When I left off, we were in the Blue Star area, and just heading to our hotel. It was then, or shortly thereafter, that we discovered something. To wit, San Antonio, like every other G*d D*mn city in Texas, is “improving” its infrastructure.
Which means, of course, that getting around downtown is pure, unadulterated, hell. On steroids. With extra brimstone.
We were following the directions on my cellphone. We did as we were told. “Turn left,” it said. “Turn right,” it continued. “Not at this light, but at the next one, make a U-turn. Then stand on your head and scream like a chicken.”
Ah, okay...
About the photos: Three today. First, two with an architectural bent. San Antonio has, for some reason, a vaguely New Orleans feel--which makes no sense, but it does. Here’s a shot of a house in the King William District and another of a street and sidewalk nearby.
Finally, here’s Martha at lunch at the River Walk area downtown. It was, I’m told, a terrific hamburger.
And...chaos. Streets were blocked. Streets were occupied by bulldozers...which were, seemingly, taking aim at us. I had a vision of two of us neatly squished in our car... sort of like a couple of cockroaches who got caught in a tuna can...which was then sent to a recycle center and the tin can cruncher of their choice. But without so many giggles.
We turned around. We careened around a corner. We backed up at high speed. We went forward in slow motion. We came to a barricade with a big sign reading, “Your tax dollars at work.” And there was a guy with a flag... waving it...and yelling at us to Go Back The Other Way. He didn’t exactly add, You A*hole, but it was definitely implied. And with lots of vim and vinegar. Particularly the vinegar. Or some other fluid similar in form, texture, and color.
Okay, back the other way we went. Then it was left again. Then another right. Then we did a sort of little pirouette thing. Kinda like ballet. But in a car. While dodging an oncoming front end loader. With teeth.
And...finally...finally...we found ourselves in front of a fenced off parking lot with a big sign that read, “Rental Car Return ONLY. All other cars will be TOWED at owner’s expense!” It didn’t exactly say that any of the aforesaid vehicles so towed would then be instantly taken to a scrap yard and squished into a tiny little shiny cube by a car crusher with a weight problem...but you sort of read it between the lines.
However, our mapping apps said we were in the right place. So, with no little trepidation, we parked in the lot and walked around the corner...
Where...oh!...we found an entrance in one of the buildings to our hotel. And, we learned later, that they shared a parking lot with the rental car company. But, we were informed sternly, we *must* be sure to leave a special notice on our dashboard indicating we were guests of the hotel, or, our car would be towed...and, like I said before, crushed. And sent to a smelter in China to be turned into cruise missile parts which would be shot (when we least expected it) at Taiwan and/or an American aircraft carrier. So, you see, it was all up to us. We kept it in mind.
But, anyway, we finally found our way to the registration desk...where a very, very, unpleasant young man reluctantly checked us in. He was South Asian, and as I said to Martha later, his command of English seemed somewhat limited. But his mastery of snark and sullen indifference was without peer.
We got our keycards, I put our luggage on a cart, and we went upstairs to find our room. Pretty soon, we found it, and we settled in. Actually, in retrospect, it was a nice room, and a nice hotel. Plus *most* of the staff was pleasant enough. Only the young man proved to be problematic.
I’m guessing that the hotel was a family-owned business, and that the young man (a cousin?) had been recently brought over to assist in the enterprise. And he was, alas, not happy with the less than glamorous duties of a bell clerk. I suspect he saw his labors as beneath him...even though, or particularly as, the rest of his family had worked long and hard to build a viable, and profitable business in the hospitality industry.*
Personally, I admired the family which owned the hotel. I met some of them later. They had recently sold a previous holding, a motel on the highway, to upgrade to the hotel in town. They seemed energetic and vigorous, and dedicated to making things better for themselves and their industry.
I must confess, I identified with them. My first real job was as a night watchman and a desk clerk in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I know...in a limited way...what life is like in the “Back Of the House.”
And I must also admit the young man’s all too evident disdain for his job, and his relations, rubbed me very much the wrong way.
But...anyway...
We rested a bit in our room. Then, we wondered what to do next. Finally, we decided we needed to get a few things, and that a walk was called for.
And shortly after that, we would have rain...and one of the most romantic evenings we’ve enjoyed in a very long time.
More to come.
Footnote:
* Just in case you’re interested, immigrant groups to the US tend to focus on specific industries. Thus, famously, Chinese newcomers were famed for their laundries and their restaurants. Irish moved into the police and civil service in Boston and New York. Italians were associated with construction and, later, the food service industries. And, right now, here in Texas, Mexican-Americans are associated with construction.
At the moment, South Asian immigrants are associated with (among many other things) the hospitality industry. Indians, and particularly Gujaratis (who are famed for their work ethic and entrepreneurial skills), moved into the motel business starting in the 1960s and lasting to the present day. There were a number of reasons for this, including the fact that at the time the motel market was a little depressed and South Asians realized they could get into the game cheap if they were willing to work long hours and do a lot of repairs themselves.
We are now watching those same people ...or their children, or their grandchildren...expanding up from motels to hotels and more. I find it all quite impressive.
Copyright©2025 Michael Jay Tucker
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