This is part of Norm Frampton’s Thursday Doors Link-up. Visit his page and click on the little froggy link to find a list of other participants. You’ll be glad you did.
So a buncha years ago, Charlie and I drove down to San Antonio to visit #4 daughter, who was living there at that time. Here are some of the sights we saw.
The McNay Art Museum was beautiful outside and in. But I could only take pictures outside.
The most bestest gorgeousest place was the Japanese Tea Garden. It was endlessly beautiful.
One of the many wonderful places to visit in downtown San Antonio is the Spanish Governor’s Palace, built in the early 1700s.
Also, of course, the fan-freakin’-tastic Riverwalk, but it has either no doors or too many doors, depending on how you look at it. So….
Here’s a two-for-one, with one door and two stories. San Antonio is hot, yes? So we’re tooling downtown to tour with the driver’s side window down, ’cause that’s how we roll. And we parked. And the window would not roll up. Would. Not. Even cussing it didn’t work. So Charlie had to take off the panel and strip out the insulation and make it go up. Because we were told we did not want to leave a car in downtown San Antonio that was accessible to theft. I mean, we could have locked it? But the window was down? So what’s the point? But Charlie forced it up and we locked the car and went off on our tour, hot and sweaty and irritated. Some fun, eh?
BUT THEN the day was totally saved for me, because we came across this tiny house at the edge of a parking lot. It was closed, so we didn’t get to go in, BUT —
Tiny house!
Guess what it was! THE O. HENRY HOUSE! The sign next to it said that O. Henry lived in that house, but not on that spot. During some round of construction or renovation, the house was saved, preserved, and moved to its current location, which had been the site of one of the bars O. Henry frequented. Could it BE more perfect? I think not.
For a fun time and an off-hand tour of San Antonio, rent or buy and watch Cloak and Dagger, one of my fave-rave movies. It’s set in San Antonio, and runs into, out of, and all around a lot of the tourist spots. Also: Dabney Coleman as a good guy. How often do you see that? Like, never?
For refreshment, we went to a fruiteria and got fruit cups; a mixture of chunks of freshly cut fruit, including avocados! Oh, SO delicious!
That’s my ever-lovin’ husband in the jaunty hat.
A WRITING PROMPT FOR YOU: What refreshes your main character after a frustrating day?
MA
Dan
March 24, 2016 at 7:20amI love thd O. Henry house! That’s adorable (no pun intended). Kudos to hubs for figuring out the window thing.
Marian Allen
March 24, 2016 at 8:44amThere isn’t much my guy can’t figure out. Always with the exception, of course, of what I’m so ticked off with him about. heh
Jane
March 24, 2016 at 9:18amWhat a lovely tour.
Thanks.
The Monte Carlo’s driver’s door was NEVER right, and Mom bought the sucker new! Wish Charlie had been around to fix it! Instead I had to improvise on a number of occasions when various functions failed me at the worst moments!
Owning a car is like sipping from a cup of bliss full of ice with a paper umbrella stuck in. And cherries.
Marian Allen
March 24, 2016 at 10:55amUnderstand, he HAS been known to “fix” it by propping it shut with a block of wood. BUT IT’S FIXED. REALLY FIXED.
Jane
March 25, 2016 at 10:51amYes. Like the time my car door wouldn’t shut, and I was far from home with no idea how to fix it with what I had with me. I wound up lashing the door to the car with my seat belt.
Marian Allen
March 25, 2016 at 12:13pmGo, you!
Jan
March 24, 2016 at 12:14pmThe River Walk is really nice, isn’t it. Love the O’Henry cabin.
Joey
March 24, 2016 at 1:15pmGreat doors! Love the tea garden, I don’t recall seeing that…
You know, I hate power windows and locks. I really do. We had an old gray van (The old gray van, she ain’t what she usta be) and my husband must have fiddled with the stupid window motor 20 times before he gave up and left the panel off. Tacky, yes, but it sure saved some time.
Marian Allen
March 24, 2016 at 1:59pmYeah, we drove that car around with the panel off for years, then gave it to one of the kids. I don’t think that panel ever did get put back on. Whatever works, right?
norm 2.0
March 24, 2016 at 1:15pmLove the O Henry house too. I’m glad to see that many museums are finally getting with the times and allowing photography inside their doors. As longs as it’s done without hindering the enjoyment of others and without using flash there really is no reason to forbid it.
Marian Allen
March 24, 2016 at 2:02pmI think the reason is that the gift shops want to sell reproductions of the collection. I can understand that. But, since I’m usually wanting to take pictures of the doors, windows, floors, ceilings, trim, flowers, or bathrooms, it doesn’t make much sense in my particular case. heh
Jean Reinhardt
March 24, 2016 at 2:53pmAmazing images, Marian. Some very Spanish looking. We’ve recently bought an old house not much bigger than O. Henry’s. You can imagine just how much downsizing we’ll have to do with our furniture and belongings if we ever want to live permanently in it. 🙂
Marian Allen
March 25, 2016 at 8:48amREALLY, Jean???? That’s so cool!!!! What caused you to choose a tiny house, if you don’t mind my asking? If you DO mind, make up something good. heh! Are you getting a lot of convertible, built-in, fold-away furniture? I could spend hours looking at that stuff.
Jean Reinhardt
March 25, 2016 at 7:01pmI want to retire sometime over the next year, Marian, so we’ve bought a small four berth boat and two bed house nearer to family and grandchildren. The house needs a lot of work but at least we’ll be rent free and can spend lots of time floating up and down the inland waterways of Ireland. At least, that’s the plan. Hopefully, we won’t have to sell the boat to finish off the house.
Marian Allen
March 26, 2016 at 8:09amOoo, how wonderful! I’m looking forward to lots of pictures of the house and boat and waterways! Do you follow The Diesel-Electric Elephant? Ian just bought a narrowboat and will be living on the canals of England. 🙂
Jean Reinhardt
March 26, 2016 at 12:48pmThanks for that link, Marian. I’m off now to have a look at Ian’s blog.
Deborah aka CircadianReflections
March 24, 2016 at 8:56pmGreat tour and the O Henry House was a great find!
Marian Allen
March 25, 2016 at 8:49amI love tiny houses, and I love O. Henry, so I would have been bouncing off the walls if there had been a wall big enough to receive the bounce. lol
Shelly
March 24, 2016 at 9:42pmWhat a cute little house! I took the virtual tour, wow there’s a bunch of space around the door. I can’t imagine the critters that must sneak inside.
I love Japanese Tea Gardens, well I’ve only been to the one in San Francisco but it was so cool.
Looks like you had a fun trip!
Marian Allen
March 25, 2016 at 8:51amIt was a super trip, Shelly! If you ever get a chance to visit San Antonio, do. We could have spent two weeks instead of a few days, and still not see a fraction of what’s there.
janet
March 24, 2016 at 10:48pmHaven’t been to San Antonio since I was a child, but I remember the Riverwalk just a little. I’m sure it’s much different now. Love the O. Henry house.
janet
Marian Allen
March 25, 2016 at 8:55amThe Riverwalk is beautiful, but packed with tourists like us. Still, it’s possible to bypass the touristyest bits and spend some time alone with the plants and the river. A lovely experience.
Damyanti
March 25, 2016 at 6:05amGosh ! O. Henry house? And such lovely photos, Marian!
Marian Allen
March 25, 2016 at 8:57amThanks, Dami. Yes, I was surprised! I knew O. Henry spent time in the southwest, and loved his southwest-set stories as much as his Manhattan-set ones, but I had no idea I’d see his actual house! It was an unexpected piece of serendipity. 🙂 Well, DUH, serendipity IS unexpected, by definition!
Roy A Ackerman
March 25, 2016 at 8:14amI always love how we “save” old structures by moving to where they weren’t. It loses all for me…
Marian Allen
March 25, 2016 at 8:59amIf the choice is between moving a structure and bulldozing it, I prefer moving it. And the fact that they moved it to a location ALSO associated with him — and that that location had been a bar — added to it for me. ~grin~
John Clax
August 19, 2016 at 7:09amWhat a cute little O Henry House! Wish I was staying there. Thanks for taking us on a virtual tour.
Marian Allen
August 19, 2016 at 8:26amDo you like tiny houses, too? I love them! I want to move into a tiny house in the back yard, and turn the house we live in into a library. ha!
Trevor McClintock
January 20, 2017 at 5:21pmThe tea garden looked absolutely spectacular! lovely visuals – cheers marian for sharing.
Marian Allen
January 20, 2017 at 6:45pmThanks, Trevor!