Texas

Just a few days earlier, the Guadalupe River was so high that it was over the bridge that crosses it about 100 yards downstream from here. On Bubba's Big Deck, Gruene, TX [?]

Somewhere on River Road outside Gruene, TX [?]

This is the excellent stuff I brought back from San Antonio. My host rosenbeans and I love lotería -- her lucky lotería card is La Chalupa (the boat) and mine is El Nopal (the cactus). We were on a mission to find this new set designed by San Antonio artist Cristina Sosa Noriega. We drove to an H-E-B Plus superstore way on the other side of town to score these. While we were there, I got the Virgin of Guadalupe candle. You can read the story about bringing the candle back to Massachusetts here . The milagros and talavera tiles came from a very nice vendor at Bussey's Flea Market .

If it hadn't been raining so much on Friday morning, we would have taken the river taxi from El Tropicano Hotel up to SAMA. The rain finally let up and we walked around the River Walk after lunch at the café. We never saw one river taxi come by. See where this picture was taken. [?]

At the café at SAMA (San Antonio Museum of Art), overlooking the River Walk. Molly, Amy and I had lunch here. I played with my camera while they checked their tweets on their phones. See where this picture was taken. [?]

This installation is F.I.S.H. by Donald Lipski. There are dozens of these fiberglass fish, which light up at night, hanging in the I-35 underpass. The long-eared sunfish is native to the San Antonio River. See where this picture was taken. [?]

The River Walk was recently extended up past SAMA to the Pearl Brewery. There are various art installations along the way. This is part of the grotto done by faux bois artist Carlos Cortéz: www.studiocortes.com/

Casa Rosenbeans contributed to the project to extend the River Walk up to SAMA, and they've got a brick to prove it. See where this picture was taken. [?]

River Walk. San Antonio Museum of Art (SAMA) is on the left. This is the new part of the River Walk, called Museum Reach, which opened in 2009. See where this picture was taken. [?]

River Walk near SAMA. I like the different shapes of the arches. See where this picture was taken. [?]

It isn't papel any more -- it's plastic. Hanging over the River Walk, along the Museum Reach. See where this picture was taken. [?]

From what I can glean on Flickr, this was an art shop. Not sure what it is now. It's a lone clapboard building set back from the street. See where this picture was taken. [?]

Stencil of Our Lady of Guadalupe, by Rico. See where this picture was taken. [?]

S. Alamo Street. See where this picture was taken. [?]

S. Alamo Street. See where this picture was taken. [?]

Mural near Mission Concepción. See where this picture was taken. [?]

Mural near Mission Concepción. See where this picture was taken. [?]

The Pig Stand faced an uncertain future when I was last in San Antonio in 2007. Reopened under new management, it's now a motorcycle drive-in called Frank's Hog Stand. Let's ride! See where this picture was taken. [?]