Josh and I left San Francisco for Lima via Dallas on Nov 30th on a 6:40am flight and arrived in Lima at 10pm. I was leaving the United States for six months. Josh for one month. Any length of time beyond 10 days exceeds my maximum length of vacation over the past 7 years. Boy, do I feel ready for this adventure. It’s a little bit scary to think of all the places I’ll be traveling by myself and a lot exciting not knowing what to expect. One thing I know for sure is the adventures, food & wine experiences and people that lay ahead of me will fill me with a lifetime of memories to savor. Fear and excitement are in the forefront but it's the excitement of the unknown that drives my sense of adventure. The plan is to fill this blog with information about the places I've been and most importantly, for many readers of this blog, where I've eaten and what wines I've tasted. I will eventually get the hang of managing my time and fitting in regular postings. We're on our last day in El Calafate, Argentina. It's in Patagonia at the very bottom of the earth a little north of Antarctica. Since it's summertime the temperture is in the low 60's with sunny skies and strong winds. The one and only reason people come to El Calafate is to go to the Glacial National Park and view the 4 or 5 glaciers. I had no idea how spectacular it would be. You know me, check out the sites for maybe a few hours and then I'd rather go off and search for a local farmer's market or a local restaurant and sample the local fare. No farmer's markets here, no problem, though. Yesterday was an all day (7am -7pm) excursion of Glacial National Park by boat. You would think you died and went to heaven with the beauty of it all. We bought VIP tickets and sat in a private area on top of the boat with a small group of people, around 25 of us. We didn't have to squeeze in like sardines down below with the other 150 tourists. The whole thing cost us about $70 per person. Josh's mother told us about this little secret and it made all the difference. The pictures I have are unbelieveable. I'm hoping to have pics from Peru posted in a day or so. Calafate pics will follow soon. It's a work in progress. Between the traveling through airports,sight seeing and technology challenges I am still finding my groove to get the blog into action. Soon, though. Having the time of my life. Peru, Mendoza and El Calafate have all been so different and wonderful in their own rights. Peru I loved for the peacefullness. A spiritual feeling country with the huge, green mountains wrapped around the backdrop everywhere you look. Uplifting music filled with different types of flutes. Vibrant colors in the food and clothing. Inca decendants walking around the streets mixing with contemporary styles. It was beautiful. Mendoza, a food and wine lovers paradise. We stayed at a lovely little bed and breakfast, Finca Adalgisa, which had its own winery and swimming pool. The woman who ran the place is my age and converted her family's house, built in the 20s, into this ranchero-style b&b. They did a great job making us feel like we were part of their family. In general, I felt completely at home in Mendoza. It's probably what Napa felt like 30 years ago. Two days was nice but 5 would have been better. Another time, for sure. Josh, someone who didn't drink much wine, is now ordering red wine in restaurants. Before Mendoza he would maybe have a glass of white here or there. He really embraced the experience and got a huge kick out of meeting winemakers, going deep into the wineries and learning about how they make wine all the way to the bottling and labeling stages of the process. We ate 2 of the best meals we've had on the entire trip so far in Mendoza. LOTS OF MEAT!!!!!! THE BeST, EVER. Sorry, PETER LUGAR'S. Their vineyards and state of the art architecturally designed wineries are excellent. Hardly anyone else was around us. We had a totally intimate experience with the people in the wine world. Traveling with Josh has been great. He's easy going, flexible and up for anything! Makes for a great travel companion. He also keeps me laughing and smiling nonstop. Couldn't be happier. We're off for Peninsula Valdez in a few hours. Also in Patagonia, a little north of Calafate. This is where we'll see the PENGUINS, Seal Lions and Elephant Seals. The penguins have laid their eggs and the eggs have probably hatched already so we'll get to see them sitting on the chicks. Can't wait! Then, we're off to Buenos Aires for a little Tango, Shopping and more MEAT. Maybe we'll catch a soccer or polo game. So much fun!