Perry Garfinkel, a journalist since 1970, has been a regular contributor to various sections of The New York Times since 1986. He has been covering the convergence of East and West for some 30 years, falling off and on the meditation cushion for just as long.
Among other editorial positions, he was a founding editor of New Age Journal in the mid-1970s and of EcoTraveler in 1994. In television, he has written for the Travel Channel and News Travel Network.
He now contributes regularly to HuffingtonPost.com.
His books include "In a Man's World: Father, Son, Brother, Friend and Other Roles Men Play" and "Travel Writing for Profit and Pleasure."
He has taught writing workshops since 1975 and is a former teacher/consultant for the Bay Area Writing Project at UC Berkeley's Graduate School of Education. He lives on the island of Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts.