Travelling tips

Date: 2006-09-06 00:17
Subject: Travelling
Security: Public


Ahhh, the joys... nay... tribulations of travel as a Celiac.

The last time I travelled I went to an amazing place, Belize, South America. I promised myself to stay safe above and beyond all else. That means folks, that I was willing to settle for salad sans dressing and fresh fruit in order to avoid contamination and or gluttenings.

Fortunately, I did not have to sffer the wrath of a weeks worth of bland rabbit foods as apparently wheat is a hard to come by commodity in the far south. Corn is their starch of choice. Also I lucked out and the native language was English.... gotta love the colonization of our queen and her men.

But what if you are not so lucky... well then... her are some helpfull hints.

- Pack some goodies you absolutely love. Yes, maybe this means you can't bring 8 bikinis to make room for that pack of glutino chocolate wafer bars... but trust me.. you'll want them!!

- Pack some pasta... hard to find elsewhere but you can usually find a restaurant that'll cook it for ya and throw a safe sauce on top of it for ya

- Check with your local celiac chapter to see if they have a restaurant card or brochure in the language(s) of the country you are travelling to. There are also on-line translation services that you can use... link to follow.

- Ask around if anyone you know has previously been there, used that airline, stayed somewhere close and ask about the local scene.

- Check out local markets... often the cooking is done right in front of you or there are fresh ingredients so you can see exactly what is going into what you are eating.

- Remeber that higher class places or really popular places are used to heavier tourist traffic. There may be someone there who speaks your language and can answer questions for you or translate to facilitate those questions being answered.

- Don't take your lack of choice too seriously. Don't make travel about your food, some ppl travel the world for it's cusine... you my celiac friend cannot. Make your journey about something more. Make it about the adventure, the sites and sights, the places and the ppl. Don't focus on the fact that all you can have is salad... focus on the fact that you don't have to find a bathroom every ten feet and that you are healthy enough to enjoy all the sights and sounds. Just leave your tastebuds outta this one.

- Having said that which is above... do try and find new foods to love and try to use any travel agents and other resources you can to make some of your trip about the food and the comunication of your needs. But don't stress about it. Be safe.

- Consult your local travel agent. They can get in touch with ppl that you can't.... pretend you are going to book through them if you have to. If nothing else, email me ( celiac_dreams@hotmail.com ) and I'll give you the name of my travel agent. Ask them to check local restaurants, hotels and resorts.

- Go to the library and take out some books on the culture and foods of the country you are going to. Learning on your part the names and definitions of local fare will serve you well and may facilitate communication when you are there.

- Along with a restuarant card from your local chapter, or in the absence of one, you can prepare a little booklet with pictures of NO-NO items. Put the words "wheat" or "bread" under them with slashes through the names and or pictures to indicate that they are BAD. This may seem crude but it works... a picture is worth a thousand words in any language. You can even try and find the translations for those specific words and the word NO to go along with the pics.



Anyways, hope these help.... I'll add more if I think of any... it's late and I need my celiac-humor sleep.


Safe and gluten free travels .... .Jenny