All EDGE Photos Now Uploaded

I've made a page listing links for all the photos from the trip, it's called Trip Photos.

I uploaded them onto Flickr.
Here is a general link to get you to them all.
I've split them into driving days. 

Enjoy!

Roadtrip Recap: Rest Stop in NOLA

New Orleans, LA, digital painting, ©2014 

WARNING -- don't read this on an empty stomach! 

Yes, Cafe Du Monde is a tourist cliche. Yes, it was our first stop.

There are some shopping photos over on Spygirl, my fashion blog.

We went to Acme Oyster House for dinner. Yum.

Grilled Oysters

Crawfish

Seafood Etouffee

We plotted the start of the next day's gluttony:

Breakfast at Stanley's:

I had Eggs Stanley: Fried Oysters, Poached Eggs, Canadian Bacon, Hollandaise  over an English Muffin

Severo's breakfasts often look more like dessert.
This is Bananas Foster French Toast: French Bread, Bananas, Vanilla Ice Cream, Walnuts, Foster Sauce

As we posed for a selfie in Jackson Square Park, we heard something wafting in the breezes:

Post by Anne M Bray.

(I only have the facebook post of this. Hopefully you can view it.)

Next up on our Glutton itinerary was a stop at Central Grocery for Muffulettas and other sundries.

We got one to split "for later". I ended up with it all, and I ate it the following two days. Lucky me.

We wanted Po-Boys for lunch, and we went to Johnny's:

Shrimp and Oyster Po-Boy

More walking, then dessert:

The proprietor of the Swiss Confectionary told us about a free concert in Lafayette Park featuring Marcia Ball. We went back to the hotel to rest a bit beforehand and our naps went on too long. We made it back only for her finale. Oh well.

It was a lovely night and we strolled back to the hotel.

More photos on my Flickr here.

Roadtrip Recap Day 6: Sulphur, LA to NOLA

Pines, I-10 LA, digital painting, ©2014

I had a short driving day on April 1st, taking I-10 from Sulphur to Lafayette, then on to New Orleans via US 90.

I saw Gulf-side refineries

Wet agricultural vistas

Swamps

My favorite part of the morning was breakfast at Billeaud's Too, in New Iberia.

I opted for one of the Lent Specials -- a crawfish omelet with grits and toast. Delicious!

I reached New Orleans around noon, where I rendezvoused with Severo for a couple of days.

More photos of this segment here on Flickr.

Roadtrip Recap Day 5: Sinton, TX to Sulphur, LA

Train, US77 TX,  digital painting, ©2014 

My day started with a visit to the Sinton Post Office to mail some post cards.
A nice surprise was the wall of old style mail boxes:

I had a hankering for a country breakfast (grits, eggs, bacon) but couldn't find any suitable spot. If only I had had a craving for mariscos. Lots of Mexican food available in the region.
I finally gave up and stopped at a rest stop near Inez and made myself a sandwich.

Peanut butter, Seville orange marmalade, and bananas.

It was a very pleasant spot situated in a grove of oaks.
A train rolled by:

Back on the road, Buc-ee's signage kept me entertained for a while:

I resisted the "urge" however, and powered on through Houston's rush hour to wind up in Sulphur, LA.

Here's the Flickr link for all this day's photos.

Roadtrip Recap Day 4: Eagle Pass to Sinton, TX

US77, TX  digital painting, ©2014 

I left Eagle Pass at dawn.
My phone had gone "out of range" the night before, here's my old school navigating:

I was nervous about driving solo along the southern TX/Mexico border -- I had read about police targeting travelers with infractions and impounding their cars, to fill town coffers with the impound fee payments. Another worry was the fracking oil boom around Carrizo Springs after reading this article in the LA Times.

It was all very quiet, much to my relief.

Mobile meal:

Exxon brands their convenience stores "El Tigre" along the southern border.
Rawr.

When I arrived on the Gulf side of the state, it was very flat, hot, and humid.

This gas station was next to my motel.

All this day's photos are on my Flickr here.

Road Trip Recap Day 3: Van Horn to Eagle Pass TX

Motel 6 Sunrise, Van Horn, TX  digital painting ©2014 

Day 3.
I woke up at dawn, and ended up getting a late start. (The wifi was good at the Motel 6).

On US90, the Prada Marfa installation appeared when I least expected it -- it's in Valentine, 35 miles northwest of Marfa.

Waterlogue version here

I arrived in Marfa at noon, too late to tour any of the indoor art installations, (except for Zoe Leonard's very cool camera obscura) and too early for viewing Donald Judd's aluminum pieces at the Chinati Foundation. Outdoors, I was able to walk Judd's 15 Untitled Works in Concrete, 15 groupings of large rectangular forms set in a sere landscape.

After art came eating. I went for a couple of slices at the Pizza Foundation.

Then it was time to hit the road.

Sunset on US277, TX  digital painting  ©2014

All this day's photos are on my Flickr here.

This post is dedicated to Joseph Frost, my uncle. He passed away last week. Uncle Joe loved to travel and took many road trips. Adios.

Road Trip Recap Day 2: Eloy AZ to Van Horn TX

I-10, Western TX, digital painting, ©2014 

Day 2.
I set out at sunrise, heading southeast on I-10.

near Picacho, AZ

I didn't have a plan for breakfast. Thankfully the Tucson exit for Congress Street reminded me of the Hotel Congress, which has a great cafe, The Cup Cafe.

This plate of huevos rancheros fortified me for the day. 

When I hit New Mexico, the excessive billboards started for the souvenir emporiums.

I stopped at several, searching for postcards to mail for my crowdfunding rewards.

Instead, I found this very creepy stuffed cat.

With Texas came the very close encounter with the Mexican border.
The view of Cuidad Juarez from I-10, which I first saw in 1993, was one inspiration for the On the Edge project.

Waterlogue version here.

I managed to hit rush hour in El Paso, then hightailed it across western Texas.
My reward at the end of the day was a chile relleno burrito at Chuy's in Van Horn, TX.

Plus a large go-cup of salsa, for the road.

See more photos, here in my Flickr.