In our short travels so far, Dirk ended up in Emergency and I seemed to have caught a bug that emptied my GI tract.

I was amazed that a person could actual hold that much fluid. So the first day in Napa, I slept in the hotel while Dirk did a little exploring of the town. In the evening we ended up going out for Italian, but I was unable to eat more then a few bites before it became an uncomfortable battle of mind over vomiting.

Napa Valley is known for wine (I know what you are thinking, ‘no shit sherlock’). But it is overwhelming. There are way too many wineries, actually over four hundred of them. You cannot see Napa Valley in a weekend. So when you arrive, lose that thought.

So where do you start? Hell if I know, but this is what we learnt.

You need to know which wineries you can stop for a wine tasting and which ones are appointment only. There are magazines out there to help you, but again it is based on opinion.  You can go on popular – less popular – what the locals like – what you recognize – what has the nicest look – the choices are endless. We decided to go to the one’s in a wine magazine that were starred as ‘preferred’. I suspect they were preferred as a result of paying to have ads placed in the magazine.

An item I did learn was, wine tasting when you are trying not to puke is not the way to go. But having to pay a $15 to $20 tasting fee when trying not to bolt to a bathroom felt rather steep. They do wave the tasting fee if you spend at least $50 in the winery – so plan for at least a $30 visit per couple.

I figured out that I like the less busy and commercial places. The people at the smaller vineyards were more personable. The large ones were just trying to hustle you through the tasting to move on to the next couple.

We ended the day having a great glass of wine in a small and quite vineyard. That was what I was hoping to get out of Napa.

Travel Tip:

When prepping for a trip to tropical or developing countries, remember to visit your local travel clinic. During your visit, the doctor will review your current vaccine status, recommend and/or update these for you. The doctor will also ensure you are fully aware of all travel health risks and how to protect yourself. There will be a fee for this visit and some vaccines are not covered by Provincial Medical Plans. If you have a benefit plan, some of the medications will be covered.

For our travels to Southern Asia, we were made aware of Rabies, Malaria, Dengue Fever, Typhoid Fever, & Travellers’ Diarrhea.