Alamo and the other missions: The Alamo
All that is left of the original fort of the Alamo - at the meeting of Houston, Crockett, Bonham and Alamo streets - is the chapel , with a large arched facade of delicately carved sandstone, and the Long Barracks , now a museum (Mon-Sat 9am-5.30pm, Sun 10am-5.30pm; free). The first of the Spanish missions, established as San Antonio de Valero in 1718, it only became known as the Pueblo del Alamo in 1801, after secularization, when it was named for the Mexican home town of a Spanish cavalry unit which used it as a base. The battle , immortalized in film and song, occurred on March 6, 1836, when all of the 189 men who had held out for thirteen days against the five-thousand-strong Mexican troops were killed, a massacre dismissed by the Mexican General Santa Anna as "but a small affair." The rebels consisted of a few native - Hispanic - Texans, and a majority of volunteers (adventurers like Davy Crockett and Jim Bowie, and aspiring colonists from other states), dreaming of Texan autonomy and driven by the battle cry of "Victory or Death!"Though a constant stream of bus tours makes visits crowded and hectic, seeing the Alamo is crucial to understanding Texan pride and stubbornness. The battle memorabilia in the chapel is undeniably emotive, with poignant letters sent home by soldiers preparing to die, and the Long Barracks Museum , hidden away southwest of the shrine's main entrance, presents a 20-minute video on the history of the missions and the battle. Take time also to sit in peace in the four-acre grounds, a haven from the downtown commotion just outside the walls, dotted with lush blooms, palms and cacti, and holding an irrigation ditch filled with fat fish.
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