Texas 2009 - Day 5 - Austin to San Antonio

Leaving Austin the morning of our 5th day, we headed towards the LBJ Ranch in Stonewall, TX. We took a driving tour (complete with Audio CD) through the ranch and made a couple stops along the way. There was a "Living Farm", which was really neat with all kinds of animals just roaming around. Then at the end of the tour was the "Texas White House", LBJ's home there. We spent several hours here, as the ranch is huge and everyone really enjoyed the history.

After leaving the ranch, we stopped for lunch at a Dairy Queen (ice cream for lunch, awesome!) before making a short stop in Luckenbach, TX. They aren't kidding when they say "Let's get back to the basics of life". There is one main building in this so-called town, which is the Post Office, General Store, and bar all in one. (I think there is also a dance hall, but it wasn't in use while we were there). Behind the Post-Office-General-Store-Bar are tables where a few local bikers were sitting drinking beer, listening to a couple guys playing music. They started playing "Luckenbach, TX" when the tourists arrived (i.e. my family). It was really very cool to see, and definitely the smallest town I've ever visited! But from now on, I can claim I've been to Luckenbach, TX - just not with Waylon, and Willie and the boys.

We made it to San Antonio just in time to check into our hotel and meet back up for dinner. For our first night there, I had reserved us a table at the Tower of the Americas Chart House restaurant. It's one of those restaurants at the top of the tower that rotates, and gives you a great view of the city. The dinner was a lot of fun and I think everyone really enjoyed the experience. The only issue I had was they over-cooked my steak, and took 20-25 minutes to cook another one...medium rare doesn't take very long! I wouldn't have sent it back if not for the amount of money I was paying for that steak. Other than that, it was a great experience.

After dinner, we stopped in a gift shop where I bought myself a cowboy hat. Then, we walked around downtown San Antonio and the Riverwalk for a bit before heading back to the hotel for the night. Another great day!