◇Journal

Notes from the front desk.

Most of what a guest needs to know about a city never makes it into a brochure, because it is too specific, too seasonal, or too honest. Our reception staff answer the same handful of questions every week about which Metro line to take, which month to book, and what the traffic will actually do to a schedule. We have started writing those answers down properly rather than repeating them one phone call at a time. Everything here is the advice we would give a friend arriving for the first time, including the parts that argue against visiting in a particular month.