Podunk here checking in from Argentina. Chef and I arrived here March 5th, and the place has blown my mind. I don’t ask for much in a vacation– good food and drink, some scenery, a little movement, and lots of R&R. Argentina has delivered in spades.

Especially once we got into the countryside. Podunk indeed meets Paradise here.

This is sort of our 25th anniversary trip, sort of a 1st anniversary of being free from ridiculous medical treatments trip. I refuse to call it a bucket list trip, because the bucket recently hit me in the back of the knees — but you get the drift.

First, and perhaps foremost, Argentina has been a “he said beer, she said wine” kind of place for us. We are in the Northern Patagonia region where they grow a lot of hops and brew some damn fine beer.

The Bachman Brewery in Bariloche is one such example.

Usually when I find myself in this situation, I would happily climb aboard the beer bus. But, my God, the wine here is good! Malbec is my new best friend. My Taurus tendencies cannot help but be tickled by ordering a nice bottle in a restaurant for $7. This has the added effect of recruiting Chef to the wine train to save me from my thrifty self.

To make matters more intriguing, we have been hiking, or more appropriately trekking, in Patagonia, and I shit you not, there is beer and wine at the top of the mountains, possibly the Andes.

After a 15 km trek, what a nice surprise to find home brew on tap.

The closest thing I have ever experienced to this is when my sidekick Lucy and I outfitted Gus the golden retriever with a backpack full of beer and snacks and a few library books and went trekking on the Continental Divide Trail. But in that case, Gus shredded his backpack straps while chasing a squirrel under a downed lodge pole, seriously shaking up our beer, and causing us to have to carry the library books and prematurely eat our snack wagon. Bad dog.

Ok, where was I? Oh yes, Argentina. As you may imagine, there have been other interesting things to report, but for now, this is a good amount to consider. Please stay tuned for the next installment.