This week saw one of my big projects wind down, so I'm back in pitch mode, scouring the world for more bylines and, hopefully, another anchor client. The freelance life is constantly in flux and while I'm always in some phase of pitching, I was able to go lighter the last couple of months due to a large anchor client and many random things being assigned to me, which is always a delight. The ride never ends!

I had an essay--my first personal essay--go live at Flung Magazine, which was my first byline for them. It was about a heavy day I spent on the eastern Arizona/Sonora border and all of the tensions and contradictions therein. It reads a little sensational--mentions of El Chapo, the Sinaloa Cartel, Al Qaeda and migrant deaths--but the reality is these are facts that are part of daily life in that area of the border. I'm really quite proud of how it came out, especially since it was my first stab at this kind of writing.

I also had a feature published at Thrillist, in their national travel section, which is so exciting because that site gets a crazy amount of eyes on it. It was about my trip to Grenada--why you should go, why people haven't been going, and what you should do while there. I really like working with Thrillist--their editors are great and they've highly collaborative and accessible. They also move quickly and pay quickly, which are two things that are a bit of a rarity in this business.

A short piece of mine went live at Roads & Kingdoms, which was about drinking apple wine in Frankfurt and how surreal it was being in Europe during the first round of the French elections, particularly after our own American election last fall. That story ended up having a happy ending, but I didn't know that at the time I was experiencing it.

On the horizon is a quick trip home to New York, a lot of deadlines, some new freelance bylines and a month-long trip to Barcelona with a quick side trip to Italy to do R&D for upcoming Salt & Wind trips. With a helluva lot of pitching in between!

I think that's a clickbaity title if I've ever come up with one, no?

I arrived back from Germany this week and think I'm getting the hang of this constantly traveling, wrangling jet lag thing. I was able to get back into my routine fairly quickly. The end of my trip was spent in Berlin, where I reconnected with a good friend from high school who happened to be visiting at the same time. Berlin is a captivating city: naturally counterculture, intensely livable. I wish it were an option for us!

I am currently at Portland International Airport, waiting for my flight back to San Diego. I spent the weekend in the Tualatin Valley, checking out quirky hotels, good coffee, local food and the wonders of Oregon pinot noir. It was a treat being able to taste so much Oregon pinot & riesling, something they're known for, right on the heels of having tasted all this pinot & riesling in Germany, something that country is known for, as well.

This was another fun week for publishing. I had my very first byline at The Independent, one of the UK's largest digital publications. The city of Venice recently announced they would try to enact charging for entry into Piazza San Marco. Having witnessed similar measures in Barcelona, I think it's a bit ridiculous and doesn't adequately address the crush of tourism. I managed to sufficiently piss off the "Save Venice" internet mob, who seemed not to read the details of my piece--but are you even publishing real opinions if half the internet doesn't come after you for it? Nonetheless, I stand by it and I'm glad I wrote it.

I also had a small contribution to this Thrillist roundup of places you need to visit before you turn 30 (HA!). I wrote about Hanoi, Vietnam, where I lived for a time when I was 21.

I also wrote a short story for Roads & Kingdoms, about the centipede/marijuana/deer horn/overproof rum hooch I sampled while in Grenada a few months ago.

T-2 weeks until Salt & Wind Baja trip liftoff! Tomorrow it's off to Tijuana and Valle de Guadalupe for our final "trip before the trip."

Here are some snaps from my trip to Germany: