Living

Corrie Dyke • April 23, 2014

An up and coming wine destination unlike any other, Virginia’s deep wine history dates back to Jamestown and the settlers who each tended 10 vines. Vintner Thomas Jefferson made it his life mission to produce a successful vineyard and their experimental harvesting now yields the region’s award-winning wines. Last October, the seventh edition of The World Atlas of Wine by Jancis Robinson and Hugh Johnson featured Virginia wines for the first time. Time Magazine’s article on the book even named Virginia the “newest chapter in American wine history” calling Boxwood Estate’s merlot blends “wines that California would have to respect”. With more than 230 wineries spanning the Commonwealth, there is no better way to take in the vino, scenery and historic sites than through the many trails and tours.

The array of routes allow for a fun, educational day experiencing multiple wineries with two or 20 people. Meet the winemakers, visit a part of the countryside you otherwise wouldn’t and most importantly grow in your knowledge of Virginia wines. Here are a number of trails and tours to check out this season, visit VirginiawWine.org for a state-wide list. Cheers!

The Great Skedaddle: Wine on 29
Pearmund Cellars, Vint Hill Craft Winery and Winery at Bull Run make up this wine trail formed along Route 29, the path of The Great Skedaddle, a term used to describe the unorganized retreat of Union troops back to Washington after their unexpected defeat at the first battle of Bull Run in 1861.

The Blue Ride Wine Way
The Blue Ridge Wine Way is recognized as Virginia’s premier wine region featuring five counties in the Northern Virginia region. Wineries include; Gray Ghost Vineyards, LaGrange Winery, Mediterranean Winery, Molon Lave, Narmada Winery, Oasis Winery, Pearmund Cellars, Rappahannock Cellars and Unicorn Winery. This trail is just under an hour drive from D.C. BlueRidgeWineWay.com

Northern Neck/Chesapeake Bay Trail
The Chesapeake Bay Wine Trail features nine wineries which include; Oak Crest Winery, Ingleside Vineyards, Belle Mount Vineyards, General’s Ridge Vineyard, Vault Field Vineyards, Athena Vineyard and Winery, Jacey Vineyards, Good Luck Cellars and The Dog and Oyster. April 26 is the 2nd Annual Spring Oyster Crawl on the Wine Trail. Visit ChesapeakeBayWineTrail.com for more information.

Loudoun County Wine Trail
The wine trail of Loudoun Country is so large it is broken into five clusters; Loudoun Heights, Waterford, Potomac, Mosby, Harmony and Snickers Gap. Find the complete list of more than 30 wineries at VisitLoudoun.org and look for the developing LoudounWineTrail.com

211 Scenic Vino Trail
The Vino Trail on Route 211 leads to Shenandoah National Park and runs beside the quaint village of Little Washington. Along the way sit five wineries; Unicorn, Magnolia, Gray Ghost, Narmada, Gadino, Little Washington and Quievremont. 211winetrail.com

Monticello Wine Trail
The wineries on the Monticello Wine Trail were inspired by Thomas Jefferson’s vision of winemaking and claim the birthplace of American wine. This Charlottesville trail holds 30 wineries. MonticelloWineTrail.org

Area Services and Guided Tour Companies

Divine Wine Tours of Virginia;
Fairfax Va.

855-384-6382

divinewineva.com

Dominion Wine Tour;
Catharpin, Va.

571-330-5406

dominionwinetours.com

Point to Point Limousines;
Catharpin, Va.

703-771-8100

PointToPointLimo.com

Reston Limousines;
Reston Va.

703-478-0500

restonlimo.com

Chariots for Hire;
Sterling, Va.

703-639-4957
chariotsforhire.reachlocal.com

Boomerang Tours; Washington
D.C.

202-217-2055

RideTheBoomerang.com

Fairfax Limo Wine Tours; Sterling, Va.

703-229-5057

Fairfax-limo.com

Leonard Shapiro •

was a perfectly precious afternoon in the country for the Middleburg Spring races on April 19–mostly blue skies, mild temperatures and some fiercely competitive steeplechase events at glorious Glenwood Park.

On the day before Easter, some in the crowd were already previewing big, beautiful bonnets, and the people-watching, as usual, was just as much fun as trying to pick the winning horse and jockey. A perfectly legal bookmaker was on the grounds with a chalkboard and a fistful of dollars to handle any wagering.
There was some fine dining all around as well at a wide variety of tailgates. Best in show for the day according to the judges was a magnificent and all home-cooked buffet produced by Middleburg’s Robin and Gordie Keys.

In the featured $50,000 Temple Gwathmey, Decoy Daddy prevailed with jockey Carol-Ann Sloan in the irons. The horse is owned by Irvin S. Naylor and trained by Cyril Murphy. The Middleburg Hunt Cup went to Cornhusker in a thrilling finish. He was ridden by Kieran Norris, trained by Alicia Murphy and owned by Armata Stables.
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Wally Greeves • April 11, 2014

The last false start to the end of miserably wretched seasonal affectation disorders that have prohibited Washingtonians from golfing may finally be water under the bridge. While Mother Nature’s final green light to swap out the snow shovel for the sand wedge may mean the season is ready for you, are you ready for the season? Consideration of the age-old basics, a little cash, some good karma and a new tuna recipe may be just what you need to break into the seventies this season. So here we go:

Size matters and flash inspires. Have someone industry-knowledgeable confirm you are using the right clubs. It makes a difference. Buy a shiny new bag, sporty new shoes, some Pro V1’s with a picture of your dog on them and replace cadaver-ready golf gloves. Replace the nine iron you cleaned the gutters with, and ditch whatever you were hiding in your golf bag all winter in the garage.

Bust a move. Exercise will ensure a safe couch-to-course transition, and low poundage correlates to low golf scores. Walk, do push-ups, ride to work, do backyard tai chi in your underwear, but do something. Pre-golf movement will spike your moods and help with injury avoidance.

Want birdies, eat bird food. Stop eating poor bratwurst imitations and buffet tacos at the clubhouse. Go to the bulk food section at Whole Foods and design your own nut and berry mix for the season. Google spicy Asian tuna fish on the internet, and finally use that insulated pocket on your bag for something other than warm beer. Have wasabi-flavored almonds for a snack after the seventh hole.

“Wax on, wax off.” Seek out wise and enlightened counsel to design a three-lesson plan that smooths out some rough edges in your game and gives you some direction for practice time. The cost of a few lessons is probably a hundredth of what you spent on the game last season and will pay dividends.

Know a 97 from a 79. The rules of golf read like a 33-part real estate transaction between three generations of four non-NATO participating countries, but there are crib notes available almost everywhere, and you should read them and know them. You do not have to always play by them but you should know how to. When you do shoot a 70s game, it will mean something.

Home on the range, home on the course. You are what you do, so squeeze in meaningful range time. Sequentially practice shots that mirror your favorite golf holes, and spend equal amounts of time on the putting and chipping greens. Sometimes take only two clubs to the range. Putt for quarters. Have the humility and diligence to play a par three course to work on your short game, but make it a competition.

Carrier pigeons are obsolete. Embrace technology and computerize a list of all the people you know that play golf, complete with phone numbers and emails, then send it to every one of them. This says you are open for business. Pulling off the Tuesday afternoon ad-hoc game becomes an easy reality. Having a co-conspirator on the fly will diminish “helpful suggestions” from others about how you spend your valuable free time.
Get out of Dodge. Be a leader and plan a long golf weekend for later in the season. Do it now, get it on the books. Myrtle Beach, Kohler, Bandon Dunes and the U.K. are all a phone call away. A healthy, natural, competitive fear will force you to play enough to pass muster on the trip. Who cares how many people go? You will have fun. That one phone call may turn into your club’s annual event.

Pass it on, pay it forward. Introduce the game of golf to a young person by taking them out to play a round or to hit some at the range. Somebody did it for you. If the idea of footgolf (or any other multi-land use ideas for golf courses) nauseates you, than man up and teach the incoming generation to appreciate the status quo. This advice nugget can be the one on this list that doesn’t even necessarily have to involve golf. Spending an afternoon a week in an old folks’ home cheering people up will put your poor golf shots in perspective.

Crack a book. Read a golf classic by John Updike, Jack Nicklaus or Dr. Alister MacKenzie. If you have attention-span issues, then just replace whatever magazines are in your bathroom with the golf classics organized in “snippets of sense” fashion. Harvey Penick, Hogan and Bob Rotella books are all ideal for ADD golfers, and the haphazard lessons will find a way into your game.

Have a stake in the game. Throw a hundred bucks at a fantasy golf league. Pick one that doesn’t require a statistician’s background to play. This participation will prompt phone calls, emails and wisecracks about the game, making for pleasant white noise during the work week.

Man vs. himself. Go play by yourself once in a while. The same foursome all the time will eventually suffer from “cellmate mentality” issues. One-word jokes, out-of-date bathroom humor and obscure music and movie references might creep into your professional vernacular or domestic conversations. Fun people play golf. Go meet them.

Record outstanding occurrences. A golf diary or journal is not necessary, but if you hit an outstanding shot on a sunny day in a cool place, write it down. An encounter with someone memorable, a treeful of rare birds, mid-fairway solutions to a problem or the end of a midlife crisis may all surface during frequently scheduled four-hour activities – and are worthy of remembrance. Paragraph them on three by five cards, punch holes in them and keep a flip chart of noteworthy thoughts nearby to remind you of the little things that make life worthwhile.

I hope this year’s golfing season brings you much joy, and that the rocks, trees and greens conspire to send your balls bouncing in their intended directions. I hope you remember to tell your spouse and family about the wildlife you saw on the course and the interesting people you met (not just all about which irons went where). I hope to see you as you trudge the happy fairways of destiny. Most of all, I hope you play fast.

Wally Greeves •

My arrivals to Scotland’s heralded eighteen hole tracts located within the towns of Carnoustie and St. Andrews could not have been more different. When I pulled into the diagonally striped, beach-adjacent parking lot of Carnoustie Golf Links, I could have been arriving at Cape Henlopen State Park in Delaware. The simplicity of the clubhouse serving the Burnside, Buddon, and the Championship Links course that made Sergio cry and Padraig fly reminded me of a friendly ranger station somewhere in the Midwest. Post-play building renovations I could suggest might include signs saying things about entrants abandoning hope or devils appearing in sheep’s clothing.

I played the tamer Burnside course before tackling the beast, and I truly enjoyed the round. Burnside was the course Ben Hogan qualified on in 1953, before winning the Open on the Championship Links. The two Scot members I was paired with were a retired police officer and civil servant, and they played the golf ambassador roles consummately, not withstanding my barrage of questions. The biggest problem for me on these courses was the ever-present, daunting, howling, massive amount of wind. Teeing off on the 460 yard #4 hole “South America” maybe felt like sticking your head out the window of a moving car and trying to spit a watermelon seed on to the hood. One of the ambassadors explained that in order to survive these conditions on the course you have to hit the ball below the wind and that the harder ground will allow low trajectory shots like this to travel a long way. I felt like a pitcher might feel who throws only fastballs being exposed to major league hitters for the first time and realizing he has to learn some junk to survive. The necessity of shaping shots to overcome the elements, probably the very heart of the game of golf, really rooted itself in me on this trip.

One thing I like to tell other golfers to do when golf balls start to go sideways (and never do myself) is to put away the scorecard and just enjoy the day. I actually did this on the Championship Course, not even cheating by keeping the score in my head. It made the par on “Hogan’s Alley” #6 hole a pleasant surprise, the famous spectacle bunkers on #14 more fun to examine, and allowed me to get out of myself enough to imagine what it would have been like to be Van De Velde and blow the three shot lead on the 18th hole in the 1999 Open.

The arrival at St. Andrews was more like arriving at a sports arena, with the prices of the famous Old Course golf shirts going down the further you got from stadium row. Since it is also home to the third oldest English-speaking university in the world, dating back to the 1400s, the American feel to it might be like Charlottesville. Throw a bit of Duke University into the mix, due to the presence of St. Andrews Cathedral, and presto: you have the town that introduced the game of golf to the world over 600 years ago.

Without planning a year in advance, winning a last-minute ballot entry, or being part of a very expensive full service golf tour package, the only way to get a tee time on the Old Course is to walk on the morning you wish to play and ask the starter. It might seem risky but if you are alone and show up early the odds are that the starter will be able to fit you in. How we, as a country, seem to have made our best golf courses aloof, I view as somewhat depressing, when compared to the Scottish community’s pride in making its golf courses accessible to golfers of almost all levels. One of the best comments I heard on this trip came from one of the golf ambassadors I played with at Carnoustie when he pointed to a woman strolling nearby on the course and said, “Wally, that woman walking her dog over there. She may not play golf, but this is her course, too.”

I spent the time waiting to tee off on the Old Course listening to priceless stories from famed Starter, Rod Sturrock. Part of his humble duties as gatekeeper to the most famous golf course in the world include standing quietly behind golfers teeing off, as a significant number of golfers that have traveled from far and wide to this golf mecca get wobbly kneed and pass out on the tee box. Laughing out loud at the expense of other golfer’s exploits at the famous links course was sure to have been what caused me to duff my tee shot, but I still managed to bogey the first hole.

My caddie at St. Andrews, Neil Crate, was the only caddie I have ever had that threatened me for potentially failing to execute golf shots. His threats and humor coerced me out of the “Bobby Jones” bunker on 13 in one shot, guided me away from “Hell” on the 14th hole, delivered me past the “Valley of Sin” below the 18th green, and on to hole out for my best round of the trip.

The levity with which I approached the round pegged me as the target for the exploding golf ball routine the caddies occasionally trot out. I even met Oliver Horovitz, author of “An American Caddie at St. Andrews,” an amusing coming of age memoir, written by a Harvard student about “Growing up, Girls, and Looping the Old Course”.

While not scheduled to play them, I managed to get in rounds at the Jubilee and Castle Courses at St. Andrews also. They were picturesque, and the time spent there worthwhile. Since this was my first trip to Ireland and Scotland and was a family adventure, golf was not the only agenda, but it could have been. I ogled castles, kissed the Blarney Stone, black-taxied through Belfast and bought sweaters in Edinburgh, but destinations like Old Head, Royal Dornach, and Ballybunion will ensure my return to the area of the world that spawned the game of golf.

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="101431,154580,154588,154585" nav="thumbs"]

Alison Schafer •

Ahhh, summer. My boys would spend the best time of the year playing “gear grinding game,” which isn’t its name but is what it sounds like. Bloody and stupid, to give into gear grinding game would be to raise a serial killer. But, if you parents have the cash, you won’t have to visit your darlings in San Quentin. Instead, you can raise basketball-playing public advocates with crocheting skills, all with the help of your local summer camp.

For the little ones, of course, there are sports and crafts and, well, “the whimsy and joy of summer.” St. John’s Episcopal Preschool promises to foster “links between the natural world and aesthetic experiences. Utilizing indoor and outdoor classrooms and studios, children express their own observations and theories using multiple media.” By multi-media, they do not mean computer games.

But when they get a little bigger, camp does sometimes mean computer games; making them, not playing them. Georgetown Day offers a set of classes called 21Innovate. The programming part introduces `’tweens to Linux, HTML and something called Ruby & Dynamic Web Pages (I don’t even know if they go together and the ampersand is part of the name or not.) For high schoolers “eager to experience and explore the relationship between social justice and policy,” GDS will help students “take action by engaging in the development and execution of policy and advocacy work.” Wow. I’m already scared.

Hardy Middle School offers camps under the D.C. Department of Parks and Rec. There’s one called “Three Pointers and Prose Camp,” which is a “high energy basketball camp, which incorporates on-court skill development and game play, with the writings of some of history’s luminary African-American poets. Campers will spend time each day reading a daily selection, before hitting the court for more hoops.” Poetry would go a long way toward improving the NBA, if you ask me.
Basketball is big all over D.C. Georgetown University, not surprisingly, offers up basketball camp, ostensibly led by the school’s own coach, John Thompson. Heat stroke appears to be a major concern, as the boys (only boys, 8-18) live in air-conditioned dorms and play on air-conditioned courts. Best of all, though, they get all-you-can-eat meals and a FREE Nike t-shirt. That might entice my boys. The only thing they care about more than shooting monsters online is Nike swag.

No matter what your kid wants to do, there’s a camp to match. Sports camps are everywhere–no curling, but pretty much everything else, from fencing to diving, baseball to tennis. The DC YMCA wants to know if you’ve “got a yen for lunar learning?” If so, buckle up for air and space camp (I could swear my sister enrolled years ago). “Appetizing Art” camp lets you bake and eat things that “not only look great but taste great, too!” Sidwell has a knitting camp. “Imagine your child spending her day in the care of warm and loving counselors knitting, crocheting, hand and machine sewing the day away making the most adorable creations.” Anything I could think of, I could find. Except, finally, I was thwarted. The only Dungeons and Dragons camp I could find—there is one, though—is in Indianapolis.
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Donna Evers •

When Thomas Jefferson, America’s best known wine connoisseur, was Ambassador to France after the American Revolution he traveled extensively in France, Germany and Italy, visiting the best vineyards he could find and establishing relationships with vintners so that he could import wine from them when he returned to America. He brought many good wines to Monticello and some historians believe that he may have had the finest wine collection ever to hit the cellars of the White House.

This fascination with wine led Jefferson to spend a lot of time and money trying to grow European vinifera vines at Monticello, but the delicate ungrafted vines were not suited to the climate and fell victim to the various forms of fungus that plague Virginia growers even to this day. His interest in wine grapes was shared by many people in central Virginia in the early 1800’s. Dr. Daniel N. Norton of Richmond, spent years working with wild vine seedlings and ultimately developed a wine grape that was named after him around 1830. The new dark red wine called Norton became a popular in Virginia and the vines were planted as far west as Missouri where the wine quickly became a great favorite. Scientists speculate that Norton is a combination of native wild vines and perhaps one or more of the many vinifera vines that were planted here and abandoned when they wouldn’t produce grapes.

Everything went well for the Norton grape in both Virginia and Missouri until Prohibition. Federal agents zealously destroyed hundreds of acres of wine grape vineyards, but apparently not all of them, because when Prohibition ended, there were still Norton grapes growing in Missouri, and it quickly regained its popularity there. The vine was re-introduced to Virginia in the late 1980’s by a Missourian, Dennis Horton, who planted a vineyard near Charlottesville. Today, Horton Vineyards in the Charlottesville area and Chrysalis Vineyards near Middleburg are the biggest growers of Norton in the state.

If you are curious to taste Norton, it’s easy to do, since it is vinted in many of wineries within an hour of the beltway. The long list of flavors that are variously associated with the dark, luscious red wine include plum, chocolate, cherry, elderberry, cedar, smoke, tobacco and raspberry. It is the darkest red wine in production today and if the list of flavors and aromas is not enticing enough, wine drinkers who are conscious of red wine’s health benefits should know that Norton has twice as much of the anti-oxidant reservatrol as the “darling” vine of Europe and Napa, Cabernet Sauvignon. And remember, it is the only fine wine grape that is native to America. You can enjoy it on a foray to wineries and restaurants in Virginia wine country, and it pairs especially well with roast beef, venison and roast lamb. Bon Appetit!

Donna Evers, devers@eversco.com, is the owner and broker of Evers & Co. Real Estate, the largest woman-owned and run real estate company in the Washington Metro area, a devoted student of Washington area history, and the proprietor of Twin Oaks Tavern Winery, where you can visit and enjoy a glass of Norton!

Georgetowner •

Dear Stacy:

I’m a stay-at-home mother of three whose husband works a very busy, very “important” job. He is never home. We have learned to just accept that he is not part of our day-to-day lives. My husband’s brother lives near us with his family and I am always sad when we make plans to get together and he gets to be there but my husband never seems to be able to pull away from work. We do have a nice lifestyle, but even with the financial resources things don’t feel “easy.” We decided to have a third child despite the fact that things were already pretty strained, mainly because we both come from big families and always thought that was what we wanted. Now I find myself resenting him, and I know you always say that resentment is bad for a relationship. I just don’t know how to talk myself out of these feelings anymore.

– Resentment Building

Dear Resentment,

First, I am hopeful that you get a lot of support from your family and friends about this very difficult situation. But I’m not going to offer the same sounding board that (I hope) they provide you. This is a very common dynamic and I want to offer some insights from your potential future selves – the selves I often see in my office for couples counseling.

Potential Future You is awash in anger. She has no other choice. She has allowed the situation to take over her life and has lost her ability to lay down her defenses and be vulnerable. (CHEAT SHEET: Vulnerability is where we connect to other people. Period.) Potential Future Him is also angry – mostly at himself, but it looks like anger toward you. The regular arguments have eroded the intimacy and now the only way you spend real time together is during battle. When I prescribe regular intimacy interventions (e.g., date night, calendar appointments for sex, intentional dialogues), you each wait for the other one to go first and then nothing happens, building resentment. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

The good news is that you are not yet Potential Future You. Instead, you are you today, recognizing that your marriage is struggling and seeking advice. The first step is to gain some insight into how this situation came about. If your mind just jumped to blaming Husband, that’s okay, but it’s not productive – nor is it entirely true. It’s not solely his fault. You must take responsibility for your role. Are you a person who always ignores her own feelings? Do you hold it all in until your frustrations metabolize into depression or physical ailments? Figure that part out. Then bring your findings to Husband. Be vulnerable. Ask for understanding, first, and then negotiate for change. Get outside guidance if you think you’re ready for it. You can learn to reconnect.

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.

Serafine George • March 13, 2014

Washington offers many beautiful, historic sites for tourists and residents alike, several of which could also serve as the backdrop for wedding ceremonies.

On the National Mall there are three places to say ‘I do’: The Jefferson Memorial west lawn, the George Mason Memorial and the D.C. War Memorial. Though stunning and unique locations, having a wedding here takes a lot of preparation. First, couples must apply for a special use permit at the D.C. parks commission. These permits can take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks to process and cost $90. At the Jefferson Memorial, a wedding is allotted two hours for set up, the ceremony and the break down. Even less time is allowed at the George Mason Memorial where there is a one hour limit and no setup allowed. If you’re planning on having a professional photographer at any of the locations, you’ll need to file an additional form and pay a $50 fee.

Whether you’re having a wedding for four people or a thousand, Nationals Park could be your venue. The park offers many different sized spaces as well as catering from Levy Restaurants. Food choices range from baseball fare to plated dinners. You don’t have to be a baseball enthusiast to have your wedding here, but if you are, you can have batting practice on the field or an appearance by the mascots to make the day even more special.

The Whitemore House, home to the Women’s National Democratic Club, is a historic mansion in DuPont Circle that welcomes weddings. The house is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and was granted museum status in 2000. The house has nine rooms and an outdoor courtyard for guests to enjoy. The venue provides catering for smaller groups, but outside catering is permitted. Bartenders are provided and all alcohol must be purchased through the house.
The National Building Museum on F Street N.W. is a prestigious venue where guests will be greeted with 75-foot Corinthian columns in the great hall. The space can accommodate up to 1,600 guests. Couples need to hire their own caterers and any other desired vendors.

The Newseum holds events on the seventh and eighth floor which can accommodate multiple events. The museum itself can be booked as well offering views of the Capitol, National Mall and surrounding museums. Weddings are held on the terraces. Food and beverage service is exclusively done by Wolfgang Puck Catering.
Looking for a green wedding that’s a little less in touch with nature? The National Press Club just might be your venue. As part of their green initiative, they are completely powered by wind power. The club is centrally located downtown. Situated on the 13th floor of the National Press Building, the Club offers a variety of rooms and an in-house caterer. [gallery ids="101655,145177,145181" nav="thumbs"]

Wally Greeves • March 12, 2014

Being the same age as former Dominican-born baseball star Sammy Sosa, I found it a bit painful that my knowledge concerning the Dominican Republic — largely derived from reading cigar bands — was tripled solely by gawking out the airplane window on the way there.

Four days at the brand-new Westin Puntacana were an experiential windfall for me. With no shame, I admit, I ended up doing the retirement reevaluation thing, where you drive around with a realtor. A low-density community, knockout ceviche and ocean spray drifting over tee boxes from waves slamming into the island’s perimeter made this winter golf getaway something special.

La Cana Golf Club comprises 27 of the 45 resort holes, in three separate P.B. Dye-designed nine-hole tracts: Arrecife, Hacienda and Tortuga. Hibiscus hedges and Bougainvillea abound. Arrecife and Tortuga boast six holes along the gently frothing, splotchy blue Caribbean waters. Possibly having to yield your ball flight to kite surfers on Arrecife’s trifecta of ocean holes to finish the nine is a mesmerizing reality.

Tortuga’s ocean introduction by way of an absolutely beautiful par five #4 hole is followed up by a wickedly provocative par three over the ocean, easily my favorite hole at La Cana. The curvy and seductive shoreline cuts into just a little more than half of the approach and made me just a little uncomfortable. I blame the mental images of tottering seesaws, curve balls that don’t break and the recessionary pull of the ocean on my nine iron for the resulting ball theft. Unapologetically, the ocean belched away, hungry for more.

The implanted grassy knolls and lumpy, wide fairways of the newly designed Hacienda course could have been transported from the northwestern United States, and complemented the other nines well. The La Cana clubhouse had a great evening view and was completely relaxing. If I had found that it wasn’t, I could have walked down one flight of steps for any number of types of massages designed for everyone from golfers to grandmothers, if they were not already both.

Corales golf course was a consummately manicured, expansive piece of unpopulated greenery, bordered by limestone bluffs, and featured massive catcher’s-mitt-shaped Fazio trademark sand traps. Stretched to 7,650 yards at the tips, with forward tees of 5,123 yards, this course proves a challenge for any level golfer. We enjoyed it so much that we played it twice in a row. We had to, because while approaching the ocean on the par five hole #7, standing on the tee box and fairway at #8, playing the entire 9th hole and all the way through the “Devil’s Elbow” three finishing holes, we took more shots with cameras than with clubs. The humbly sized clubhouse alone atop the bluffs brought to mind a ranger station at a national park — a reminder that the real show is the venue that nature lets us borrow for a little while to play in.

From course management to cuisine, sustainability is a popular theme at Puntacana. The resort is on the forefront of irrigation techniques that utilize ocean water and fertilization methods that highlight the use of worm scat. That’s right! Turns out all those fishing worms you found in dark, rich soil didn’t migrate there, they were the reason it was there. A 1,500-acre ecological park that boasts 12 swimmable, freshwater lagoons and iguana habitat (not on the same acre) amongst a network of walking trails are good for eco-friendly exercise.

Without being too noticeably available, there was no shortage of anything that I could think of doing on vacation. Just the fishing and food options launched me into a mini panic attack halfway through my second day there, when I realized how much I would leave untouched on my visit.

The staff at the Westin, and at every other establishment within the resort, could not have been more welcoming without being intrusive. My room was right on the beach. I couldn’t wait to throw open the double doors each morning and watch the sun burn off the predawn gusts of warm wind rustling through the palm trees, leaving the tapered tips of their long-legged leaves tap dancing in the air.

Upon learning I was from Georgetown, the realtor who was unwittingly co-authoring the future of my daydreams, called local resort homeowners from Georgetown. A short time later, I was drinking lemonade in their backyard, which, by the way, is a few driveways away from P.B. Dye’s Puntacana house. Longtime Georgetown residents Sacha Knob and Anthony Van Eych couldn’t say enough about the merits of raising their son in Puntacana, exposing him to “a population base that really is only 20 or 30 percent American, with representation from all over the world.” With business partners like Oscar de la Renta and Julio Iglesias living at Puntacana, the resort’s pull is far-reaching but manages to maintain its rudimentary charm.

Talk of expanding the airport owned by the resort, which already flies directly to more than 98 cities worldwide, leaves the future development of Puntacana yet to be defined, although wall murals all over the resort promote the ownership’s desire for responsible growth over time. On talking over my recent trip to the Dominican Republic with my father, who is thinking of hosting a family get-together there, I couldn’t help but wonder aloud about the exploitation of the resort’s future potential. He summed this up perfectly by replying: “Well, it can’t all happen this year. So, let’s go there for Thanksgiving.”

Nicole Cusick • February 27, 2014

What could be more “New Year,
new you” than a spa visit? It’s
time to plan your getaway for a
long weekend, Valentine’s Day,
or just a simple reward for surviving the polar
vortex. Venture out of Washington and take some
time to enjoy life outside of the city and inside
of a cozy spa.

Family Friendly
Hershey, Pa., is known for being rich in
farmland and in chocolate. It calls itself “the
sweetest place on earth.” The Spa at Hotel
Hershey indulges the body with their specialty
coca massages, chocolate sugar scrubs and many
other candy inspired treatments. The Spa offers
different customized treatments for women, men
and teens. Check out their complete menu,
www.chocolatespa.com/treatments/. While you
are in Pennsylvania with the kids visit the spa
at Nemacolin Woodlands resort in Farmington.
They offer a variety of kid-friendly services in
the Kidz Spa great for ages 5-15. There are lots
of other treatments available for parents as well,
www.nemacolin.com/spa/.

Wine & Body in Virginia
The mind and body will become completely
relaxed with The Keswick Reserve at the
Keswick Club Spa. After a red wine greeting,
grape seed oil massage, shiraz body scrub and
pinot noir facial you will see why Keswick Hall
has so much to offer. To book appointments, visit,
www.keswick.com/spa_body_treatments.aspx .

The Wonders of Water
The luxurious Aqua Thermal Suite at the
Homestead of Omni Resorts in Hot Springs,
Va., takes advantage of the natural powers of
water. They offer several hot and cold hydro
experiences to relax and refresh. Find out
about their Thermal Heated Lounges and The
Chill treatments and other ways to relax here,
www.thehomestead.com/aqua_thermal_suite.
The spa at The Greenbrier also specializes in
Hydrotherapy. At the West Virginia destination
indulge in their specialties like the Mineral
Mountain Bath. Check out their other spa
options at www.greenbrier.com/Spa/Treatments/
Hydrotheraphy.aspx .

Spa Package Deals
While many other spas offer spa bundles,
Spa Minérale at the Landowne Resort is an
ideal getaway for those who enjoy group getaways.
They offer several spa package deals for
weekends with a significant other, girlfriends
or golfing partners. For those who like to make
their travel plans simple these package deals
might save some money and help plan the perfect
weekend in just minutes. Check out their
options here, www.lansdowneresort.com/vacations/
virginia-spa-packages.

Me-Time in Maryland
Enjoy the gifts of the Chesapeake Bay at
the Sago Spa and Salon at the Hyatt Regency
Chesapeake Bay. The spa offers several different
treatments that feature sago, a strong underwater
grass found in the Chesapeake Bay, which
provides nourishment to the bay and your body.
Look at the other sago and salon treatments here,
chesapeakebay.hyatt.com/hyatt/pure/spas/about/
features.jsp. Linden Spa at The Inn at Perry
Cabin also makes use of Maryland’s natural treasures
with their linden trees that grow right on
the premises. The Linden Intensive is a natural
massage that could involve one therapist for a
longer massage experience, or two therapists for
a shorter massage. They have a comprehensive
list of massages on their treatment menu that
includes deep tissue, hot stone and herbal to
name a few. www.perrycabin.com/web/omic/
linden_spa.jsp. [gallery ids="101602,147116,147114" nav="thumbs"]