On November 28th, 2008, the Christmas season officially begins on the river walk. At 7:00 pm. all 122,000 lights will go on! There will be a parade on the river with colorful and beautiful boats. When the parade ends, it's the perfect opportunity to hop into a boat, and take a ride down the river, with the sun down and the lights twinkling and reflecting from the water below, it makes the perfect romantic get a way!

Christmas time is also the time for caroling and the river walk has that too! On November 29th- December 21st the river walk will be lined with more than 185 schools, churches and other groups singing their hearts out to the cruising boats. It's the perfect ending to a long day of shopping!

Along with the Christmas carols and beautiful lights twinkling above the river, the banks will be glowing beginning December 5th until December 21st with what's called “Fiesta de las Luminarias.” There will be sand bags with glowing candles inside lighting the walk ways. It's a beautiful site and a long tradition of the river walk. For hundreds of years this has been going on and it is truly a site to see. It begins at dusk each night, Friday, Saturday and Sunday only, during the fiesta.

If you just can't stand the site of another mall this holiday season, why not try shopping at the Holiday Arts & Crafts Show that goes on along the river walk each holiday season beginning December 12th and running through December 14th. The venders all have different and unique gifts ranging from handmade jewelry to furniture. You are sure to find something special for that hard to buy for person.

Want to make a weekend get away at the river walk? There are many beautiful hotels over looking the river and wonderful dinning experiences.

For those who don't mind shopping at the mall, The San Antonio River Mall is the place to shop! Built right on the river, it hosts many shops and restaurants, all with a beautiful view.

The river walk also has a good night life for those who don't mind staying up late and enjoying live music and drinks. Take a boat ride right up to your favorite bar or restaurant.

The San Antonio River Walk has something for every member of the family, young or old. Why not celebrate the holiday season on the river.

For more information on the river walk you can find them on the internet. They have maps available as well as prices for all the boat rides and lists of all the events they have planned for the season ahead. You can also check out some of the hotels available as well as restaurants and bars in the area.

Athens

Located in North East Texas in Henderson county, Athens is the self proclaimed Original Home of the Hamburger as well as the Black Eyed Pea Capital of the World. It's a lovely quaint little town and has some excellent antique shopping there.

Corinth

Corinth is up in North Texas in Denton County between Dallas and Denton. The city calls itself  the Gateway to Success.

Cypress

This one is a little unincorporated area in Harris County just North West of Houston proper. There's not much historical claim to fame here, but it does have Tin Hall, Texas' oldest continuously operated dance hall. Tin hall has been in operation since 1889.

Dublin

Any fan of Dr. Pepper knows about Dublin, Texas. Dublin home to the oldest Dr. Pepper bottling plant, which has operated continuously since 1891, just six years after it's creation in nearby Waco, Texas. 

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Egypt

Egypt is the oldest community in Wharton County, Texas, located about a hour's drive South of Houston on US 59. It was first settled in 1822. In 1836, it was Company F of the First Regiment of Texas Volunteers, recruited by William J. E. Heard and based in Egypt, which captured the Mexican Army in the Battle of San Jacinto.

Eldorado

Located in Schleicher County in West Texas, is the little town of Eldorado. Most recently Eldorado was briefly in the spotlight as it is the closest incorporated town to the Yearning for Zion Ranch, the new home to the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, in which over 400 children were taken into Child Protective Custody on April 4, 2008. Other than that it's been a relatively uneventful town of less than 2000 permanent residents.

Italy

Properly pronounced "it-lee" and not "i-ta-lee," Italy, Texas is located on I-35 in Ellis County. One of the main things that people see as they whiz through the town at 70+mph on the highway is the Monolithic Dome Institute housed inside Bruco, the Texas Italian Caterpillar.

(Source: Wikipedia. Author: Lothar1976)

Jamaica Beach

There's not much to say about Jamaica Beach really. It's a small community which was only incorporated in 1975 and has just over 1000 people living there at this time. It's located on Galveston Island and is just South of the State Park on 3005.

Malakoff

Just West of Athens is the community of Malakoff, named after the Russian fort Malakoff which had a key role in the siege of Sevastopol in the Crimean War. If you're heading in to Athens off Highway 31, you'll go right through it, so don't blink.

Moscow

Located North of Houston off US-59, Moscow is all but a Ghost town now. However, it was once Polk County's largest town with a population of 228 back in 1880.

Palestine

About an hour's drive South of Athens on Highway 19 is Palestine, named actually for an early settler's home town of Palestine, Illinois, and not the country. Palestine was most recently in the news in February 2003 as the resting place for many of the pieces of the space shuttle Columbia disaster.

Paris

Proudly hailed as the "Second largest Paris in the world," Paris is located in Lamar County, 98 miles North East of the Dallas - Fort Worth metroplex. The current Eiffel Tower replica in town is actually the second, as the original, made of wood, was destroyed by a tornado. The new copy added a Texas touch with a large cowboy hat on top. Of course, if you're a fan of the movie Paris, Texas, you won't find anything movie-related here as the movie has no scenes in town, and not a single piece of footage was filmed in the town.

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Roma

Located in Starr County, along the Rio Grande, Roma is one of the main ports of entry from Mexico to the United States via the Roma-Ciudad Miguel Alemán International Bridge, a suspension bridge built in 1928. It is an old town, having been founded in 1765 and finally incorporated in 1936. Before Texas gained it's independance from Mexico in 1836, Roma was actually under Spanish rule under the jurisdiction of Mier, Mexico.

Turkey

Situated in the panhandle of Texas in Hall County, this tiny little town has a claim to fame that makes it worth the trip if you're into Western Swing music. You see, Turkey is home to Bob Wills, the King of Western Swing. So while the Big Ball may be in Cow Town, the last Saturday of April, is reserved for Bob Wills Day, and thousands will descend on the little town for some great music and BBQ.

Victoria

Named for General Guadalupe Victoria, the first president of an Independant Mexico (and not Great Britain's Queen Victoria), Victoria is situated at the intersection of US 59, US 77, and US 87 about two hours drive from Houston, San Antonio, and Corpus Christi. While visiting, be sure to stop off at Fossati's Delicatessen, the oldest Deli in the state of Texas and is sitl family owned after 125 years.

Waterloo

Waterloo is a little unincorporated area North East of Austin in Williamson County. To get there take Highway 79 East out of Round Rock, and just after Taylor turn North on 619. When you reach the "S" turn in the road, don't blink, because you're there. Waterloo was the original name for the city of Austin.

Yorktown

Founded by Captain John York and Charles Eckhardt in 1835, Yorktown is a little town North West of Victoria, in DeWitt County. Yorktown's notable son is Harlon Block, who is pictured as the soldier on the far right of the famous photograph, Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima.

Simple, it's got a little bit of everything and nothing's more than 15 minutes away, parking is free, the people are beautiful and way friendly, and the party scene is to die for! Let me start with the new "uptown" where things are shiny and new, hip, cool, fast and very expensive. Yes, there are people who go there just because those without the coinage won't.

Then there's the new "Victory Park", home of American Airlines Center where you can see the Stars play Hockey, grab a big concert, or catch a basketball game. Before your event be sure to walk the shops and stop in for some sushi, or better yet have a martini atop the Westin in the now infamous "Ghost Bar" and stand on the glass floor and see down fifty stories!

If that's all too fussy for you then perhaps you want to country western dance, there's plenty of that. If you're into Goth, tattoos, live urban music, hanging with the people on the fringe - check out "Deep Ellum".

If you love the Gays you have to swing into Sue Ellen's and JR's on the best gay strip in the country called Cedar Springs! It's a hundred times better than NYC and puts San Francisco to shame!

If you are into riding your hog, then you need to motor down to Greenville Avenue where the patio's are packed for motorcycle watching. Drag up and down the ave. and show your saddle bags off. There's even a vintage Vespa club hang out called the Dublinar.

If you like to stroll around on a Sunday, grab a beer and a football game, chat with locals on a great patio, McKinney Ave area is for you. Be sure to check out the Gingerman's 300 and something kinds of beer down at the Quadrangle.

And if none of that is working for you try Addison in North Dallas. It's in the Guinness Book of World Records for the most bars and restaurants per square inch. Beltline road is a couple miles long and offers every food on earth, as well as great patios, comedy club, live music, shopping and more.

The dance clubs are always packed in Dallas and are scattered everywhere. And for you old folks we have a great arts district, the hstorical west end and Dealy Square where Kennedy was shot. We also have a notable upper crust restaurant scene where the food is world famous and chef's are signing book deals faster than Paris Hilton books paid party engagements!

So, come to Dallas. Buy some pointy toed cowboy boots, get a taste of the best mexican food anywhere... and you'll see why we are one of the fastest growing metroplexes in the nation!

The biggest part of the state, west Texas, has little more than miles and miles of miles and miles, and begins on the other side of Ft. Worth. By contrast, the community of West, Texas, on US 35, is on the interstate linking San Antonio, Austin, Ft. Worth and Dallas, and is near Italy, TX, if that helps.

The Czech settlement, named for its founder and first postmaster, Thomas West, circa 1882, is just north of Waco and an hour and a half south of Ft. Worth and Dallas. Which is why no one can whiz past West without pulling off the freeway to fill up on either dessert pastries, or lunches of ham and cheese or sausage-filled kolaches. Over the years, we thought we had seen all there was to see of West, TX and kolaches.

In fact, it occurred to us as we left the I-35 at exit 353, that we had never been into the town of West, just into the bakeries that line the service road we had just crossed. We were, therefore, delighted to learn that there seem to be as many kolache bakeries in West as there are streets. And there we discovered Gerik's Ole Czech Bakery. How had we missed it?

For, inside the comfortable, antique-furnished combination café, kolache showroom and mega-bakery which supplies fifteen convenience stores daily, we found the kolache that approaches the perfection for which we were willing to divert from our destination. Mary, who presides over the glass showcase filled to bursting with kolaches, placed our choices on paper plates, accompanied by plastic forks and spoons, and invited us to use the microwave seated on the old cabinet under shelves stuffed with kolache baking awards, many in the shape of rolling pins.

I imagined vivid flavors of the cherry, lemon and blueberry kolache assortment bursting in my mouth but the pull of chocolate is hard to overcome, so we gave into our chocoholic roots. As we dug into the baked pastry cup, in the center of the perfectly finished crust, were chocolate, cream cheese, caramel and large pecans which made up the concoction, as our plastic forks sank through the award-winning chocolate treat,, we grinned as the crust and filling disappeared on our tongues.

Not only were Gerik's choices of fruits, poppy seed, sesame seed and sausage-filled and various chocolate combinations of kolaches offered, but it was easy to see why they were judged the best year after year. Considering the difference from those we had eaten from the competition on the highway,which did the job for which they were intended, Gerik's kolaches had flavor, presentation and a weight not usually seen in pastry when hefted. I felt like we struck kolache gold!

We had not seen the prices in Gerik's anywhere else for years - a kolache is $1, with a price break for a dozen -- $11, and a huge cup of coffee, sized for dunking, is 55 cents.
The truth of quality, however, was revealed when the crust was challenged to the ultimate determiner: the coffee dunk test. A+! Over all, we agree with the wisdom of the judges!