As far as spring breaks go, mine have been pretty mellow, to say the least. Instead of journeying to some island paradise to bathe in an ocean of alcohol and vomit, I usually head to the calm, quiet oasis that is northern New Mexico to enjoy breathtaking vistas and delicious food.
…in other words, I usually go home.
This year was different though. There was no denying I had been waiting to take a trip to a new place, anxious to wander around, and see what I would see. This time I found myself in San Antonio, Texas.
This trip was in the making for the last three months. Between finding sights to see and reserving hotels, I ended up being consumed by the trip long before spring break had even started.
The plan was to leave for San Antonio at the crack of dawn Saturday morning. We had a couple of friends meeting us from Albuquerque, and we wanted to make sure we were all on the same page (or, at least, the same city) before making our way.
I awoke to screeching call of my alarm clock at the ungodly hour of 4:30 a.m. My eyelids felt like dumbbells, but the excitement for the trip lifted me off my bed ready to leave. Bags packed, our group piled into the seats of a hefty GMC Yukon and we were on our way.
As we drove out of El Paso, the rolling desert hills and plains had become a common site for those of us familiar to the borderland. We heard the trip was boring, and I honestly didn’t know what to expect for the road ahead. For all five of us in the car, this was the furthest east any of us had ever driven before.
The drive took us through small towns lined with fast food restaurants and RV parks. We traveled through winding mesa valleys covered in miles of industrial-sized windmill forests that stretched as far as the eye could see. As we hit Sonora, Texas, the landscape had changed completely.
I was taken back by how green everything was. For some reason, my vision of San Antonio was nothing more than a desert city like El Paso or Albuquerque. I had no idea it would look like a place that seemed to belong to Missouri geographically than it did to the Southwest. It was a pleasant surprise.
After the eight-and-a-half-hour drive, we had finally made it. Our hotel suite was located on the ninth floor in a location that was just minutes from downtown and the infamous San Antonio River walk. It had to be our first stop.
We arrived just as the sun was setting. Horse-drawn carriages and neon lights began to illuminate the streets. There was no sign of slowing down, the city was just starting to come alive. After managing to stumble across the Alamo, we walked around and eventually had dinner at the Hard Rock Café on the Riverwalk. We were tired, but it was a good first day.
The next morning we found ourselves taking a two-hour detour to Corpus Christi for a day out on the beach. As cumbias blasted from the stereo system of the Yukon, the trek became a pilgrimage of sorts to the land of Tejano Music. We were on a mission to see the Selena Monument and visit the nostalgic coast side stairs made famous from the Tejano star’s biographical film.
A couple of sunburns and ‘washing machines’ later and we were calling the mission accomplished—anything for Selenas.
As day three rolled around, we got up early to beat the crowds at Six Flags Fiesta Texas back in San Antonio. The day was marked with towering roller coasters and Bugs Bunny. I guess you could say we all missed that left turn back in Albuquerque.
Tuesday was a day spent window shopping at a local mall and eating at a popular tourist destination known as El Mariachi Bar. The restaurant was a massive building heavily adorned with Mexican art and religious works. The centerpiece of the restaurant was a massive mural commemorating famous Latinos from around the region.
The food was good, but we all agreed New Mexican food was hard to beat…especially without chile.
Later that night, we journeyed to the AT&T Center and watched the Spurs take on the Los Angeles Clippers. The game was close until the fourth quarter when San Antonio ran away with the lead. The atmosphere in the area was awesome, and is definitely something to experience in person.
Our final day in San Antonio was one marked as typical tourists. We wandered around the Riverwalk for a second time, had lunch as an Irish pub to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, braved a house of mirrors and visited the historic San Fernando Cathedral in downtown.
As the sun began to set, we retired to our hotel early to enjoy an evening by the outdoor pool. We ordered pizza and made s’mores. The trip was amazing, and the bittersweet reminder of leaving for home in the morning was in the back of all of our minds.
We arrived in New Mexico as the sun began to set and had a dinner that consisted of hot salsa and green chile cheeseburgers.
The following day was one spent saying good-bye to friends as they made their way back to Albuquerque and catching up on homework. The trip definitely beat staying home for the holiday, if only my wallet would agree.