Anneliese's Blog

Last weekend, I went to San Antonio for a Bustillo Family Reunion! Every 5 years, we all get together and celebrate being a member of an awesome, gigantic, Texan family with tons of history.

Our big reunion day was set for October 6, which happened to be the day of the Texas-OU game. We all met up on the grounds of Brooks Air Force Base. Bill Miller’s catered, and in case you’ve never been there, here is a link to the map of the closest one to campus. It’s a San Antonio favorite, and Austin is lucky enough to have a few.

This reunion was for my dad’s side of the family. Now, my dad’s side of the family has been in Texas since 1731. I know! That’s a really long time! They were some of the first Spaniards to come to Texas to find land. My family was also there at the construction of Mission San Jose. Down below, I attached a picture I took of the Mission as the sun set. It’s a beautiful place. My father’s grandfather actually lived on the property of the Mission when it was still fully functioning. Now it is just a Catholic parish community, but it holds a special place in my family. My parents got married there in the 70s and both my sister and I were baptized there. I received my First Communion there (but committed treason when I had my quinceanera at San Fernando Cathedral just blocks from the Alamo).

Before we went to the reunion, my dad did a short speech at a memorial service for the “Heroes of the Alamo.” My great-great grandfather’s first cousin (I think… It’s hard to keep straight sometimes) Clemente Bustillo fought at the Alamo and was an honored hero. As a history major, that was one awesome ceremony- all of these descendants of Alamo heroes getting together and exchanging stories. It was really fascinating. Now on to the reunion!

I go to the reunion and proceeded to shove my face with a plate of BBQ. I got to see my grandmother, who is now 82 years old, and all of my aunts, uncles, and cousins. I was there about an hour, then I had to leave for a bit to go watch the game at a nearby restaurant. Lucky for me, right next to Brooks Air Force Base is a restaurant called “Longhorn Cafe.” It was a sign that I was destined to watch the game. My boyfriend, Corey, and I managed to see every single OU touchdown and miss every single Texas one. Don’t ask me how we did it, but we did. We missed the first two when we were in the car driving to the cafe, and we missed the third one on the way back!

After the game, we went back to the reunion and then on to Mission San Jose with some distant relatives of mine who own El Patio, which is just North of campus at 29th Street and Guadalupe. Here’s a random anecdote for you: One day, my family and I were eating over at El Patio (which is something my parents have been doing since their days at UT in the 70s), and my dad pulled out his credit card to pay. Our waiter noticed the last name Bustillo, and sure enough, we are related to the owners of El Patio. Coincidence? I think not. I also think we know good Mexican food when we taste it. If you get a chance, check it out over there. It’s delicious. Tell them Anneliese sent you.

The Rose Window was carved by Pedro Huizar (yes, I’m related to him too) and to this day stands as one of the drawing attractions of Mission San Jose. I have about 100 pictures of me in front of this window throughout my life.

This is a little known (fabricated) fact: Back in the 1800s, if people living on the property of Mission San Jose were hungry and tired of cooking, they could just order pizza from the Pizza Hut on the other side of the wall.

P.S. Congratulations to Dr. Cheryl Wilkinson of the Special Education Department here at UT! She taught me Individual Differences over the summer and won the title competition! She correctly guessed (off of the first post!!!) that the titles come from Beatles songs. An honorable mention goes out to my lovely sister Marisa!