{"id":720287,"date":"2026-04-11T11:00:19","date_gmt":"2026-04-11T11:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/720287\/"},"modified":"2026-04-11T11:00:19","modified_gmt":"2026-04-11T11:00:19","slug":"where-i-live-monte-vista","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/720287\/","title":{"rendered":"Where I Live: Monte Vista"},"content":{"rendered":"

The\u00a0Where I Live\u00a0series<\/a> aims to showcase our diverse city and region by spotlighting its many vibrant neighborhoods. Each week a local resident invites us over and lets us in on what makes their neighborhood special. Have we been to your neighborhood yet?\u00a0Get in touch<\/a>\u00a0to share your story. If your story is selected and published, you will receive a $250 stipend.<\/p>\n

After 36 years in Fredericksburg, I finally moved to Monte Vista in the summer of 2022. It wasn\u2019t\u00a0a snap decision; this neighborhood has actually been my favorite place to visit for years. There\u00a0 is something special about the houses here. They have this incredible resilience, probably\u00a0because they aren\u2019t cookie-cutter \u2014 you have a huge variety of sizes and designs by some really noted architects. Since the neighborhood became a national landmark in 1998, it\u2019s managed to keep that unique, eclectic soul.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I wanted to make sure I was contributing to that spirit. Since opening my shop, URBANherbal<\/a>,\u00a0I\u2019ve been working to enhance the block with native herbs. It\u2019s about more than just a pretty\u00a0garden; these plants bring in the bees, butterflies and birds, supporting the pollinators that our\u00a0environment really needs to thrive.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

I live in a beautiful old historic home that was built in 1914 and was once home to a prominent doctor. It has a separate front door next to the house that was his doctor\u2019s office, now my herb shop. Hidden in the back is a little guest house that\u2019s now my Airbnb, The Botanist Bungalow.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"Bill Varney enters the Airbnb unit in his backyard that he refers to as the \u201cBotanist Bungalow.\u201d Credit: Clint Datchuk for the San Antonio Report<\/p>\n

The main house was also the childhood home of Richard Harrell Rogers, born in 1941, who was a famous artist and very successful in modern design. His works have been exhibited at many museums and had many awards and recognitions for his art. I was able to place a historic medallion on the front of my home after purchasing it.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"Bill Varney poses for a portrait outside his herb store in Monte Vista. Credit: Clint Datchuk for the San Antonio Report<\/p>\n

A few things that I really enjoy about Monte Vista is that every month, many of the neighbors get\u00a0 together for a social evening at a different person\u2019s home and everyone brings a little something\u00a0to eat and drink. It is a great way to get to know your neighbors. In February, they always host a \u201cI LOVE Monte Vista\u201d afternoon, which is really a lot of fun. Every year Monte Vista hosts an elegant evening of fine dining and drinks that raises money for the neighborhood association.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I have also enjoyed hosting many parties for friends or family with many herb infused foods and drinks. When my son and daughter-in-law were expecting their first baby, I hosted an English-style Afternoon Tea baby shower for them. I was so happy to welcome my first granddaughter,\u00a0soon after.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

In my personal, spiritual journey, I am also so happy to be just a few blocks away from Christ\u00a0Episcopal Church on Belknap Place.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Another neighborhood perk is that a half a block from my home is a little strip with a couple of\u00a0restaurants and a wonderful art gallery. Art Gallery Prudencia hosts art events every month,\u00a0which are really fun. The gallery\u2019s owner recently hosted a book signing for me.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been in the herb business for 40 years now, but I still get a rush when I share what I know.\u00a0I\u2019ve always believed that to really \u201cget\u201d herbs, you have to use all your senses \u2014 sight, touch,\u00a0 smell, taste and even sound. It\u2019s something that feeds the spirit. I actually just released my\u00a0 latest book on this exact topic, titled \u201cThe URBAN HERBAL: A Texan\u2019s Guide for Enhancing\u00a0All of Your Senses with Herbs.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"Bill Varney poses for a portrait with his newest book, \u201cThe Urban Herbal,\u201d at his herb store in the Monte Vista neighborhood. Credit: Clint Datchuk for the San Antonio Report<\/p>\n

La Fonda on Main is close by and so is Capparelli\u2019s and Vegan Avenue. Then just a couple of blocks away is Barbaro which is open seven nights a week until midnight, and right behind my home is Extra Fine, a coffee and lunch spot. Salon Visage is a wonderful hair and skin care care studio just two doors down. More recently, South Barbecue has just opened in a newly renovated old service station. It is open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week, and is within walking distance.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I am only five minutes away from St. Mary\u2019s Strip and Pearl, which are always fun hangouts. In the past year, what I have really gotten into is cycling around Monte Vista. It is a great way to stay fit and healthy, and get up close to see all of the beautiful nature and architecture the neighborhood has to offer. <\/p>\n

\"\"Bill Varney tends to herbs growing in the backyard of his Monte Vista home, which is also the location of his business, Urban Herbal. Credit: Clint Datchuk for the San Antonio Report<\/p>\n

I\u2019m also working hard to grow our local community. I recently helped start the SATX Herb\u00a0 Society<\/a>, our local unit of The Herb Society of America. We\u2019re actually hosting the 2026 national\u00a0 conference right here in San Antonio from April 15-17. It\u2019s called \u201cIt\u2019s Spicier in Texas,\u201d and it\u2019s\u00a0 a great chance to dive deeper into the world of herbs. We have day passes available, and I\u2019d\u00a0love for y\u2019all to join us<\/a>! <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The\u00a0Where I Live\u00a0series aims to showcase our diverse city and region by spotlighting its many vibrant neighborhoods. Each…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":720288,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5133],"tags":[5229,298942,298943,55526,298944,298945,43961,180140,144620,298946,104436,7202,7203,298947,358,298948,7453,3187,67,586,132,5230,298949,68,2969,21042],"class_list":["post-720287","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-antonio","tag-america","tag-christ-episcopal-church","tag-herb-shop","tag-herbs","tag-historic-medallion","tag-i-love-monte-vista","tag-icymi","tag-monte-vista","tag-national-landmark","tag-native-herbs","tag-neighborhood-association","tag-san-antonio","tag-sanantonio","tag-satx-herb-society","tag-texas","tag-the-botanist-bungalow","tag-top-story","tag-tx","tag-united-states","tag-united-states-of-america","tag-unitedstates","tag-unitedstatesofamerica","tag-urbanherbal","tag-us","tag-usa","tag-where-i-live"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116385731710290955","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/720287","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=720287"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/720287\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/720288"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=720287"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=720287"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=720287"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}