Dateline May 16, 2017, The Alamo and San Antonio
We drove down from Austin in the morning, looking forward to an afternoon of sightseeing in San Antonio.
The Alamo. Our first stop was the Alamo, and seeing it for the first time, John was struck by how small it is. Raised on Fess Parker and John Wayne playing Davy Crockett, he had always pictured it as something bigger than life.
It was here that fewer than two hundred men, drawn from across the United States and even from Europe, withstood the siege of Santa Anna's army and fought to the last for the independence of Texas from Mexico.
In the gift shop John fell into conversation with five college-age kids who were looking over the coonskin caps that Davy Crockett made so famous. He told them what it was like to be a boy not yet ten years old, when every one of us simply had to have one of those caps, for the love we had of Walt Disney's Davy Crockett, born on a mountaintop and all the rest. They got a kick out of hearing this old character go on about the heroes of his youth.
The tour did not take long, but it was a thrill to stand where those men fought for liberty. Their commander, William Barrett Travis, was only twenty-six. His letter from inside the walls is a wonderful read, and it ends with the words that have come down through all the years since: Victory or Death.
Commandancy of the Alamo Bejar, February 24th, 1836
To the People of Texas and All Americans in the World.
Fellow Citizens and Compatriots.
I am besieged, by a thousand or more of the Mexicans under Santa Anna. I have sustained a continual bombardment and cannonade for 24 hours and have not lost a man. The enemy has demanded a surrender at discretion, otherwise the garrison are to be put to the sword, if the fort is taken. I have answered the demand with a cannon shot, and our flag still waves proudly from the walls. I shall never surrender or retreat. Then, I call on you in the name of Liberty, of patriotism, and everything dear to the American character, to come to our aid with all dispatch. The enemy is receiving reinforcements daily and will no doubt increase to three or four thousand in four or five days. If this call is neglected, I am determined to sustain myself as long as possible and die like a soldier who never forgets what is due to his own honor and that of his country.
Victory or Death.
William Barrett Travis Lt. Col. comdt.
P.S. The Lord is on our side. When the enemy appeared in sight we had not three bushels of corn. We have since found in deserted houses 80 or 90 bushels and got into the walls 20 or 30 head of beeves. Travis
We hear so much about the pride Texans carry for their state, and standing there, you understand the foundation it was built on.
The River Walk. Crossing over from the Alamo, we made our way to the River Walk, a lovely stretch of water lined with shops and restaurants.
We stopped for lunch at an interesting spot called Dick's Last Resort. The food was good and the atmosphere was a blast; the waiters build tall paper hats for the guests and scrawl funny things on them that everyone can read but the person wearing it. A few beers and a lot of laughs.
The Quarry. Janice had played the Quarry years ago with a friend in a four-ball tournament, and she said we simply had to play it, so first thing in the morning we drove over. It was a perfect day, around seventy-five degrees, and the course is a beauty, laid into an old rock quarry and not to be missed if you are in San Antonio. We had a great round, and did not play half bad either.
Then we packed up and pointed the Roadtrek toward Fredericksburg, and the long road west.
