The good news is ...

After a week of eating great food, today we got a chance to help make South American recipes. Hugo from Malbec Symphony, a tour company in Mendoza, picked us up for the trip out to Familia Zuccardi. We were greeted by Natalia and given coffee to drink under the grape arbor. Gaston, our chef and instructor for the day met us at a table under the trees.

Our numbers were short today: Sarah was under the weather and Mark had a business call so four of us took off for our hike in the Andes. Fernando, our driver, brought a guide, Yael, to hike with us and explain the sights along the way. The drive from Mendoza City to the Parque Aconcagua with stops took about three and a half hours. It was a long drive, but worth every minute.

In travel as in life, being flexible makes things easier. This morning we arrived at Renacer Winery for a 10:00 tour and tasting only to be told we hadn't been expected. We had made our reservation with the owner who apparently hadn't communicated to the staff. After some negotiation we decided to return at 4:00 in the afternoon when the owner was there.

After the marathon wine tastings of the last three days, it was a shock - yes, a SHOCK - to have to wait until lunch for our first glass of wine. Christian The Van Man came to pick us up this morning for our 11:45 flight to Mendoza, the wine capital of Argentina. Christian was great-he stayed with us all the way to security to make sure we had a smooth departure, and we did.

Mark said yesterday that we're on a winecation and he's right. We've soaked up a lot of great vino. And we had more on the schedule for today. Christian The Van Man picked us up at 9:00 this morning for a trip to the Casablanca Valley, just 45 minutes out of Santiago.

Every day is a new adventure - we were up early for a 7:00 departure and the coffee machine at the hotel was broken! We made a quick trip to Starbucks in Providencia for much needed caffeine before a three hour drive to the Apalta region, south of Santiago. The roadside is packed with fruit and vegetable stands and the fields are filled with grape vines, corn and apple, cherry and peach trees. It's a beautiful drive.

It pays to be in the right place at the right time and we were this morning. Up early for a walk, we headed for Cerro Santa Lucia, a hill in the middle of the city with great views. Looking for a gate in, we met a young woman who told us in excellent English that the park doesn't open until 9:00. She was a choreographer on her way to film a commercial and suggested we follow her in. We slipped through the gate with our native guide and left her with the film crew while we walked through the park and viewed the city from above.

We left a chilly Dallas for a hot Chile at 9:00 Tuesday night. It's a ten hour flight, but only a three hour time difference and we felt more travel lag than jet lag. We learned the hard way that it's best to carry on your luggage when flying into Santiago. Our checked bags were held for a decontamination spraying that took over an hour. We've been told that not every flight has this delay, but to be safe, carry on if you can. We were met by Christian The Van Man in his bright yellow t shirt.

Our trip to Sicily began on the east side of the island in Syracuse, a city with deep Greek roots. We visited the Greek theater and the Archimedes museum. The Romans built on and over the Greek ruins they found. Then came the Arabs and Normans. Sicily is a wonderful blend of cultures left behind and stunning mountain and seascapes. From Taormina we had close up views of Mt Etna and in Monreale we visited an 11th century church and cloisters.