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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 11, 1983)
San Antonio A touch of old Mexico recreated in central Texas Camp Warnecke. So, if you feel like seeing two of the really legitimate roadside attractions in South Texas, Aquarena Springs and Camp Warnecke are musts. If you feel like seeing one of the really illegitimate attractions in South Texas, take a quick — very quick — stop at the Snake Farm. On your way from San Mar cos to San Antonio, you will be blitzed with a series of signs saying "Prairie Dog Village," "Wild Buffaloes," "Hundreds of live snakes," and "See Samson the Lion." Sounds catchy? It's meant to be. If you've got a spare $2, go ahead and stop. It may give you some ideas on how not to deco staff photos by Diane Yount mers start selling early each morning, and most of the time you can get the price you want. If you're not into fruits and vegetables, stroll next door to El Mercado — a condensed version of any market place in any city in Mexico. You can buy souvenirs ranging from tacky postcards to "authentic" mexican hats. You . can also buy some really useful and neat items likes wicker bas kets, glass figurines, pottery and — if you feel the fashion need — colored feathers for your hair. Prices are not as flexible as they are in Mexico City, but do shop around. Sample prices on Mexican dresses ranged from $20 to $60. Since the shops are centrally located, it doesn't take much time or effort to trundle rate a tourist trap. If you don't have a spare $2, whiz on by. We took pictures of everything to see, including the prairie dog village, Samson the lion and the one tired buffalo. You can just look at the pictures instead of visiting the place. Now, you're almost in San Antonio and you're gearing up for the Mexican Market and the RiverWalk. But before you start hitting the San Antonio night life, you really should stop off at L.. ^ Natural Bridge Caverns. This hour-long tour of Texas' largest living, growing cavern is really wonderful. You'll get to see the Castle of the White Giants, the Chandelier, the Bomb-burst and Purgatory Creek. These rock formations look just like they sound and, because of the continued flow of limestone-water through the cave, they are still growing. You may get a few drips of cave-water in your hair, but the tour is worth the price of the ticket plus the price of a shampoo. So, now you're in San Anto nio. If it's still daylight, the first place you should go is to Market Square, near the river. Here you can buy any type of produce for very reasonable prices. The far through all of the market stores before settling down to serious shopping. Probably starving, right? There is one and only one place in San Antonio that you have to eat — Mi Tierra. A Mexican food restaurant lo cated right next to El Mercado, Mi Tierra offers any combina tion of any type of Mexican food you could possibly want. Burri- tos, fajitas, enchiladas, quaco- mole and tacos are served to the tunes of a roving band of Cabal leros. Talk about semi-authentic old Mexico. Now that you've spent all of your money, it's time to hit the river. Probably the most popular tourist attraction in San Anto nio, the river is the reason why the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce gets to say "One of the four unique cities in the U.S." Once you are actually on the river, be sure and go into all of the little clubs along the banks. There are Italion cafes, African jungle-dancing clubs (Bwana Dik's) and Irish pubs galore. And they all have their strong points, so pick one you like and hibernate there. A Mexican food re staurant located right next to El Mercado, Mi Tierra offers any com bination of any type of Mexican food you could possibly want. Burritos, fajitas, enchiladas, quacomole and tacos are served to the tunes of a roving band of Caballeros. Talk about semi-authentic old Mexico. Other places to visit in San Antonio are: • The Tower of the Americas • Hemisfair Plaza • Institue of Texan Culture • San Antonio Zoo • The Alamo • Brackenridge Park • Sunken Gardens • Skyride • Witte Memorial Museum • King William Historic Area • the Missions of San Antonio • Canyon Lake and Medina Lake You could probably spend your entire vacation week traveling from College Station to San Antonio and back on minis cule amounts of money. And we suggest you go for it.