Naya's Quinceanera ( Latino 15th Birthday for a female)

A Quinceanera ceremony is a passage of ritual for 15 year old Latina young women and we were delighted to be invited to Stephanie's sister Naya's ceremony last night which was held in Austin.
The Quinceanera is celebrated in an unique way from other birthdays.  It marks the transition from childhood to womanhood. Pink is often the colour chosen by the young ladies.  Certainly this was the case for Naya.  To read more about this special day have a look at Wikipedia.

Before going into the dining room there is this array of candies .

The ceremony is the move from childhood to womanhood and this is depicted throughout the event.  Here the dolls of her childhood giveaway to the transition of becoming a young woman.

Of course it is still a birthday and what a cake it was.  It also tasted very nice.

The dinning room was elaborately decorated.

We were serenaded by a great mariachi band.

The birthday girl has her own court.

Then after dinner the celebration begins.  After the Court enters then the birthday girl and her parents introduce Naya to the guests.

Part of this rite of passage is for her father to remove her flat shoes and place on her feet her first pair of heeled shoes.  Her mother adorns her head with a Tiara as she is a princess in the eyes of the Lord.

 Her mother also fixes her bouquet .  Then it is time for the first dance with her father.

After much dancing it is time to cut the cake.  Here her mum, dad, brother and sister await for the cake cutting.

After a great night of much enjoyment the posed for family snap.

It was a wonderful evening and we wish Naya a very happy and healthy life.

Many thanks for including us in this celebration.

Beverley and Ross

Fort Clark 2

Fort Clark has many interesting stories to tell.  On the grounds of the Fort and short ride from the historic sandstone barrack buildings there is a community which has Mexican style homes.  We understand that this was the accommodation for the workers some many years ago.  Today they are residential homes for some community members who live on the Fort.

The gardens are very colorful.

With a variety of scarey monsters.

Just a little more of the cultural diversity around south Texas.

Fort Clark Springs

We have moved our motorhome from Canyon Lake to Brackettville, Texas for a month or so to be closer to Eagle Pass for business reasons. We have moved into Fort Clark Springs RV Park. Fort Clark has a wonderful history daring from 1850 including, housing the all the Buffalo Soldier Regiments and Seminole Negro Scouts.

The fort is similar in design and construction to Victoria Barracks in Sydney

The barracks have now been turned into a motel.

The original Commissary is being refurbished and will one day be the museum for the Fort.

The Springs feed the 3rd largest swimming pool in the USA and is drained and refilled each week taking a million gallons a time. It remains a constant 68F all year round.

It is an amazing opportunity for us to live in such a well maintained historical military site just around the corner from where General's Wainwright and Patton lived. Their houses and more of the history next post.

Cheers Bev and Ross

Judith and Jack's Visit

We were delighted to have Judith and Jack come for a visit.  After a great week spent in NY they finally made it to Texas.  Judith and Beverley served together in the Army and we all met Randy and Wanda when they were posted to Australia some years ago.  Randy is USAF (Ret) and they always welcome the Ozzie's to their home.  Our first get together was at their home for lunch.  We had a great afternoon.

Then it was off to Gruene later that week to have lunch at the Gristmill.

We introduced Judith and Jack to a whiskey tasting at Kirby's Steak House and followed this up with dinner.  Albert was able to join us and we had a fun evening.

It was now time to see some of the historical parts of San Antonio.  Judith and Jack got to explore the Alamo and the River Walk and so we thought a visit to a Mission would be interesting for them.  We visited the Mission San Jose which is known as the "Queen of the Missions", and is the largest of the missions and was almost fully restored to its original design in the 1930s by the WPA (Works Projects Administration). Spanish missions were not churches, but communities, with the church the focus. Mission San José shows the visitor how all the missions might have looked over 250 years ago.

Judith and Jack were keen to try some Mexican Cuisine so we opted for an 'at home' Mexican evening.  It turned out to be a great evening.  The food was delicious and even Adrian and Cameron enjoyed the fare.

Sadly their visit went so fast and then it was time for them to return to Australia.  We had to have the last photo at home in front of our Texas painting.

Before boarding their flight we enjoyed a late lunch at the Sand Bar Restaurant which is located at  the Pearl Brewery.  Judith & Jack really enjoyed their fish and chips.

It was a real pleasure to have Judith and Jack's company and thank you both for coming all this way to visit.
Safe travels.

Cheers,  Beverley and Ross

Heather's last day in San Antonio

Sadly Heather's holiday has come to and end and she is now on her long flight back to OZ.  So before her departure we needed to fit in a couple of more dinners.  On Monday evening we dinned at The Wildfish Restaurant and below are a couple of the appetizers we enjoyed.  Heather followed this up with a very nicely presented lemon sole.  It was a great night.

Then Tuesday evening we went to the Fish City Grill.

 
Here Heather is planning her attack on the flounder which is stuffed with crab meat.

We also enjoyed a trio of shrimp which included battered, butterflied with coconut and a very spicy combination.  All very good.

 Then on Wednesday it was time to hug our much loved Heather as she prepared to return home to Australia. Not before however, she had a photo with her nephew and of course had to try on his cowboy hat.

 
We really appreciate that Heather came all this way to visit  and it was a joy to have her company.
Safe travels Heather and keep happy and well.

Best  Beverley and Ross