From the Paseo del Rio (River Walk) to the Alamo, from the Tower of the Americas out to Brackenridge Park there is so much to see and do in San Antonio that you'll find yourself spoiled for choice.

The River Walk along the old San Antonio River is lined with restaurants, shops and bars and is the focus of two annual Christmas events...the Fiesta de las Luminarias sees the river lined with 7,000 luminarias (sand-filled, candle-lit paper bags) marking the path Mary and Joseph took the night before Jesus was born...while the Holiday River Parade and Lighting Ceremony, held the day after Thanksgiving, marks the illumination of the River Walk by more than 122,000 lights. The River Walk is also the site of the historic Arneson River Theatre. When there aren't any special events going on along the River Walk you can catch a ride, or even have lunch or dinner, aboard one of the motorized barges that ply the river. Or you can pop in to one of the many bars along the bank, including Durty Nelly's, Mad Dogs or Howl at the Moon. After a few margaritas that's probably what you'll be doing.

The HemisFair Park, site of the 1968 HemisFair, home to the aforementioned Tower of the Americas, and also the Institute of Texan Cultures is situated in the downtown area along with the legendary Alamo. The Alamo, site of the 1836 battle in which 189 Texans held off more than 4,000 Mexican soldiers for 13 days, is Texas' and San Antonio's most recognized landmark. Some 20 million tourists come to San Antonio each year, and most stop off at the Alamo to see where the great battle was fought. Just across from the Alamo is the historic Menger Hotel, built in 1859 and still operating as a first-class hotel. Teddy Roosevelt, Robert E. Lee, Ulysses S. Grant and Sarah Bernhardt are among the famous who have slept overnight at the Menger. North of the Alamo you'll find the Emily Morgan Hotel, often cited as one of the finest examples of Gothic Revival architecture in the U.S. Just nearby is the San Antonio Cavalry Museum which displays items from the days when the U.S. Army's all-black cavalry, "The Buffalo Soldiers," trained in San Antonio.

Since San Antonio is touted as the birthplace of Tex-Mex cuisine, you may want to visit El Mercado or Market Square, the largest Mexican marketplace in the U.S., and reputedly the site where, in the early 1900s, Mexican women cooked tamales and chili on pushcarts and sold them to passersby, thus combining the two cuisines. It is also claimed that a Mexican restaurant owner in San Antonio actually invented Tex-Mex in the 1930s when he combined various items from his menu onto a single plate and doused it all with chili. Whether either of these stories is true, El Mercado is well worth visiting. The famed Mi Tierra Cafe and Bakery is located on the square, and no one should leave San Antonio without trying Mi Tierra's famed green chile hot sauce. Mi Tierra is open around the clock. There are dozens of shops on the square and 80 more shops and stores in the adjacent Farmers Market. And you'll find excellent Tex-Mex cuisine in almost every neighborhood in the city. LeReve, a tiny 38-seat restaurant in downtown near the River Walk, recently earned the accolade of "Best French Restaurant in Texas" from The New York Times for its French-accented cuisine using familiar Texas ingredients.

Professional sports has a toehold in San Antonio, home of the NBA's 3-time Champion San Antonio Spurs who play at the AT&T Center. Also the San Antonio Rampage of the American Hockey League and the San Antonio Silver Stars of the WNBA play at the Center. The San Antonio Missions of MLB's Double-A Texas League play at a suburban stadium. And every January 30th, the Alamo Bowl NCAA College Football post-season game is played in the Alamodome.

Two miles north of Downtown is Brackenridge Park, a 343-acre facility that is home to the San Antonio Zoo, one of the best zoos in the U.S. with some 3,500 different animals. Sea World San Antonio is 16 miles northwest of downtown and offers spectacular sealife entertainment and rides. Nearby is the Six Flags Fiesta Texas theme park with some 41 rides, including 6 rollercoasters and 9 water rides. The park, open March to October, is part of a larger development that includes the La Cantera resort, site of the annual PGA's Valero Texas Open golf tournament, played on an Arnold Palmer-designed course.

On a more cultural note, the Alameda Theater is the performing arts unit of the National Center for Latino Arts and Culture and is associated with both the Smithsonian Institution and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. On the River Walk is the Lila Cockrell Theater, hosting ballet, opera, theater and concert events. The Majestic Theater is home to the San Antonio Symphony and is listed on the National Register of Historical Places. There are also ten major museums in San Antonio, including the Marian Koogler McNay Art Museum, the first modern art museum in Texas, and the San Antonio Museum of Art, which maintains collections of Asian, Latino and Ancient artworks and includes, among its permanent collection, works by Andy Warhol, John Singleton Copley and Diego Rivera.

San Antonians love to party, and will at the drop of a sombrero. "Celebrate San Antonio" is the city's New Year's Eve party held on South Alamo Street next to the HemisFair Park and culminates with a spectacular fireworks show from the top of the Tower of the Americas. Cinco de Mayo, the annual commemoration of Mexico's independence from France, is held in El Mercado. "Fiesta," a 10-day extravaganza is held citywide each April to honor the memory of the heroes of the Alamo and San Jacinto and includes the Battle of Flowers Parade. The Texas Cavaliers River Parade literally floats down the San Antonio River during "Fiesta." And one of the oldest continuously performed plays in the U.S., the Passion Play, re-enacts the crucifixion of Christ in a free outdoor presentation in front of the Cathedral San Fernando, the oldest Catholic Cathedral in the U.S. The play has been staged for more than 250 years every Good Friday during Lent.

So when you step out onto the River Walk, be prepared for a rousing good time. San Antonio is a city with a broad smile and an enchanting air of happy times, good food and new friends. No small wonder that humorist Mark Twain said San Antonio (along with San Francisco and New Orleans) was different from all the other cities in America. You'll really enjoy this town.