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Halcyon Days


So I left off last time nattering about the Finnish language and how Ismo, our favorite Finnish comedian, has lots to say about how different English is from it. There was also some weird stuff in there about Japan, and Uralic languages, and heaven only knows what. But we won’t revisit it. There are some things that are just too painful to be considered.


Anyway, on March 27, 2024, we were on our way to see Ismo at a theater in San Antonio. As I’ve said before, we’re fond of San Antonio. It, along with Fort Worth, is among our favorite towns in Texas. It feels eastern to us for some reason, more like Boston or New York. I think it’s the architecture. At least part of downtown...not all!...has a pre-war feel to it. Not skyscrapers, but definitely a hint of Art Deco.


Anyway, we set off. The trip down was, actually, a bit of a schlep. The first part wasn’t so bad. We went down 130 and then cut over on 45 to 35. But the second half was wretched. I don’t know what was going on, but the road was one vast traffic nightmare...a slow motion parking lot. But, on the other hand, that is usually the case on 35, regardless of where or when you are on it.


We got to San Antonio and made our way to the Blue Star Arts Complex, which I’ve mentioned before.(1) It is kind of a shopping, restaurant, and arts complex in what used to be the Blue Star brewery. We usually visit the area when we’re in town. In fact, when we were first considering moving to Texas, we thought we might live in the Blue Star vicinity. The kids had their first house not far away, and I had plans for a Condo near-by...and long jogs on the River Walk...and taking Oreo (our dog at the time) for strolls along the way...and then meeting Martha for breakfast and/or coffee afterwards....


But....then...David and Emily got jobs in Austin. Phooey. Pshaw. And darn.


Ah well...





About the photos: Three today. First, a snap of the Blue Star district. This doesn’t do the place justice, but it was the best I had on hand. Second, Martha with a tin chicken friend at La Vallita, which is the area I mentioned last time. Finally, another shot from the same district, but of a building that I thought looked particularly interesting in the light.



Anyway, we got to the Blue Star district and made our way to the Halcyon, which is a restaurant in the area.(2) I’ve written about the Halcyon a couple of times before. We’ve actually had kind of mixed results when eating there. The first time we went, it was great. The second, not so hot. A time after that, kind of awful. But, this time, it was terrific. I mean, really good. I had a chicken pesto flatbread that was excellent.


And the cool thing was that we sat at the bar and we had a chance to compliment the chef. There’d been a delay with the food...it turned out that the chef realized that the flatbread was stale and insisted on getting fresh bread before sending it out to us. But, that still meant there was a wait, and she appeared in front of us to apologize. She was clearly ill at ease, and working up her courage to speak to us, expecting (I’m sure) for us to be angry and rude.


I beat her to it. Before she could speak, I grinned like a maniac and said, “Are you the chef?” Startled, she nodded, and before she could say another word, I launched into my spiel. “This is terrific!”-- indicating my plate -- “That was delicious.” Which it was. I was only being honest.


But it was interesting to watch her. She was pleased, and maybe flattered, but she was also clearly relieved. It made me wonder, and worry, about the treatment she’d gotten from displeased customers in the past. I was glad I wouldn’t be among the worst of those.


Anyway, after we finished, we toured the area a bit. There is an art gallery there, the San Angel Folk Art Gallery, which Martha wanted to see.(3) It was interesting, and we had a nice chat with the woman who was on duty, as it were. Didn’t catch her name, unfortunately, but she was friendly and informative. I think she was interested in us because she learned we had lived in New Mexico, and several of her artists were “Nuevomexicanos.” We aren’t Hispanic (though Martha could pass if she wished), but at least we knew a little about the culture.


Then it was off for ice cream at the South Alamode Panini & Gelato Company. (4) This is, obviously, an ice cream and sandwich shop in the complex. Again, it was excellent, and, again, we had an interesting chat with the owner, who, it seemed, was a bit of a world traveler and had fallen in love with Gelato while living in Italy. Which makes sense.


After that, it was time to head out for the Hotel.


We didn’t know it, but...


We were about to spend a good ninety minutes being totally, utterly, absolutely, and abjectly lost.


But then, after much pain and suffering, we finally found the hotel...


And...and...we weren’t 100% sure we weren’t better off lost.


More to come.



*


Footnotes:



1. The Blue Star Arts Complex has a webpage here; https://www.bluestarartscomplex.com/


2. Here’s Halcyon’s webpage: https://www.halcyoncoffeebar.com/blue-star There are actually three of them. One in San Antonio, one in Austin, and one in the Lower Greenville neighborhood in Dallas.


3. The gallery’s webpage is here: https://sanangelfolkart.com/


4. The menu is here: https://www.southalamodepaniniandgelato.com/




Copyright©2025 Michael Jay Tucker


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