Hotel Casa Real at Santa Rita winery is sheer bliss, with temperatures of 85 degrees, full sun, flowers bursting and Sauvignon Blanc aplenty. Our small group is gathering here, just outside of Santiago, before journeying north to Chile's Atacama desert. Relaxation is in full force: Today we took a horsedrawn cart to the vineyard's pre-Columbian art museum before touring the winery and enjoying a splendid lunch of paella and chocolate mousse. Its unimaginable that the weather at home is 11 degrees. What a pity we can't bottle and Fed-Ex some of this magic home! --Diane