Traveling with Celiac

Currently, the bed count is 82 -- but more about that in another post.

I'm sitting in my cabin looking out at the tranquil Mediterranean Sea watching small fishing boats chug into port. Enormous, ah well-fed, seagulls circle the boats because these birds know what I know -- Spanish seafood is delicious. Eating in Barcelona is a pleasurable feast of simple, fresh food. When I was first diagnosed with Celiac, I worried that traveling, especially to a foreign country would prove almost impossibly tricky. While staying healthy when traveling can be tricky, it has proven less challenging than I had feared -- as long as I plan ahead.

Since receiving the diagnosis in early 2009, I've had two major attacks and a few minor ones. Both major attacks were in the states and occurred years apart.  The recent one in Palm Springs, CA following a family celebration dinner in a restaurant reminded me that I best always be careful when it comes to eating food away from home.

During the years between attacks, I'd traveled to Argentina, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Canada, Ecuador, Galapagos, places in the Mediterranean, Prague, other parts of the Czech Republic, Germany, Austria, Budapest, Baja, Mexico, Amsterdam, Belgium, Ireland, Scotland, Denmark, Norway, Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand. All without any significantly detectable incident. Here are some random thoughts on how I've managed while on the road.

1. When I visit a foreign country, I'm on guard about food and focused on eating safely more so than when I am in the states. Unfortunately, in the states there are times I assume, like in Palm Springs, I know what is safe to eat and that assumption lands me in trouble.

2. Generally people in foreign countries tend to know much more about Celiac or even gluten sensitivity than people -- chefs, servers, food service workers -- do in the states. For example, eating in Halifax was easy because restaurants understand Celiac in part because a high percentage of Nova Scotians have Celiac. This holds true in Italy and Ireland.

3. For many travelers, street food is a genuine pleasure and a way of experiencing a different culture. I, however, view street food as poison and avoid it completely. Even if the vendor tells me the food is gluten free, I'm suspect of cross contamination and hidden gluten.  I limit myself to admiring the food's appearance.

4. I carry packaged food with me. Think Thin gluten free protein bars are easy to pack and have substituted for a meal in more than one country or on a long distance flight.

5. Celiac Cards!  We don't leave home without them! Several years ago, R found a web site that posts downloadable, printable Celiac cards that state exactly what I cannot eat, what I can eat, and what happens if I ingest gluten. The cards are available in every language imaginable. In a foreign country, I show the server the card who then may show it to the chef and we figure out what I can safely eat. I must say that universally, servers are happy to help me. The cards allow me to travel with less anxiety to countries where I do not speak the language.

6.  The Internet makes managing Celiac while traveling so much easier.  We search ahead of time for gluten free or gluten free friendly restaurants so that we arrive with a few restaurant options. Tripadvisor is a great resource as are the many sites or blogs written by others who have issues with gluten.

7. I've learned to ignore comments or observations about my diet. Many times I meet someone who knows someone else who is reported to have Celiac but can eat so much more than what I do. I'm glad for that person. However, I've learned what works for me and when I'm on my game, I stay safe.

Happy Travels. Gotta go. More of Barcelona to see.

Beds -- 50+

Why am I counting the number of "gap year" beds? Good question. At first, the count was kind of a game, I guess. Something to keep me amused and interested.  But I could have counted cities visited, countries visited, cabs taken. But I selected beds.

A number of years ago, I completed a dissertation which included data collection and analysis. During the process, I came to appreciate data in a new way. Information can help us describe, understand and explain experiences. So perhaps counting beds is a way of capturing and understanding the year. My husband R has been tracking miles driven. Periodically, he reports our miles travelled (by car only -- not plane, bike, ship, train, or any other mode).  It seems we are both attempting to capture and understand our experiences via numbers.

 No matter, this is how the count began. Our bed in Chicago was old, purchased several states and moves ago. We decided it wasn't worth storing or moving west. Our plan was to dump the bed the day before moving day and sleep one night on our blow up mattress. Problem was the battery operated pump had unexpectedly died. No prob, we decided. We'll just sleep on our bedroom floor. It's carpeted! With a few quilts and all, it will be fine.  This is the kind of bad thinking that comes when people are overwhelmed from making too many decisions, have way too much to do, and have been living the stress generated by an imminent cross country move. R is 63 and I was closing in on 60 at the time. It  had been a long time since we'd slept on any floor. It was getting late and since the movers would arrive by 9:30am the next morning we snuggled down (more like lowered ourselves) to the bed/floor to sleep.

I wouldn't really describe our time on the floor as sleep.  At 2 am we were both awake, hips and backs loudly protesting their treatment. At 2:30 am we were up, drinking the first of many cups of coffee, and by 3 am R was working on packing up the car. Bed #1 is really a non-bed that launched the gap year.

We left Chicago that afternoon, unrested, sore, a little anxious, and excited. After the sleepless night on non-bed #1 any place we stayed would be a step up. That optimistic belief actually did not hold true -- unbeknownst to us, worse beds were in our future. That day in the car, I started the bed-counting-game, tracking the number on my iPhone. Traveling from the Midwest to the west took us through -- Davenport, IA, Kearney, NB, Colorado Springs, Cortez, CO, Flagstaff, AZ, Tucson, AZ and finally Palm Desert where we met up with family and friends. Seven beds. Who knew there would be so many more?

Why count beds?  At their most basic, beds represent rest, a place to sleep. I think tracking beds expresses my restlessness. More beds. More adventure. More cities, countries, experiences.  R likes to say this is our time to "pick up and go." Will the gap year cure the restlessness? Do I want it to?

Keep counting.

By the way, current count -- 53 beds.