April 15, Canyon Lake, Texas. Small towns,

Gruene is a very small town just outside of New Braunfels. Gruene is pronounced Green. I don't know how this happened with all these Germans around here, Gruene is pronounced Green. Who am I to correct a Texan. In the early 19th century around 1845 or so, Gruene was a going concern, with a dance hall, a grist mill, a lumber yard and with many lovely buildings. Gruene is right on the Guadalupe River. Transportation improved in the 20th century and Gruene died, except for the dance hall. It became a mecca for musicians, keeping the dead town alive on the weekends. New Braunfels was growing, towards Gruene and incorporated Gruene into their town. They decided to pull all the buildings down. Wiser heads prevailed and now the town is full of stores and restaurants, with all the old charming homes restored to become antique stores. The dance hall is still there with live music every night. It's a great beer drinking joint but has lots of charm. Yesterday afternoon we walked Gruene, inspecting every building from the street. Then we dined at the River Edge Cafe. Quite a charming town and quite a tourist destination. People come in buses to come to Gruene for lunch. A friend of David and Suzanne's is hiring a bus from San Antonio to celebrate in the Gruene Dance Hall her 40th birthday. It is always a pleasure to see wise heads prevail.

The Museum of Texas Culture is in San Antonio. In my supercilious way I joked that the the name must be an oxymoron. Then one day Dave and Irene, and Ken and I went to visit the Museum of Texas Culture. I was ashamed of myself. The place is very interesting and informative and blessedly small. We loved it. They start with a country, then track those folks from that country's arrival in Texas. Then they investigate those folks impact on Texas culture. Fascinating indeed. It is worth a visit the next time you come to Texas.

San Antonio itself is an interesting city. Talk about wiser heads prevailing. The good folks of the time wanted to pave over the canals to make more and wider streets. But once again, wiser heads prevailed, and now The River Walk of San Antonio is the crown jewel of Texas. That is what is so impressive to me, that these good folks took a bit of the desert and made it into a lovely vibrant city, now the seventh in the country. Other cities have naturally beautiful settings, like Seattle or Vancouver, but San Antonio started with nothing much more than a river that flooded every year and turned it into San Antonio. The city is worth a visit for sure. Besides, Sarah, Abigail, Allison and Samantha live there. They also are worth a visit.