Kirt,
I saw one of your posts a few weeks ago about eating raw while
traveling.  Now I have to decide if I want to go to South America in
December or not, and maybe you could help.

You see, I have friends in Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina.  I would
love to go and visit them, and December/January would be the perfect
time (summer in S.A., I have the time, money saved up, leaving my job).
But I've been doing all raw for 23 days now, and I want to keep doing it
for the long term.  Therein lies the problem.  Latin people are very
sociable, and food is a big part of their social life.  So if I stay with them,
I'll have to let them know from the start that there are certain things that I
eat, and certain things that I don't eat.  Of course, I don't want to offend
them in any way.  But I'll be doing my body a disservice if I give in to their
"polite offers".

I love South America and it's my favorite continent.  I get excited at the
prospect of all those fresh tropical fruits in abundance.  But then I get
stressed out at the thought of visiting my friends and being seen like a
total alien with them.  I'm thinking that maybe I should put off a trip like this
for another year, until I'm more confident about my new eating habits and
the rationale for them.  But then again, this might be the time to face up to
my fears, and I can taste those luscious fruits every time I think about
them.

Sorry about the long post.  Anyway, how did you find raw nuts and
seeds while you were traveling?  What about washing your fruits and
veggies (have to worry about hepatitis and cholera and all that)?  Did
you eat grains while you were there (then soaking becomes a factor)?

I appreciate your help and any comments you can give.

Thanks.

Shawn Luca, DC