After years of writing award-winning cookbooks, renowned culinary experts Cheryl and Bill Jamison were ready to take a break. So in the fall of 2005 they packed their bags, locked up their house in Santa Fe, and set off on a three-month-long visit to ten countries—all on frequent-flier miles.

Among their stops were:

• Bali - Where they celebrated a second honeymoon in Ubud and encountered a rogue monkey
• Australia - Where they found the world's best breakfast sandwich and visited family-owned wineries
• Thailand - Where they took a wild ride on an elephant in an enormous forest reserve
• India - Where they found themselves in the midst of Diwali, the Festival of Lights
• China- Where they attended a banquet of local Chiu Chow cuisine that required hours of preparation by the "Emeril of Chaozhou" and forty cooks
• South Africa - Where they went on a safari among rhinos, giraffes, and very hungry lions
• Brazil - Where they soaked in the sun and Creole flavors of the coastal town of Salvador

Combining the intelligence and humor of Anthony Bourdain with the charm and insight of Frances Mayes, Around the World in 80 Dinners transforms traveling into an unforgettable odyssey.