I'm not a huge fan of crowds. I'm not phobic or anything, I just really don't like them, like really don't like them. I dislike them so much that I tend to skip lots of fun events because I don't want to deal with hundreds of people smushed together and the long lines that accompany them. I just lack the patience. So when my mother mentioned going to the San Antonio Spurs victory parade downtown on the Riverwalk, I was like, meh, no way. Being jammed shoulder to shoulder in the Texas heat waiting for a parade to roll by is basically my nightmare, even if the Spurs have been my team since '89. I'll pass, thank you very much.
But then I thought about the Riverwalk, and more importantly, all of the awesome restaurants and bars that line it and the light bulb went off; "Hold up. What if we book a table and eat dinner while we watched it?" B effing ingo.
We booked a table at Little Rhein Steakhouse and headed downtown extra early (my best avoid the crowds tactic) and got our celebration on. (Our celebration included a stop at Hooters, or as Gregory calls it 'Ewters', because he's been dying to go. Boys.)
We took our time walking along the San Antonio river and through La Villita, which somehow I have never been to despite having been downtown approximately 239478 times. It was the perfect way to work up an appetite for dinner (and to not feel about the massive slice of cheesecake I woofed down).
It's estimated that over 100,000 fans squeezed onto the Riverwalk for the parade (a testament to how dedicated Spurs fans are), which is definitely up there on my crowd, nightmare meter, but between the beautiful scenery and the whole genius restaurant idea, I didn't mind one bit.