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Hola!

  Muchas gracias para las suggestiones (hee - bad Espanol)!  Sounds like most important would be to bring my own soy, pastas and possibly a restaurant card (esp. if one doesn’t know Spanish) and drink only bottled water.  Some said the fruit could be dangerous so not to eat raw foods.  My brother –in-law lives there half the year and knows the place/customs/challenges quite well, but the specifics on gf eating are very helpful.  We will start out at a place called Los Suenos Marina and go from there…I will pack one bag w/ gf foods as back up.  Four of us going down are gf so I won’t be the lone Celiac at the table.  Can’t wait!  Thanks for all your good ideas….and I will also buy some sort of wallet to keep close…I do hear they’ll rob the shirt off you if you’re not careful!  Thanks again!!!Replies follow.

   Kate, Salmon, ID

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--------------In downtown San Jose, the capital, you can pretty much find any cuisine you want. They have major American fast food chains as well- Mc Donald's Burger King, Denny's and an Outback. If I recall correctly, there was an area called "the Pueblo" in San Jose which was a self-contained area with restaurants, bars, dance clubs and souvenir shops. I forget the name of the restaurant, but there was a very good restaurant in The Pueblo which was very accommodating to my needs.

    When we stood in the Arenal Volcano area our hotel had a dining room so we ate most of our meals there. The wait staff and chefs at the dining room were most accommodating to my dietary needs. Near our hotel was a town called San Carlos with a restaurant called the Coca Loca. There we were able to get a steak, fish, etc. There was a Chinese restaurant on the outskirts of San Carlos (Fun Gen) and they made me a dish with my soy sauce.

    I brought a restaurant card in Spanish with me, and I brought my soy sauce and gf pasta with me. Most of the food in Costa Rica is made without all the added extra junk/additives preservatives that we find here in the states. There were a lot of dishes with beans, rice, rice with shrimp in a ball, rice with chicken in a ball, fish etc. I don't think you will encounter too many problems.

    Because their diet has more natural ingredients I think you'll be just fine. If you stay in San Jose, I wouldn't worry either. I found the people in Costa Rica to be most kind and accommodating.  Have a great time, bring a gf dining card in Spanish (I got mine from the Jax Lowell book) and all will be well.



----------------------We stayed at the four seasons resort and had no difficulty eating gluten free. However, we did not venture out of the resort for meals as we had an all inclusive package. I don’t think you will have a problem if you speak Spanish or have a Spanish meal card explaining your dietary needs. The people could not have been friendlier. Have a great trip. Harlan

----------------CR was the best country for me having celiac (24 yrs)! People are sooo friendly and speak good English and I ate mostly rice, beans, and plain chicken most of the time.  They do not put flour in most of their foods.  When I went to Mexico, I had nothing but stomach problems, but Costa Rica is Awesome!!!  Costa Rica is, in my opinion, a safe place for celiacs!



-----------CR was the first trip abroad I took after my diagnosis.  It was fairly easy.  I did get the  I did get a card in Spanish. They have lots of rice and beans and fresh fruits and foods. The staple diet is beans and rice (at every meal!) with various meat and fish. Food is usually pretty good there and the Ticos are very friendly and hospitable people. Show it to the head waiter or a manager in the grocery store if you are uncertain. Learn the words for gluten, wheat, and bread in Spanish so you can read labels. So, eat meat, corn, rice, potatoes, beans. Stay away from sauces  and gravies. Drink bottled water only, no ice in your drinks, beer, wine, soda, milk, coffee, tea, etc. Good luck. Stay with your guides and do not go off on your own unless you know what you are doing. Pick-pocketing and purse-snatching are rampant.



------------we were on a Medical mission trip which consisted of some rough areas and perhaps the end result for me was due to that particular kind of trip - we stayed at mission housing; food prepared by the owners who were Americans and lived in the states all of their early lives.  I could communicate very well there re food.  However, when we did eat out; I tried to take my food with me; sometimes I did not. I came home very sick and really did not start to feel well until Oct. - only thing we can figure out is that I picked up a virus, perhaps common to CR and it was hard to identify here in the States.  We checked for everything and all tests came back normal.  I could have made a mistake re fruits and vegetables  - I ate every day - now I am being told that even those who have no celiac will not eat anything unless it is cooked.  Even my Dr who travels on these kinds of trips will not eat anything uncooked.  I did not get any any Hep shots; and we did travel in rough areas due
 to our type of trip.


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