Woke up refreshed and ready to do a bit more sightseeing. As I said I am just a stones throw from the Alamo and the all its history, the fort and old church.
On the way there I pass a couple of skeletons chilling on on a bench. I think even the Victorians and their death photo’s would have found that a step too far. 🙂
Before I go in, there is a demonstration of musket/rifle shooting in the street. They have cordoned off a bit of the Main Street in front of the Alamo and at one end is a Texan policeman with his big Stetson hat and sunglasses. There are 4 people dressed in the fashion of the times, one is a woman, who starts the demonstration by firing her gun towards the policeman, it was extremely loud! 
The women had to be good shots and know how to use these guns well, to protect the children or for hunting, when the husband was away, often at war or trading and hunting.
The men then demonstrate firing and reloading as they would have done in the army. They have about 15 seconds to reload and fire. 
They did this about 3 times, again all in the direction of the Texan Policeman. Either they are all rotten shots or the policeman is as tough as he looks!
All of the guns are what they call smooth bore, which makes them less accurate, but much quicker to reload than something that has ‘rifling’ inside the barrel. You have to pour powder down the barrel then the ball, tamp it all down, etc etc.
The Alamo is a very interesting and entry is free. You can’t take photos inside as the building is not in great condition due to the salts in the mortar and moisture. There is delicate monitoring equipment that could be upset by a camera flash.
There is plenty to see and read outside though along with lots of good photo opportunities.
There is a man dressed in old style clothes, again with musket in hand talking about the history. He is a great raconteur and has gathered a good crowd. I stop to listen as well for a about 15 minutes. He talks about the Tejanos, who were Texans, but of Mexican parentage. They stood with the United Sates against the Mexicans at the Alamo, where many died. 
Here you can see the statue of Davy Crockett, who also died at the Alamo, along with numerous other statutes and various cannons that were actually used in the battle.
After the Alamo, I wandered around La Villita, which is an historic village in San Antonio, showing Mexican houses, food and crafts. I stopped at a cantina for lunch and read about the apparent benefits of Tequila!
I saw a plaque dedicated to the worlds best barbed wire salesman, Pete McManus. Although it was originally invented by a Frenchman, it was patented in the US in 1867. It took a few years to catch on with the ranchers, but then sales exploded. His young partner went on to form the Texas Company, which we know now as Texaco.
The river walkways here are beautiful, you can wander for miles below the level of the road enjoying nature and the scenery. Each bridge you pass under has the name of the street above written on it, so you always know where you are.
The loop that runs through central San Antonio has multiple bars, nightlife and restaurants as well as boats carrying tourists on city tours of the waterways. Statues and sculptures, as well as little waterfalls and fountains, complete the picturesque setting.
There are some beautiful wooden carvings in the shops and I even came across a Zoltar, fortune teller. For anyone who’s ever seen the film Big with Tom Hanks.
This evening, I am going to the Thirsty Horse Roadhouse and Dance Hall. It is an amazing place. There are literally hundreds of people here, not a social distance or mask in sight anywhere. The music is country and there are people line dancing in big groups or couples spinning around the dance floor, depending on the song or their preference.
It’s hard to give you an idea of the size of this place, but it was wonderful, incredibly lively and vibrant. Everybody was having a fabulous time from the looks of it. The band were excellent and played for hours. Their rendition of Tennessee Whisky was particularly good. 
The food I had, which were some chicken sliders with some mini taco’s thrown in for good measure were delicious. I chatted with one of the owners for a while, there are three of them, one of whom is English!
Being a fellow countryman earnt me a couple of Bourbons on the house!
I finally got back to the hotel at about 2am.