Gayle Brennan Spencer – sending random thoughts to and from South Austin
Above: Traditional cachopo of beef filled with serrano ham, goat cheese and caramelized onions at LaMasBARata
With Oviedo our only stop in Asturias during a trip last spring, we opted to sample some of the dishes of which the region boasts. This is not to say we didn’t stray a few times, as photos from these restaurants we patronized show.
Continue reading “Postcard from Oviedo, Spain: Exploring Asturian cuisine”
Above: “Saint Ursula and the 11,000 Virgins,” Pieter Claeissens, 1560
Pieter Claeissens’s painting hanging in Museo de Bellas Artes de Asturias attracted my attention because of my unfamiliarity with Saint Ursula. According to legend, 11,000 handmaidens of Princess Ursula set sail with her from southern England on a journey to marry the pagan to whom her father had betrothed her. The ship was blown off course, so Ursula and her entourage decided on an extended pilgrimage to Italy first. Huns had taken over Cologne by the time they finally arrived there, and, for some reason, the Huns failed to appreciate having all those virgins in their midst and slaughtered them.
Continue reading “Postcard from Oviedo, Spain: A few pieces from Museo de Bellas Artes”
Postcards from Barton Springs 