a combat medic goes to hawaii
my brother graduated from his army medical training in san antonio. he is now a "combat medic"
we attended two different ceremonies.
we even visited the barracks to see his bunk.
then we went to the pool. we stayed one night at La Contessa and the next night next door at the Westin. pool pics here are from the westin. those beds at the westin are real comfortable, but every room at la contessa is a suite! with kids, having two seperate rooms with 2 or three beds is a big draw. also the brunch at la contessa is probably the only true bargain any where near the riverwalk.
TACOS AL PASTOR!
I ate here three times in two days. this is the first time I have found tacos al pastor in the USA done just like they do them in mexico. and we LOVE real tacos al pastor. I used to go to the yucatan regularly, and I liked to get out of the tourist areas. we'd try to sample every taco al pastor we could find. sure, there are several places in austin serving tacos al pastor, but they pale in comparison to the ones found in Merida or La Gloria
it's near the old pearl brewing company. one great feature is the huge fenced lawn with big rubber balls for kids to run and play.
there! you can see it! the rotisserie of marinated pork with a pineapple on the top.
where the restaurant failed was consistency. I had them three times in two days and I found them served three different portions. they have one menu for lunch and dinner, notice the difference in portion from above to below. I don't know about you, but I'll take the plate on the top.
one of our favorite eating out experiences was found at the Monterey, a gastropub.
upon being seated, we were each served a free Sunner kolsch! and pretty soon after the pic above was taken, my mom whisked my brother off to the airport where he flew back to marin county to be reunited with his lovley daughter and wife. next stop for them, Hawaii! yep, he is stationed in hawaii. if you have to join the army, might as well do it on the island.
herloom tomato salad with watermelon, feta and dried olives.
pork belly
pig's ear salad
michelada
we took #2 son to the alamo. not sure he got much out of it. he doesn't even know who John Wayne is!
went out with some friends when we got back to austin. Hugo's was just OK... the fried brie with habanero sauce was probably the best thing we had, duck cigars were good too.
sunday eve we had fun making a soda bottle rocket. directions said to use a bicycle pump. but as the mythbusters say, "anything worth doing, is worth over doing" so I used my air compressor at 80 psi.