More from San Antonio

Went out today and walked around. After last night's party, I'm surprised I could even get out of bed. (Can you say hangover?) It's after 4 now and I'm finally coming alive after having a big breakfast and a great buger at Pat O'Briens for lunch.

So, I have some pictures to share, mostly of the Alamo. I'm heading back out after this post and hope to get some more pics before it gets too dark. Plus the wind has come up and it's clouding over, though I don't think there is any rain in the forecast. (I hope.)

The Alamo

Cannon from the Garrison

A Letter from the Alamo

Another view of the Mission

San Antonio Riverwal (small section)

Waxy O'Conners Irish Pub

(Yes, the Guiness is mine)

San Antone Bound (For non-Texans, that's San Antonio)

Decided I needed to get out of town for a few days, so I'll be heading to San Antonio for the weekend. Took a day of vacation and I'll be heading out tomorrow morning. I could  have flown and been there in about an hour, but I decided to drive it, see the Hill Country. Granted, it will take me about 5 hours to get there, but there's no rush.

San Antonio is full of history, and of course, it's the site of the famous battle for Texas Independence, the Alamo.

Here is a little history:

The war began in October of 1835 with the Battle of Gonzales. Early victories at La Bahia and San Antonio were soon met with crushing defeat a few months later. The war ended with the Battle of San Jacinto in 1836.

On February 23rd, 1836, the Mexican Army arrived at San Antonio, suprising the Texas garrison, who had to scramble for supplies from the nearby villiage. 1,500 Mexican troops encamped at San Antonio de Béxar as the first step in a campaign to re-take Texas. For the next 12 days the two armies engaged in several skirmishes with minimal casualties. Aware that his garrison could not withstand an attack by such a large force, Travis wrote multiple letters pleading for more men and supplies, but fewer than 100 reinforcements arrived.

In the early morning hours of March 6, the Mexican Army advanced on the Alamo. After repulsing two attacks, Texians were unable to fend off a third attack. As Mexican soldiers scaled the walls, most of the Texian soldiers withdrew into interior buildings. Defenders unable to reach these points were slain by the Mexican cavalry as they attempted to escape.

Between five and seven Texians may have surrendered; if so, they were quickly executed. Most eyewitness accounts reported between 182 and 257 Texians dead, while most historians of the Alamo agree that 400–600 Mexicans were killed or wounded.

In 19th-century Texas, the Alamo complex gradually became known as a battle site rather than a former mission. The Texas Legislature purchased the land and buildings in the early part of the 20th century and designated the Alamo chapel as an official Texas State Shrine.

I will still be posting this weekend, between the bar hopping and sightseeing. Stay tuned as I will post pictures of The Alamo and other interesting sites in San Antonio.

Another Teaser - Storm Warning

   The agent that took over for Farnsworth, Gregory Larsen was a lot younger than Kelli had expected. She had envisioned a grizzled veteran agent when talking on the phone, which he was not. She fought the urge to stare when he met her in the lobby.

   “You must be Detective Storm,” Larsen said with a wide smile. “Always good to see New York’s finest.”

   He pushed his hand at her and she shook it. “Thank you, Agent Larsen. To be honest, your predecessor wasn’t so welcoming.”

   Larsen tilted his head back and let out a small laugh. “Yeah, I’ve heard that about Farnsworth.” He looked to his right, then left, and leaned in at Kelli. “Everyone who worked with him said he was a real dick,” he whispered in a conspiratorial tone.

   Kelli fought back a laugh and looked up at him. “You said on the phone you had something for me.”

   He nodded. “Sure, let’s go up to my office. I think you’re going to want to be sitting down when you hear what I’ve got,” he said and turned toward the elevators.

   Kelli reached out and grabbed his shoulder. “Is it that bad?” She asked and felt a chill run down her spine.

   Larsen turned and frowned. “It may be worse than you think.”

National Novel Writing Month or NaNoWriMo

Today begins National Novel Writing Month, or for those in the know, NaNoWriMo. Unfortunately I won't be participating again this year. I had planned on doing it this year, even had the beginnings of a story plotted. However, I find myself in the situation, as many do, where there are not enough hours in the day. Between marketing my first novel, and working on the second, I'm feeling just a little overwhelmed. For those of you that do intend to participate, bravo and good luck.