KEVIN Brauch has often proclaimed that he has the 'best job in the world'.

And we probably have to agree, considering that his work entails travelling around the world and downing lots of drinks and cocktails as the host of Discovery Travel & Living programme, The Thirsty Traveller.

But in a phone interview from Tasmania, Australia, where he was filming for the next season of his show, Brauch revealed that his job is not always peachy.

In Peru, the 38-year-old said he fell terribly ill after having to drink an aboriginal concoction called Chica.

'The drink was made from corn and river water. Part of the tradition was that the brew-meister had to be a female. To start the fermenting process of the drink, the ladies spit into the mix,' explained Brauch.

The first drink went down well.

But the second one, which he had the next day, caused him to become severely ill.

'The second batch which I had tasted very different from the first batch. It was very acidic and was stinging and spicy on the tongue. But I had to finish it because we were filming.'

That one drink caused him to 'lose 12 pounds (5kg) in a week due to alcohol poisoning'.

'I had high fever, vomiting and diarrhoea. It was the worst kind of pain you could ever imagine,' said Brauch.

Another horrifying experience during his filming resulted in the Canadian host 'throwing up from the open doors of a moving van'.

Brauch said it was during a trip to Moscow, Russia, and he had to down 18 shots of vodka in front of a very 'excited' bar owner.

'It was horrible! He made the vodka on his own and insisted that I drink with him. My body was not used to the vodka and reacted badly to it. The van had to rush me back to the hotel.'

But before he could make it back to the hotel, Brauch ended up retching from the van as it continued on the highway because the 'driver refused to stop the vehicle'.

Aside from falling sick on the job, Brauch also said that getting drunk sometimes is part of the job.

He said that there are times where he has about '15 to 20 glasses of drinks in the span of a day' although he tries to limit it to one to three drinks in an hour.

There are times when his drinking session starts as early as 8am. On some days, he can go through 15 to 20 glasses of drinks, but he tries to limit it to one to three drinks in an hour.

Is this punishing for his liver?

Brauch said he goes for a liver check-up twice a year and as of his last medical appointment, his liver is in good shape.

He added that for every glass of alcohol he consumes, he also drinks a glass of plain water to 'keep the alcohol moving in my body so it gets out of my system faster'. The next season airs here next month.

Thirsty Traveller Specials is premiering on Discovery Travel & Living (StarHub Ch16) on 14 May at 9pm.