The boys dove into their binders. Makaela was the first to take a nap, her mommy’s daughter. This time I didn’t fall asleep. I always tend to, but I guess I was too excited. I also was the “navigator” as we decided to not take I35 to San Antonio but go a back way through Marble Falls.
We hit Marble Falls at lunch and decided to eat at Chili’s on the lake. I remembered being there about 9 years ago for my bachelorette party. Wow have things changed! From that Saturday long ago riding a jet ski across the lake, to sitting there keeping up with my daughter sitting next to me. Crazy!!
The stop was a good one. What a way to start a summer trip- eating lunch on a lake watching boats go by!!!
When we got to San Antonio we checked into the hotel. We stayed at the Embassy Suites on the river. I highly recommend them. They were very nice, the rooms, hotel, and the people that worked there. Since we found a good deal online the price wasn’t bad either. It has valet parking so we had a bellhop load all our luggage on a cart and take it upstairs to our room for us. I have to say that was SO nice. All I had to worry about was keeping up with 5 energetic kids as John checked us in. The kids thought it was awesome and that was just the lobby. It had a nice little rock waterfall in a sitting area. Then we were up in our room on the 10th floor to check out the view.
The pool was on the roof of the third floor and that amazed the boys. Makaela decided to remind me that she is still a climber by climbing up on the chair on the balcony as I stepped in to plug in my phone. I am SO glad there was a man above us that saw her and started yelling at the boys. I went out there and caught her before she stood up. So, after that she was NOT allowed out on the balcony without an adult. She always keeps us on our toes!
After a short down time and changing the kids shirts we walked over to church. I took some pictures as John tried to make sure we went the right way.
The church we decided to go to was San Fernando Cathedral near the riverwalk. The church is part of the oldest parish in Texas. The settlers arrived in 1731 and the work on the church begun in 1738. Part of the original church is still standing, making this the oldest standing structure in Texas. It is a beautiful church. We got to mass early so we walked through the small museum and gift shop they have.
It is also where James Bowie was married and even though some historians argue the authenticity of this, he was exhumed and placed in a marble coffin at the back of the church.
Here is a picture of the alter. The gold in the background is what I believe they were talking about as part of the original church. Now I’m wishing I took more pictures of the church and went on a tour, there was a lot of the church I missed. We used John’s IPhone to take a few pictures. I didn’t think about grabbing the camera when we left for church.
The crucifix below was really neat. I thought it was like the one my Mimi had told us a story about. In Mexico in the 1600’s a man tried to poison the bishop because he did not agree with what the church was doing. During that time the church was trying to keep people from taking advantage of the native people and spreading Christianity. So, this man studied the bishop and found that before mass he would kiss the feet of the crucifix. He put a poison on the feet that would have killed the bishop instantly. One account says that as the bishop went to kiss the feet, the feet were lifted and the poison went through the crucifix turning the once white marble to black. Another account says that it turned black as the poison was applied. Both accounts have the man confessing what he had done and becoming a believer. The crucifix was moved to a cathedral in now Mexico City and has a wide spread devotion. After looking up the story online and trying to figure out if this was a replica of the one my Mimi told us about, I found that there are other “black” crucifixes in South American. I have now emailed the historical center at the church to find out the story behind their Miraculous Black Christ. As you can tell from the pictures many hang pictures of their loved ones that they say prayers for at the crucifix. If you look at the feet up close they are discolored. I’m sure this is because of people touching and kissing the feet. As I was trying to get a picture of the plaque a older gentleman started praying, so I waited to take my picture. When he was finished he kissed and rubbed the feet still praying.
After church we walked back to the hotel via the riverwalk and stopped at a restaurant to eat dinner. We got back to the hotel early to get some sleep before our trip to Sea World the next day. I couldn’t wait!