Living

Beatriz Parres • June 20, 2013

It is not surprise that food in airplanes and trains aren’t known for flavorful and succulent taste. Booking a flight or buying a train ticket used to hold an air of excitement for many. For businesspersons, who often find themselves traveling four times a week, a good meal could be the one highlight of a trip.

Unfortunately, the feedback from passengers about the food in trains and planes are usually not positive and often end up in complaints and disappointments. Imagine comments which include: “The chicken was cold. The bread was five days old. There was no vegetarian option.” Most people opt for bringing their own sandwich or not eating at all and waiting to eat at that destinations. Still the idea of eating gourmet during a trip might change the minds of some travelers.

Amtrak has already stepped up its game by hiring top chefs in the United States to be the brain of its culinary advisory team in exchange for frequent traveler miles. With a little bit of salt and a little bit of pepper, the team of 12 top chefs are in charge of coming up with healthier and tastier meals for passengers.

Cooks like Tom Douglas from Seattle and Roberto Santibañez from Mexico are among the gang of 12. They are joined by Michel Richard, well-known in Georgetown for his restaurant Citronelle, which closed due to water damage, and Central Michel Richard still up and running on Pennsylvania Avenue. From France, Richard spent some time in California before moving to D.C., where his cuisine won the heart of the nation’s capital and is a must-go place on the restaurant scene.

The team comes together each spring to brainstorm new dishes for Amtrak’s menu. Their challenge is to come up with meals that are healthier and satisfy all palates. With longer routes, they have more flexibility to come up with more elaborate food, while in shorter routes, they have to be ready to come up with pre-packed meals ready to be heated up or served as it is. This could be the beginning of a gourmet experience when you travel short and long distances.

Georgetowner • June 19, 2013

Dear Stacy:

I know this isn’t likely to get a response when I need it, but it’s still worth asking what you think about the disparity between husbands and wives, regarding gift-giving. The long story is that my husband totally dropped the ball with Mother’s Day. The kids had thrown together some cards from school, but he didn’t do a single thing to make the day special (besides telling me I could “sleep in,” after our kids already woke me up). Now it’s Father’s Day and I, unlike him, am thinking about it far enough in advance to even send a question to an advice column. Basically, I am 1,000 times more thoughtful than he is and I am having a hard time not “planning” to give him a horrible Father’s Day so he can see just how it feels. I know you’re going to tell me to talk to him – but what do I say? “You are a sucky partner, so I’m done making you feel special?”

-Angry in Advance

Dear Angry,
I’m really sorry you had a bad Mother’s Day. Does Husband know you had a bad Mother’s Day? And more specifically, was this something you actually said, not something you implied via passive aggressive pouting? My guess would be that no, Husband has no idea that you were expecting something that did not materialize. So yes, you need to talk to him.

But not now.

You need to wait and breathe and relax now that Father’s Day is over, and get a handle on what it is you want to say. We need to set aside the clichés about men and bad gift-giving (women actually are equally bad, btw, we just don’t get the press the guys do). You say you did not feel special – that is where we start. Many of us arrived at our first Mother’s/Father’s Days without much experience beyond rushing flowers across the country to our own parents, so please give yourselves a break about not being completely sure of what you expect and what you can give on those days. If this is important to you, then it’s important enough to use all the skills we have in the relationship to clear the air. In other words – say something non-accusatory about not feeling special on Mother’s Day. Include a line about wanting to help you both get what you need on those days in the future. Then you two can negotiate what feels right for your marriage.

Stacy Notaras Murphy www.stacymurphyLPC.com is a licensed professional counselor and certified Imago Relationship therapist, practicing in Georgetown. This column is meant for entertainment only and should not be considered a substitute for professional counseling. Send your confidential question to stacy@georgetowner.com.

Robert Devaney • June 11, 2013

The birthplace of George Washington, James Madison, James Monroe and Robert E. Lee, the Northern Neck of Virginia lies between the Potomac and Rappahannock Rivers. Early in America’s history, its plantation-owning society was a powerful leader with river transport so easily at hand but the peninsula was left behind by the railroad and the nation’s expansion. Today, we benefit from this pause in time.

What to Do

On the main road, King’s Highway, easy-going choices await. The George Washington Birthplace National Monument on Popes Creek with home and farm (not original) evoke the 1700s. There is Stratford Hall, home of the Lee family, the Steamboat Era Museum in Irvington and the Reedville Fishermen’s Museum.

Of course, there are marinas and beaches for boating and water sports – it’s all about the water along this peninsula of eastern Virginia’s Tidewater. (There are more than 1,000 miles of shoreline, after all.) A few Washingtonians can recall Colonial Beach’s gambling days when barges floated on the Potomac – all of it is owned by Maryland – to be legal. Although gambling is no longer an option there, the beach, which has updated itself to a point, is well worth a visit.

For more restless members of family, there is the Northern Neck Heritage Trail Bicycling Route – from Colonial Beach down to Smith Point. And there’s still much more to visit: Kilmarnock is a classic hometown one must see. Check out the maritime history in Kinsale and the Mary Ball Washington Museum in Lancaster.

Where to Eat

Love to eat? The Northern Neck features good eating from roadside stops to fine dining at the Tides Inn in Irvington or Sandpiper in White Stone. Westmoreland Berry Farm, an orchard that sells fruit preserves, along with numerous wineries, welcome visitors.

Some visitors even buy a farm and plant a vineyard. One such D.C. transplant – of which there are many – is Steve Madey, who owns the Hague Winery, established in 2008. The retired Navy aviator, Senate staffer and part-time lobbyist bought the old farm in 2000.

For Madey, his lifelong dream began while working on Capitol Hill where he used the Library of Congress to learn about viniculture. His wife Cynthia now has a wine named after her and his son works at a California winery.

“It’s great out there,” says Madey, who has grown his business slowly, because – as he likes to explain – it requires you to “bring money.”

The Northern Neck boasts other wineries: Ingleside, Belle Mount, Oak Crest, Vault Field, Athena and White Fences. The region even has an official wine appellation: Northern Neck George Washington Birthplace AVA. If you like, journey the Chesapeake Bay Wine Trail with a designated driver.

In Montross, sample Angelo’s pizza. For good sandwiches and pastries, try Art of Coffee or the Daily, which is down the road in Warsaw.

Local farms offer produce to weekenders as well as to restaurants in D.C. and elsewhere. Virginia ham? You know it, and someone mentioned Whitley’s peanuts and Joe Lewis’s tomatoes, to name but a few top items.

Where to Stay

Good places to rest over night are the Kilmarnock Inn with its wonderful cruise packages, The Chesapeake Inn and Hope & Glory Inn, a B&B in Irvington featuring vineyards, fine dining and spa treatments.
[gallery ids="100171,100172,100173" nav="thumbs"]

Rachel Scola • June 7, 2013

There are always options for events in the area when summer rolls around, the biggest
problem is just deciding where to go. Whether you’re familiar with some of the summer
traditions or are trying to find new places to go, fill up your calendar with the following
outings that can be great for the family or just a date night.

UPPERVILLE COLT AND HORSE
SHOW:

Upperville once again is hosting its annual
Colt and Horse Show. The show has been a tradition
since 1853, making it the oldest horse show
and is loved by any and all who attend. There are
the competitions – jumping and hunter eventsand
social receptions in the evenings. The show
started June 3 and runs until June 9. Gates open
at 8 a.m. every day. Tickets are $10.

Wally Greeves • June 3, 2013

The increasingly familiar 37-minute drive from my home to the entrance of Raspberry Falls Golf & Hunt Club in Leesburg, Va., has become a spiritual cleanser for me.

About the time the last of the Dulles Technology corridor buildings and E-ZPass employees disappear into the rear view mirror, the Catoctin foothills at the base of the Blue Ridge appear from between mounds of highway-blasted rocks and start to lower my blood pressure. Meandering through historical Raspberry Plain to arrive at the Scottish-style links course, I see why course designer Gary Player says, “This site was made for a golf course” and “Like nothing you’ve experienced this side of the Atlantic.” When golfers find a place that regularly humiliates them, beats them up, frustrates them, flagrantly tests the outer limits of their patience–and they keep going there–well, they have either gotten married or found a home golf course. Raspberry Falls is my home course.

My performance on a golf hole is much easier to digest and I am able to focus on the next one better, if I can no longer see the prior hole or hear golfers playing it right next to me. The thankfully simple progression of Raspberry holes from one to the next reminds me of classically sequential board games from childhood where you don’t have to backtrack, repeat, skip three spaces or follow arrows to get to the next challenge. This distinction, allowable by a proper amount of real estate, leads me to consider each of the 18 holes at Raspberry as a separate experience with different character and personalities. I absolutely like every hole on the course, which is a rarity for me. The rising elevation on bunker-lined fairway #1 brings you to a pleasant plateau at the base of the tree line and then sends you hurtling through the valley and over a stream to reach glassy green #2. The stunning views from the 100-foot elevated tee box on hole #3 are my favorite on the course, and a lofty drive will allow time to watch your ball slowly disappear into the valley like a champagne cork shot off the side of a mountain.

Restored stone walls from the Civil War era on holes #3 and #9, and Scottish-style stacked pot sand traps with names like “Lee’s Bunker” and “Grant’s Tomb” on hole #11 are among the many pleasant score distractions, assuming you are not behind or in them. You may need the assistance of cliff-dwelling Indians to get your ball out of some of these extremely deep, Grand Canyon-like looking bunkers. Natural rock outcroppings ubiquitously litter the course. If you do not reach the green on #13 with your tee shot, you may find yourself breaking these rocks out of frustration or just to find your ball. A successful approach shot on #10 over water is a sigh of relief when beginning the back nine, and the par five #11 will exercise your fairway woods at almost 600 yards uphill. Many of the Raspberry Plain farming outbuildings still stand around the layout and give an extra rustic feeling to holes like the par three #15. The elevated tee box on #18 is nestled into the side of a hill, and the falls that make up the name of the course drip down into the ravine you will be shooting over. Ending the round requires successfully crossing the ravine again and also flying “Rogue’s Hollow,” a villainous little round-killing greenside bunker that has robbed me frequently.

According to my wife, the habit I have of establishing the perfect drip in the kitchen sink and individually cleaning each of my clubs while re-organizing my golf bag is annoying. I find it cathartically therapeutic in a Macbeth sort of way and a chance to review which clubs I am using. It was while engaging in this perfectly healthy and normal behavior recently that I discovered another reason that I like Raspberry Falls: it requires the use of every club in my bag, including the 60-degree wedge.

From being welcomed by Gilbert or another red vest wearing cart assistant to speaking with general manager Bob Swiger, I have never felt anything other than welcome at this golf club. The Raspberry experience doesn’t have to end with a round at Raspberry Falls either, because Raspberry Golf Management owns and operates local favorite courses Augustine, Bull Run and Old Hickory Golf Clubs as well. You can join as a full member of any of these. If you need a break from playing golf at them than you can get married on the grounds of any of the four courses, and I see this happening more and more. The Raspberry Academy operates out of all four and is a great place to take lessons or get fitted for clubs. I was first introduced to Raspberry after I hosted a real estate tournament there in 2000, and they are no less friendly or innovative now. Two groups recently brought their sales and lobbyist all-stars out for lessons tailored to driving and wedge shots, and all left with custom fitted drivers and wedges. The growing Raspberry Golf Trail, offering multiple-play discounts, includes 13 courses from southern Virginia to mid-Pennsylvania, including another local favorite of mine, Queenstown Harbor in Maryland. Recent deals with the Golf Channel are just another indicator of the growing presence of the Raspberry name.

The fact that when I pull out of Raspberry Falls after a round of golf I feel like I just did something vastly important is not only funny but a testament to the designers, management and employees of the course. A round of golf here is exactly like a raspberry: an upscale, yet affordable, fruit that leaves a good taste in your mouth.

For more information, visit www.raspberryfalls.com Raspberry Falls, 41601 Raspberry Drive, Leesburg, Va. 20176 703-779-2555

Wandergolf will be a frequently appearing golf column in The Georgetowner that will be reporting on the golf interests of Washingtonians. If you have suggestions for columns or comments, please email them to wally@wandergolf.com
[gallery ids="101305,150126,150123" nav="thumbs"]

Nico Dodd • May 9, 2013

On Saturday, May 11, the annual Georgetown Garden Tour, presented by the Georgetown Garden Club, will open a select number of private gardens to visitors and runs 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. On Saturday, tickets can be purchased at Christ Church, at 31st and O Streets, NW. The church will also host an afternoon tea from 2 p.m. until 4 p.m. at the church’s Keith Hall, included in the ticket price, as well as a garden boutique which will offer for sale a selection of topiaries, porcelain and gardening tools as well as products from Georgetown-based porcelain company Middle Kingdom and products imported from Haiti.
Gardens on the tour “show how something beautiful can be created in a small, urban space,” said Elizabeth Shriver, president of the Georgetown Garden Club. Included on this year’s tour is Dumbarton Oaks Park on R Street. In the past, funds raised from the tour were donated to Book Hill Park, Montrose Park, Volta Park and Trees For Georgetown, Shriver said.

For more information about the Georgetown Garden Tour, visit www.georgetowngardentour.com.

GARDENS ON THE 2013 TOUR

Gardens West of Wisconsin Avenue

3304 R Street

A sophisticated garden with style and a sense of humor. An enormous cup pours water into the pool, imaginative sculptures abound, delightful touches throughout.

1631 34th Street

A clever, two-level small garden packed with treats. A comma-shaped pool has a marvelous Japanese maple like an umbrella over it. A secluded lower level has a waist-deep dipping pool with seating.

1552 34th Street

A brick-paved square frames an exuberant fountain, two large urns are planted with mondo grass. Plantings include the pink climbing rose Cecile Bruner, vitex, red crape myrtles, a fig, and a golden chain tree.

3415 Volta Place

An inviting garden filled with lovely details: a pool, lace leaf maples, a hedge of weeping beeches, Chinese red garden sheds, antique pots, a greenhouse, bamboo, and the soothing nearby murmurings of little caged birds.

3327 P Street

Juxtaposition of rectangles outlined with narrow flagstone borders, Buddhas from Bali, mondo grass edging for planting beds, a water feature with fountains, a fire pit, gas lights.

3313 P Street

A sequence of four garden rooms wrap around three sides of the house: borders for active gardening, a lawn area, a place for outdoor meetings and a seating area around the pool.

Gardens East of Wisconsin Avenue

1401 34th Street

This small lushly planted garden is partially enclosed by an old carriage house. The free-form pond features water lilies and lotus. Ferns and hellebores abound, plus Harry Lauder’s walking stick. By Rogers & Co.

Off Lovers’ Lane, on R Street between 31st Street and Avon Place

The Dumbarton Oaks Park Conservancy offers its own special tour at midday of the “wild garden” that was once part of the Dumbarton Oaks Estate – all designed by Beatrix Farrand. Pastoral delights and insights into garden restoration abound.

Listings and descriptions provided by the Georgetown Garden Club. [gallery ids="101281,149484,149498,149477,149504,149469,149509,149463,149515,149491" nav="thumbs"]

Ari Post •

Virginia is Horse Country. Plain and simple. Equestrian culture is the lifeblood of the Middleburg and Loudoun County areas, where traditions of hunting, breeding and racing date back to the Revolution. Just as entertainment is the industry and culture of Hollywood, so it goes for horses and the Piedmont. Just walking through Middleburg, there is no mistaking the town’s deep-rooted affection for all things equine, as storefronts like the Red Fox Inn, Journeymen Saddlers, Middleburg Tack Exchange and the National Sporting Library and Museum line its main street.

The surrounding area is home to the longest standing equestrian traditions in the country, from annual sporting events to hunt clubs and breeding. For more than 150 years, horse enthusiasts from across the world gather in Upperville for the Upperville Colt and Horse Show, the oldest of its kind in the country, and one that has broken a lot of ground in its lifetime. Founded in 1840, the Piedmont Foxhounds in Virginia was the first foxhunting club in the United States. There even are records indicating that while the earliest politicians were settling matters of our government’s foundation, they once interrupted their proceedings to mount their horses and join the chase when a hunt coursed through.

Of course, there is the world famous Gold Cup steeplechase race at Great Meadows in The Plains, which just took place on May 4 to a crowd of some 50,000 attendants. The competition’s six hurdle and timber horse races as well as its Jack Russell Terrier races are anticipated equestrian events worldwide (they are well known testing grounds for future Olympic champions), and draw countless vendors, tents and tailgaters.

KESWICK HORSE SHOW

May 14 – 19

Around Charlottesville, south of Middleburg and Upperville, The 109th Annual Keswick Horse Show will be held again at the historic Keswick showgrounds from Tuesday, May 14 through 19, 2013. The events this year include the Eastminster Dog Show on Wednesday night, May 15, and the “Getting Centered” dinner and silent auction to benefit the Senior Center of Charlottesville on Thursday. The weekend starts with the USHJA National Hunter Derby followed by dinner under the tent Friday night.

Saturday is always a special gathering for the entire community as the Jumper Classic is a beautiful evening that has become a Keswick tradition. Finally, Sunday’s Down Home Fish Fry on the porch will be a relaxing conclusion to a wonderful week. www.KeswickHuntClub.com

54TH ANNUAL HUNT COUNTRY STABLE TOUR

MAY 25 – 26

Trinity Episcopal Church will host its 54th Annual Hunt Country Stable Tour in and around Upperville on Memorial Day weekend, May 25 and 26. A self-guided, countywide tour of all things equestrian, farms, stables and training tracks throughout the county will open their doors for visitors to offer a rare glimpse into the life and industry of the world or horses. The Country Fair at Trinity Church, on the grounds of the church, will also feature horse-themed arts & crafts in conjunction with the event, serving ice cream, treats for dogs and cats and more.

“The Stable Tour is a unique opportunity for the farmers to finally get their barns painted and show them off and teach people about what goes on at each farm,” says Betsy Crenshaw, of Trinity Episcopal Church. “And visitors are not otherwise allowed on these farms—these are privately owned farms and businesses. But this weekend, guests can enjoy these beautiful facilities, pet horses and feed them carrots, and enjoy this beautiful exchange. It’s also a day in the country—a chance to ride on some dirt roads, get your car good and dirty, and see what makes our area tick—which is the horse.”

Among the tour highlights is the Middleburg Training Track, an early-bird special for true horse lovers. This stop is an opportunity to stand rail-side and see Thoroughbreds condition and train. “This is where horses all around Virginia are trained to be race horses,” says Crenshaw. “If they are born here, they learn to be racehorses here.”

Horses are sent here as yearlings to be broken and begin their preliminary training before proceeding onto national and international tracks. Horses are conditioned year-round and ship out on race day from the track to compete. Built in 1956 by Paul Mellon, the facility features a 7/8-mile track with a four-stall starting gate, eleven barns, a tack room, bunk rooms and a veterinarian’s office. The demonstration is Saturday morning only from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. So, don’t be late.

On Saturday, May 25, The Piedmont Coaching Club will provide a demonstration, and on Sunday there will be an exhibit of traditional hunting attire. www.TrinityUpperville.org

UPPERVILLE COLT AND HORSE SHOW

JUNE 3 – 9

The Upperville Colt and Horse Show is the nation’s oldest horse show, dating back to 1853. Previous to the initiation of this national event, horses and stallions had been exhibited for prizes at country and state fairs, but it is widely accepted that the proper horse show we know today was introduced on the American sporting scene at Upperville. From the first year, there were so many entries and interest was so keen that a sponsoring club was immediately formed, and at the turn of the century, Upperville expanded its mission to become a five-day exhibition with a wide entry list of the finest equestrian talent in the world.

Featuring Hunting, Jumping and Breeding categories, our country’s oldest horse show features rider events from children’s competitions to Olympic and World Cup riders and horses. The event’s beautiful, grassy showgrounds, nestled in Loudoun’s rolling foothills, offers visi- tors a packed schedule of daily events steeped in the equestrian tradition, and involves over two thousand horse and rider combinations.

Around the world, horses are bred to jump, and at Upperville, many breeds are represented in the jumper competitions. The European horses, which are generally larger and heavier than most American breeds, are bred both in Europe and the United States specially to be used as sport horses, or riding horses. Grand prix level horses are the most talented jumpers in the show world a successful grand prix horse often has a price tag of $500,000 or more. Young prospects are usually broken to ride at two or three years of age and after training and experience over fences, make it to the jumper show rings. A horse could make it to the grand prix ring at the relatively early age of six or seven years, and continue to compete through its late teens.

The goal of many riders is of course to compete as a member of the United States Equestrian Team and ultimately the Olympics and there is no better place to test the waters than the Upperville Colt and Horse Show. www.Upperville.com

FRIDAY NIGHT POLO AT EDEN GLEN

Eden Glen is a small community just outside of Middleburg, known for its longstanding adoration of all things equestrian. Founded in 1787, the community is the year round center for fox hunting, steeplechase racing and polo on the East Coast. Surrounding the park is nothing but grazing land for horses, woods and rivers there is nothing to hear but the sweet songs of nature. A mile and a half from Eden Glen is one of the best riding facilities in the area, Fox Chase. This is the place to go for all riders, with events for children and adults of all ages, where guests are also welcome to board horses. Their most popular event by far is Friday night polo at Great Meadows, which gives spectators an opportunity to see the sport like never before.