We started the day at Mission San Jose y San Miguel de Aguayo. We arrived just in time to join a guided tour. Founded in 1720, this is the best known of the 5 missions in San Antonio. San Jose was known as the “Queen of the Missions” because of its size, it’s unique church architecture, and its rich fields and pastures. The village’s massive stone walls were for defense against the Comanche and Apache raids. The missions were Spain’s attempts to take over this area of the new world and convert the Indians to Christianity. The tribes living here were hunters and gatherers. The missions brought them a new way of life, but also European diseases that eventually decimated the populations. But, many Texans today, known as Tijuanos, are the descendants of Natives and Spanish missionaries who married.
Mountain laurel 
Yucca flower
After lunch Kathi gave me a tour of the King William neighborhood. After coming to San Antonio for 15 years she has made a lot of friends and told background stories on many of those who live in some of these beautiful mansions. We stopped at the Guenther House, part of the Pioneer Flour compound to buy pancake mix. We walked a while on the peaceful, more residential part of the riverwalk. Some friends of Kathi from Presque Isle, Margaret and Bob, are here for a month, so they joined us for happy hour at a fun bar down the street. At 8 pm we headed down to the light show at the San Fernando Cathedral. The lights projected onto the cathedral, with accompanying music, tell the story of San Antonio. Absolutely breathtaking!
What I learned today: 1. Early missions’ goal was to “civilize” the natives, gain a stronghold on this territory before the French, and convert them to Christianity; and 2. Mountain laurel flowers smell like grape gum.
