Fiesta

Just a quick note. This is Fiesta Week in San Antonio. Personally, it doesn't make a big difference in our family's life, as we don't do the activities. I would love to take the girls to some of the parades sometime, but it has yet to happen. The only thing it alters is Phil's work schedule. Yes, in San Antonio, half or more of the city shuts down on the Friday of Fiesta for a Parade! You gotta love a city that dedicates a week to a big ol' party! Sure, there's some history here with the Battle of the Alamo and Texas Independence. But, really, if you go to any of the standard Fiesta events, most people will not greet you with a history book or the TRUE story of David Crockett (Davy, Davy Crockett...you might know the song). They'll more likely greet you with a Cascarone, or colorful eggshell filled with confetti, and crack it over your head. Yes, they sell cartons of eggshells filled with confetti in San Antonio. We even have royalty for this event! The gowns the ladies wear are amazing. We have not one, not two, but THREE official parades! First is the River Parade, a parade of floating barges with Fiesta Royalty, musicians, and more. Then we have the Battle of Flowers Parade held on the Friday afternoon of Fiesta Week, with floats all covered in flowers, much like the Rose Bowl Parade. Finally, Fiesta finishes off with the Fiesta Flambeau (obviously we like to use mulitple languages here): the biggest nighttime parade in the U.S. (according to local news personalities). While we will likely just be sitting at home tomorrow during the parade (trying to get over an ear infection, mine this time), I'll leave you with some glimpses of what you might see if you were here.