I love making and finding all sorts of connections when I travel--- human connections, such as that with Lori in San Antonio and Paris Parfait, Florizelle and Linda in Paris. But cultural connections are fun, too. Food is often a good source of this kind of conjunction (see the German/Mexican dishes below) and it has the added advantage of being...well, edible. At La Fonda on Main, my husband's favorite restaurant from his childhood in San Antonio, I was delighted to see 'Filete Milanese con Papas' on the menu---Italy meets Spain in the Texas hills! I thought this might be the creation of the new chef (LaFonda came into being in 1932 and recently changed ownership), but I later saw similar dishes listed in other restaurants. One Hispanic waiter told me his grandmother used to make it at home. If you know anything about the history of this dish, please let me know--I'm fascinated by this appearance of Milan in TexMex cuisine
We ate at La Fonda twice--it's that good and that pretty, too, all freshened and refurbished as it is under the new owners. My husband tells me it has not lost its soul in the process, which was welcome news. Good souls are not that easy to come by.
There's one more day of San Antonio sketches to come. Can you tell I had a good time?
I LOVE THESE! What a great place for you to work and play. The masks are my favorite!
Posted by: lindsay | March 29, 2007 at 10:09 PM
Thank you so much, you all! The only bad thing about traveling with my husband is the amount of food I end up eating. Or is that one of the good things? ;D Food is fun to paint (no, I don't paint HIS) and it tells you a lot of interesting things about the intersection of cultures. Ellen, I'd LOVE to meet you here, there, or anywhere! We'll try to work something out, shall we?
Posted by: Laura | March 27, 2007 at 05:29 PM
Love your cropped view of the plate, silverware, and the chair and the poster. Great work.
Posted by: Jane LaFazio | March 27, 2007 at 12:02 PM
I could eat that picture... (Terrible thing, a diet.)
And I like the way you just use little hints of color in some of your pictures.
Posted by: marly | March 26, 2007 at 11:53 AM
I just love your paintings. Feels like I was there, too! Thanks so much for sharing these. My husband loves Texas, and they love him there because they keep asking him back. The one place he hasn't been yet is San Antonio so when he gets home this weekend, I will share your paintings with him.
Posted by: Sherie | March 26, 2007 at 10:14 AM
Not only can I tell YOU had a good time, you're generous to SHARE that good time. What fun! I feel like I had a lovely getaway...
Posted by: Cathy (Kate) Johnson | March 26, 2007 at 09:46 AM