ordered to-go come in a little egg carton)
4. Riverwalk, Downtown, and the Mercado
Without a doubt, the Riverwalk is the most touristy area of
San Antonio (and so are the prices). Nonetheless, it is still fun to take a
boat ride down the river and see some popular filming locations from Miss Congeniality,
Selena, and Spy Kids. Near to the Riverwalk is the Mercado and other dining
options. The Mercado has so many options of Spanish tiles to purchase. My house
has Spanish tile switch plates over the light switches and we have various
serving bowls and pots for plants. Next to the Mercado is a fun selection of
stores and restaurants, my favorite being Mi Tierra. This gem has so many
beautiful decorations and delicious foods and treats inside of its bakery. It
is open 24/7 and has the most delicious homemade tortillas and chicken
quesadillas. The fried ice cream is also delicious J Another spot of interest
downtown is of course the Alamo. [Sidenote for teachers: There
are free lesson
plans on the Alamo’s website for both 4th & 7th grade
and ideas for field trips] If you’re up for something quirky, yet fun, head
down to the Historic King William District and eat at the Guenther House or go
for tea at Madhatters Tea House & Café. Madhatters offers a very casual and
quirky atmosphere (just like the Mad Hatter from Alice in Wonderland) and is
pet friendly. There are more cafes around that area that I have heard are good,
but have not tried.
EXTRA: There is an adorable cookie
store downtown that sells cookies decorated for just about every holiday and
celebration, even Fiesta! It’s called Lily’s Cookies and is located on
McCullough Avenue.
Lily's Cookies Storefront
Fiesta Cookies
5. Tubing and Buc-ee’s
The last thing is about 35-40 minutes from San Antonio.
Tubing is a favorite pastime of a good Texan. There are many places around
Texas to go tubing, but my family’s favorite is on the Comal River in New
Braunfels, TX. The Comal is much cleaner and nicer compared to the Guadalupe
River. There are many places to rent tubes from, but my family uses TexasTubes. The company is very nice and offers onsite parking by the river and a
shuttle back to your car after tubing. Going down the river takes about 3ish
hours and is very relaxing. My favorite part is going through the tube shoots!
Once you’re done with tubing, you have to stop at Buc-ee’s. What is Buc-ee’s
you ask? A gas station! Why would anyone want to go to a gas station? Because
it’s more than a gas station! Buc-ee’s offers a wide variety of things such as
homemade meat jerky, tubes, shirts, home décor, Texas memorabilia, trail mix,
candy, delicious made-to-order foods, desserts, and the cleanest bathrooms this
side of the Mississippi. You can even have you’re picture taken with Buc-ee the
Beaver! Take my word for it and don’t knock it til you try it.
These are my top five things to do in San Antonio and I hope
that you get to try some of them if you are visiting or passing through this
summer. If you want more suggestions, just shoot me an email or leave me a
comment!
Thanks for reading and I hope you’ll join me next week for
another post!
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