Robert Reiss Travel Blog and Other Ramblings

Patrice and I flew into the Big Apple today on our way to act as “Stakeholders” for the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation. On Tuesday we will meet with a lot of people much smarter than us to help decide what research projects will be funded by the Foundation this year. They might be smarter but they don’t have any more passion than we do for finding the cure to these awful diseases. As you probably know, two of our three wonderful children have suffered from Crohn’s Disease since they were only 11 years old. Watching them suffer was a torture I do not wish on any parent and of course no other children. Patrice and I know we have been very fortunate. Both David and Erica are doing great. We have seen many others not so fortunate. The medications that keep our kids feeling healthy were not available when David was diagnosed That is why “Team Reiss” walks each June to raise money. And the success of Team Reiss has given us the opportunity to help decide which researchers will be funded.

The meeting isn’t until Tuesday but we came early to have some fun. As my followers know we were in Boston recently so the 52 degrees that greeted us at JFK seemed balmy compared to the sub 40 temperatures we had in Boston. Actually we felt very much at home because the 14 mile trip from JFK to the hotel took us 1 hour and 20 minutes.

About a year ago a friend of mine, John, told me about his trip to NYC and seeing “Springsteen on Broadway”. He could not have been more enthusiastic about it. I remembered seeing “The Boss” when Patrice and I first started dating and the thought of seeing him again after 36 years of marriage seemed very exciting. I looked online to see the cost of the tickets and my excitement waned. Recently I saw another friend, Mike, who had just returned from New York. He said, “I saw Springsteen and it was amazing”. This made me crazy again. I told John about my hesitancy and he said that he got his tickets online the day of the show when people would reduce their prices. So today on the plane I looked for tickets and they were still crazy expensive. Then at the hotel very close to show time I checked one more time and YES, I found some excellent seats at a “reasonable” price. Yes, it is much more than I ever thought I would spend to see a concert but damn, I am 69 years old and as my friend Allen says, “Who wants to be the richest person in the cemetery”. So we are going to see “The Boss” tonight. Got to run to the show now. We can talk about Bruce tomorrow.

When last I left you we were on our way to Nick’s Comedy Stop. I should have stayed home and watched the USC Utah game instead. As painful as that must have been (USC got whooped) it would at least have been a lot cheaper. Nick’s was not very expensive but the comedy was not very good. We heard 6 comedians, 2 were okay and one was pretty good. The other 3 were awful. The venue was also awful. Nick’s is located next to another place that has musical entertainment and every comedian had to compete with a booming bass that made the walls shake.

This morning we got up at our leisure and headed to “The Friendly Toast” (35 Stanhope St, Boston, MA 02116) for breakfast. We had heard this was the place to eat and unfortunately many others had heard the same thing. The hostess took my cell phone number and said it would be a 30-45 minute wait. Since we were close to the hotel we decided to return to get something warmer to wear while we waited. Five minutes later (or less) we were called and informed our table was ready. The food was spectacular. Patrice had the always healthy waffles and fried chicken and I had the Lobster Benedict (See below)

After breakfast we got ready to leave the Fairmont Copley Plaza and head to the airport. The FCP is a very old but stylish hotel. The service is top notch. The rooms are not very modern but they have made the usual accommodations to make travel in the computer age more comfortable (e.g. electric outlet on the night stands so your phone can always be nearby). They also have this little surprise in the closet.

We will be home tonight but we leave Friday for New York. If you are one of the people with whom we said we should get together in NYC please email me. My brain is fried and I don’t recall with whom we made tentative plans.

No snow today but the course ended yesterday so today was our first free day. When discussing what we wanted to do today it was easy to decide. After two days of getting up for an 8:00 AM lecture (5:00 AM LA time) it was an easy decision….. SLEEP!

When we did finally awake we headed to breakfast at Tatte Bakery and Cafe (399 Boylston St, Boston, MA 02116). The line at 10:30 AM was out the door. I ordered “egg in a hole” (egg inside a bagel hole) which was just okay. The bagel part was great. Maybe I didn’t like the egg very much because I ate my chocolate croissant first. The mocha coffee was delicious.

Patrice here now. Did you see the caption on that last picture? What’s up, is there a game on TV tonight that he wants to watch?

After breakfast we did some shopping. Patrice needed to get some things and I love going shopping with her.

After a brief rest back at the hotel we were off to watch the “Head of the Charles” boat regatta. Apparently this is a big deal here. Didn’t do much for me because my only knowledge about rowing is what I learned from reading “The Boys in the Boat” by Daniel James Brown (great book by the way).

After the regatta we headed to Coppa (253 Shawmut Ave, Boston, MA 02118) for late lunch early dinner. My niece’s husband is friends with the owner so we were guaranteed VIP treatment (“We have the table reserved for 5:00 PM so you have to be gone by then”). The food was excellent. Ironically we found ourselves seated next to a Boston firefighter and his wife with a mutual friend who works for LA City Fire.

I would love to write more but we are about to leave for Nick’s Comedy Stop. More about that tomorrow.

Today I had the opportunity to meet a living legend of medicine, Dr. Eugene Braunwald, who was just a name to me until today. Dr. Braunwald was the editor of “Harrison’s Textbook of Medicine” when I was in medical school and he was responsible for a large part of my (and many other’s) education. Before the lecture I took the opportunity to talk to him and thank him for all he did for me. I also took the opportunity to take a picture with him.

After the conference ended we headed over to the Parish Cafe (361 Boylston St, Boston, MA 02116) for dinner. We had their gourmet sandwiches. Mine was fantastic but Patrice’s was grossly under cooked. They obviously recognized me from my blog because they were very apologetic and got Patrice a properly prepared meal and didn’t charge us. Being mentioned in my blog with my following (+/- 200) can make or break a restaurant. The food was very good but their bread pudding only rated a D+ when compared to Masa (The Reiss standard when it comes to bread pudding).

After dinner we went to the “Improv Asylum” (216 Hanover St, Boston, MA 02113) comedy club. We had been there before and I remembered asking last time if they had a senior discount (don’t all comedy venues have senior discounts?). The cashier looked at me and said, “I don’t know”. Turns out they did and they still do. The show wasn’t as funny as we remembered from the last time but it had its moments.

The conference is over so tomorrow is a free day. We have lots of fun things that I want to do. I’d let you know what they are but Patrice hasn’t told me yet.

This morning I was up early (7 AM Boston time, 4 AM Los Angeles time) to get to the conference. The talks varied from good to bad as is typical for medical conferences. While I was busy trying to get smart Patrice did much more important work………. she looked for a place to have lunch.

Patrice gave me two choices, “Stephanie’s” a restaurant we visited on a previous trip (and enjoyed a great deal) or “The Map Room Cafe” located in the Boston Public Library. I was undecided until we stepped outside. Five seconds in 44 degree Boston weather made the library seem about as far as I could walk and it was only across the street. We got into the library very quickly (I can move very fast when I think I am going to die). Once inside we found the Map Room Cafe and it was very cute. Unfortunately a lot of others felt the same way and there wasn’t a place to sit. We asked one of the waiters if there was any other seating and she said, “Yes, there is plenty of seating outside”.

Stephanie’s is an excellent restaurant with an eclectic menu. The food is very good as is the service and ambiance. But the best part is that the place is well heated. I had the Shrimp Louie and Patrice had the Macaroni and Cheese (yes, and believe it or not, mac and cheese is one of her favorite dishes). Sorry, no food pictures today, I was still recovering from the walk to the restaurant to even think about pictures. The food was excellent but lunch time was over and we had to walk the grueling 350 yards back to the hotel.

After lunch I went back to the conference and Patrice explored the city a bit. She went to a place called the Mapparium which is a 30 foot stained glass globe designed to be “an emblem for the importance of good global citizenship”.

At night the conference sponsored a dinner at the hotel. I was so glad I didn’t have to go outside. The meal was excellent and we got to speak to some other doctors who were attending the meeting. At our table we had one from Philadelphia, another from Buffalo and two from the Boston area. They were less affected by the weather for obvious reasons. One of them did give us some hope, when he told us, “It is supposed to be warmer tomorrow and the weekend”.

That’s enough for now, I need to get under the covers.

Long time followers of this blog might remember that in October 2016 I became a Harvard Medical student. Well not quite. What I did do was attend a continuing medical education course presented by the Harvard School of Medicine. Like many medical students I decided to make 2017 a “gap year” from my studies at Harvard, but I have returned Year 2 this week.

Harvard does a great job of teaching medicine to old guys like me but let’s be honest that isn’t the real reason we are here. Medical education is available much closer to home and in much warmer weather (it is currently 48 degrees here and 67 in Hermosa Beach). What isn’t available at home is unbelievable Lobster Rolls. Our favorite (yes, we have tried several during our past visits to Bean Town) is from Neptune Oyster (63 Salem St # 1, Boston, MA 02113). A picture doesn’t do their roll justice but I know my friends and family love my food pictures.
Lobster Roll and Fries from Neptune Oyster[/caption]

Sorry for the short post tonight. We were up crazy early this morning to get to the airport and I am running out of gas. Tomorrow begins my second year at Harvard Medical School and I need to rest my brain.

Some of you know the reason for this blog but for those who don’t, here is a short review.  In 2011, I started writing emails to my sister, Annette, so my then 95-year-old mother could keep track of the travels of her baby boy, Robert.  Soon after I started, my sister-in-law, Fayla, told me “Annette doesn’t get up until 10 AM, send me the emails and I will read them to mom.”    Other family members asked to be included in the email.  Then friends asked to be included.   I soon had a very bulky email list and decided to turn my travel emails into a blog.

Today the reason for starting these emails/blog has left us.  Yes, my mother, Irene Reiss died today at the age of 102 years (and 5 months).  She had a wonderful life surrounded by many friends and relatives who loved her dearly.  She will be missed but never forgotten.

My mother was a very caring and honest person.  She taught me important life lessons that I have tried to pass on to my own children.  I am a very lucky man to have had three wonderful children and a caring wife.   My parents were fantastic role models for me.  Although neither one of them went to college, they taught me more than any of my medical school professors about how to be a good doctor.  You don’t learn compassion in school, you learn that at home.  Thanks, Mom and Dad.  Thanks for helping me become the person I am.

Love you,

Robert

Only one day left but so much left to see. What should we do on our last day in D.C? After a brief discussion we decided on The Spy Museum. The place was very kid oriented and our kids seemed to like it. They especially liked the gift shop where they found “Light Bugs” which were a huge success.

After the Spy Museum we went to the National Portrait Gallery. We viewed the portraits of all the former Presidents. Of interest to me was that Richard Nixon’s portrait was painted by Norman Rockwell.   One of my least favorite Presidents painted by one of my favorite painters.

There was a huge line to get in position to take a photo or selfie of Barack Obama’s portrait. Instead of waiting I settled for a shot at a slight angle.

Then I was off to find Michelle Obama’s portrait. That proved to be a more difficult task since all the First Ladies were not displayed together. We looked all over and couldn’t find it. I finally I gave up.

But not really.

After the portrait gallery we headed to dinner at Farmers and Distillers (600 Massachusetts Ave NW, Washington, DC 20001). Since we leave very early tomorrow morning we decided to celebrate David’s birthday tonight (his birthday is actually tomorrow).

As usual we ate too much so we walked back to the hotel. On the way we got to see Charlie’s favorite activity that he enjoyed many times during this trip.

As I said we leave very early tomorrow so it’s off to bed.

See you soon.

We again started our day with a wonderful breakfast at the hotel.  Well that is not exactly true.  We received a message that Julian was awake and his parents wanted to sleep.  So……………….   see below.

After playing with Julian we headed down for breakfast.  By now, we are superstars in the dining hall.  The employees here are fantastic.  They are incredibly attentive which is a big help when you are traveling with 3 young children.

We had a great day today visiting the Bureau of Printing and Engraving.  No pictures allowed (Are they worried that we will start printing our own money after we take a selfie?).   Next we headed to the Newseum.  This is a museum dedicated to the news.  They have the front pages of newspapers representing every state in the country and more countries than I could possibly name.  These are changed daily.  It was very interesting seeing the coverage from the various cities around the world.  Here in D.C. the Washington Post had the Capital’s Stanley Cup victory on the front page.  I know it is hard to beleive but no other paper thought that was worthy of first page coverage, not even the Qatar Tribune (is that really a newspaper?).   Owen seemed less than enthused (see below)

But then we went to a area of the Newseum that was much more kid friendly.  Here they had an activity where kids could video themselves as newscasters.  It was fantastic and Owen and Charlie loved it.

After the Newseum we headed over to the National Archives to view the Constitution, Bill of Rights, Declaration of Independence  and the Magna Carta.  We had limited time there so it gave us a reason to return some day.

Then it was back to the hotel.  Like I said this place is very classy.  The staff members go out of their way to say hello to us and are always asking if they can help in anyway possible.  In addition the concierge was very helpful in getting us the almost impossible to obtain tickets to the newly opened African American museum.

The place is old, for example we saw this on our first night.

I really didn’t care much about the security bar since I rarely, if ever, use it.  But this is what I noted upon return to our room later in the day.

This place is so classy they even gift wrap the toilet paper.

And in case you get thirsty when you are sitting on the toilet, no problem at this hotel because………………………..

I failed to mention that after touring we had dinner with some wonderful friends of Robyn, who live in D.C.   I won’t tell you about that since I have already embarrassed myself enough for one night.

See you tomorrow.

After another great breakfast we headed to Capitol Hill to visit the seeds of American government.  We had a tour that included the Senate in session.  We heard one of the Senators from Tennessee talk about “National Seersucker Day”.  He was talking about the merits of the material during the hot Washington, D.C. summers.  This was received in a reserved manner by his fellow Senators since no one else was in attendance.  Now I know why they don’t allow cameras in the hall.

We also got to see the various statues in the Congressional hall.  Each state is allowed two statues to represent their constituents.  California is represented by Ronald Reagan (with part of the base being composed of fragments from the Berlin Wall) and Father Junipero Serra.  We didn’t get to see all the other statues but I do remember a few.  We saw Thomas Edison (Ohio), Robert E. Lee (Virginia) and Jefferson Davis (Mississippi).

We also got to see the Supreme Court.  They were not in session but it was interesting seeing the hall lined with portraits of numerous justices of the past.  I was surprised how few I remembered.

Charlie seemed very interested in our visit.  See below.

 

Dinner was at Zaytinya (701 9th St NW, Washington, DC 20001) an excellent Greek restaurant found by our daughter-in-law, Robyn.  Robyn has been doing an awful job finding us restaurants.  She has found lots places with excellent food and I am eating much to much.

Tomorrow we are going to ………………….. wait I need to check with Patrice.