At 6:00PM, I'm up and headed to the lounge to pick up a couple of coffees. Packing up is pretty easy since all that I brought in last night was my netbook and a change of clothes.
Around 9:00PM, I check out and head over to the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historic Park in town.
They've got some interesting exhibits...and President Johnson's boyhood home is on the sight. But the real attraction is the LBJ Ranch about fourteen miles outside of Johnson City. Once there, you take a driving tour of the site...including the house where LBJ was born, the cemetery where he and Lady Bird are buried, and the airstrip.
I would like to have seen the "Texas White House", but you can only get to that as part of a tour...and there are a LOT of people in line for the tour (estimated wait was two hours).
So...instead, I head west to the town of Kerrville for lunch at Buzzie's BBQ...one Of Texas Monthly Magazine's Top 50. Along the way, I make a stop at Messina Hof Winery. I have had their "Texas Port" before, and it was pretty good. So...I taste five or six wines and leave with two bottles of Port.
I would rate Buzzie's
very
good, but not great. The brisket was tender with a nice crust, and the sausage was very good. The potato and bean side dishes were just OK.
Now I have a choice on my route to San Antonio. I can take the Interstate and be there in an hour...or...I can take the "scenic route" down Route 16. I opt for "scenic", and I am rewarded with a beautiful drive down through, around, over and up the "hills" of the Texas "Hill Country". Along the way, I stop for a few beers at maybe my "diviest" bar stop ever...the "Wild Horse Saloon"...which is basically an old shack with a very leaky roof. Inside, I meet Ronnie and Pearl, and Ronnie spends quite a bit of time explaining the finer points of catching, cleaning and frying the local catfish.
The drive to San Antonio takes over four hours (with a few stops), and it's after 5:00PM when I finally get to San Antonio. I tried booking a room at a Days Inn online this morning, but that wasn't working...so I called and booked. But now, I find that they booked me at the wrong Days Inn...one that's several miles from downtown. So...I spend an hour on the phone getting that fixed.
The folks at the "correct" Days Inn are very nice. They charge for parking but, if I detach the camper in the corner of the parking lot, they won't charge me. This is not the cleanest or most modern Days Inn around...but, at $50.00/night downtown and four blocks from the Riverwalk, I'll take it.
I unpack a few things, shower, shave and change clothes before heading out for a night of entertainment. There are LOTS of bars and restaurants on the Riverwalk as well as on the streets above. It's the perfect environment for barhopping. They make their Margaritas pretty strong here so, after two of those, I make the "beer switch".
Around 9:00PM, I'm feeling a bit hungry, so I stop at Landry's...an "upscale" seafood chain out of Houston. A plate of fried oysters and a few beers are just what I need.
A few more stops and, before I know it, it's almost midnight.
A nice walk back to the hotel...a little television...bed.
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