Dining in DC
We had two memorable meals in Washington at Jose Andres restaurants, Zaytinya and Jaleo, both near the National Portrait Gallery. We enjoyed Zaytinya last time in DC and it was just as good on this visit. The restaurant features small plate Mediterranean fare like hummus, falafel, baba ganoush, fresh seafood, and a charred brussel sprouts dish that was wiped clean by our foursome in record time. Jaleo is more standard Spanish tapa fare like chorizo, paella, a tasty ham and cheese sandwich, and perfectly rendered shrimp. On our last night, after the graduation ceremony, we headed to the waterfront in Georgetown for another sublime meal at Farmers Fishers Bakers Restaurant. The eclectic menu features everything from crab dib and mussels served in eight different sauces to sashimi-style tuna, ahi poke salads, and steak frites. Washed down with microbrews and shots of smooth Tequila to celebrate, it was the perfect way to top off the graduation celebration with Ami.Another week, another niece graduating from college! This coming Sunday we’ll be celebrating with Sarah Schechter at Wesleyan University. A talented artist with an insatiable appetite for art history (much to the delight of my art historian wife), Sarah has a future as colorful as her canvases. She’s already had one exhibition in Brooklyn and we look forward to seeing many more shows. Also, ActiveTravels travel consultant, Amy Perry Basseches, has a son, Jake, graduating from Wesleyan on the same day. So big kudos to Jake, especially after completing his 100-page senior honors thesis. You deserve that trip to South America!
After the graduation, we’re headed with my brother to Brooklyn Sunday night to see an artist we love in this family, the British DJ, Leon Vynehall. Then we’re spending two days in the city to see the Chihuly exhibition at the New York Botanical Garden. I’ll be back next Thursday. Thanks for being patient with my sporadic scheduling!
Photo by Melanie Jermanok
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After working diligently with our website designer this past year, we are pleased to announce the launch of our new 
For the past decade, I have been asked to speak once a semester about my life as a travel writer at an Emerson College magazine writing course. I always bring a thick of folder of more than 200 rejection letters. It includes my favorite rejection from Mad Magazine, simply a box checked next to the line, “It just didn’t tickle our funny bone.” Universities do a wonderful job of teaching the craft of writing, but rarely touch on the psychological aspects of rejection and the necessary business skills to market your wares. Close to half my time, especially in those early years, was spent peddling my writing to editors (and screenplays to production companies). Almost every day, I would return from my mailbox with a stack of rejection letters. It was an incredible struggle, the reason why many of the creative people I met in those early years in New York are no longer writing professionally. 
If you’re interested in a quick fall jaunt to Mystic, Connecticut, skiing at Park City, or feeling that Jamaican warmth some time this winter,