It's sometimes easy to forget that San Antonio is part of Texas. It seems a million miles away from the big, wild personality we associate with the Lone Star state. San Antonio is as much a product of its Mexican and Hispanic roots as its US influences but, as you'll see if you visit the Institute of Texan Cultures, in HemisFair Park, their multi-culturism is what makes Texans, Texans.
The museum celebrates Texan folklore and the 27 different cultures that have helped shape the modern state, using multimedia presentations, puppet shows, exhibits, tours and mock-ups to illustrate the development of Texas and its people. Even the doomed volunteers at the Alamo included Scots, Irish, Danes, Germans, Welsh and Englishmen.

Beer and museums don't usually go hand in hand but then the Buckhorn Saloon & Museum is no ordinary museum. In days gone by if you didn't have the price of your drink you could get yourself a beer in exchange for a good set of cattle horns which sounds like a good deal for everyone but the cow. And that's how it all started.

The horns were carved, mounted, made into furniture and put on display, then came stuffed animals, rattlesnake art, mammoth tusks, wax museum, shooting gallery and 118 years of Texan memorabilia. Put that together with a bar, a restaurant that serves rattlesnake and wild boar and live entertainment in the form of rope-tricks and gun slinging and you've got a pretty good idea of what's on offer.