<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>
PART 2: SUMMARY TRAVEL ADVICE
Contents:
Equipment to bring on a Trip
Vacation Accommodations with Kitchens
Helpful Resources
San Diego Specific Info
EQUIPMENT TO BRING ON A TRIP
Lots of great ideas for stuff to bring!! These include:
(1) A small microwave (called a hot shot) which costs about $50.
(2) A very small, portable fridge.
(3) Pre-prepared meals frozen in Rubbermaid "dinner plate" containers.
(4) Your own colander (because starch gets caught in the holes); wooden
spoons; can
opener; cheese grater; ziploc bags and containers; plastic wrap.
(5) Lots of disposable aluminum pans for cooking/toasting in the oven
and using on the bar b que. Also, lots of paper plates, etc. for the
microwave and for eating. (It made clean up very easy.)
(6) A Toastmaster "Snackster" is a little sandwichmaker that makes 2
hot sandwiches at a time, each cut into 2 sealed triangles (4 triangles
total). It allows you to take your own fillings and make great
sandwiches. You'll need gf bread, fillings of your choice, and an
outlet. That's it. You can make pizza pockets with Contadina Pizza
Quick sauce and mozzarella cheese, or cherry pies with pie filling & a
dusting of powdered sugar, or ham & cheese, or just cheese. You can
also use it to make regular toast.
VACATION ACCOMMODATIONS WITH KITCHENS
Most agreed that it is easier to stay in places with kitchens or
kitchenettes, although if you can't find one or afford one, you can get
by with a plug in burner or small microwave, using coolers, and eating
out carefully.
Suggestions pertaining to places to stay include:
(1) Marriott Residence Inns have well-equipped kitchens, but they've
become a lot pricier over the years.
(2) Extended Stay Americas and other kinds of accommodations offer
kitchens.
(3) Check before you make reservations. Do they have a stove and oven?
A microwave? Pots and pans? Silverware and dishes? Utensils? A
refrigerator? Dishwasher? Some places say they have kitchens, but
actually do not provide a fully furnished one. Consider ahead of time
what you will need, and don't be shy about asking the important
questions. Can you manage with 2 burners or do you need 4? What if
there is only a hot plate and a microwave? For 2 nights, we can get by
with a microwave and refrigerator, as long as we bring along in a
cooler a lot of food prepared at home including rice; for longer than
that, we need a
kitchen.
(4) Look for vacation rentals and your destination on the internet.
(5) Rent a motorhome for your trips. You can pack up your GF kitchen
and take it with you. They will stock it with sheets and pots for you
for a small extra charge.
(6) Rent Time-Share units or something like Spring Hill Suites (both
have kitchens).
(7) Do searches on the web for hotels and have a kitchenette as a
preference or even go to the main website for your preferred hotel
chain and do a search by preferences, zip codes, and price range.
HELPFUL RESOURCES
Other resources out there that people suggested to get more ideas and
information:
(1) Check out www.clanthompson.com/celiacsite/index.html#. They have a
program they sell that you can download to a PC computer or a Palm
Pilot. They have lists of safe foods and safe drugs that are updated on
a regular basis. (This doesn't work for us because we use Macs and
they have no plans to make their GF list Mac-compatible.)
(2) There is another website for Celiacs (it works similiar to this
list-serve) and
you are welcome to join, and to pose your question to our members. If
you'd
like to join, just send an email to:
[log in to unmask] Once you join, you can get a
restaurant guide (with 80 restaurants in it) sent to you automatically
once each month. It is extremely helpful and contains mostly chain,
regional, and local restaurants. The author keeps it as current as
possible, so that way any updates will be forwarded to you
automatically.
(3) Consult Danna Korn's books:
"Kids with Celiac Disease: A Family Guide to Raising Happy, Healthy,
Gluten-Free Children"
and
"Wheat-Free, Worry-Free: The Art of Happy, Healthy, Gluten-Free
Children"
SAN DIEGO SPECIFIC INFO
Several San Diego residents had suggestions about where to shop or eat
out. Also, there have been recent listserve posts on places to eat in
San Diego which are also helpful.
Food Shopping:
(1) Whole Foods at least two locations in San Diego county: LaJolla
area right
off I-5, and Hillcrest area (accessible from I-15 or I-805)
(2) Trader Joes has several locations throughout San Diego: LaJolla
area right
off I-5, Hillcrest area (accessible from I-15 or I-805), Grossmont Mall
area
near I-8
(3) Henry's Marketplace has three locations in San Diego county: at
least two
of them are in Chula Vista. (Henry's is a smaller store,but does have a
selection)
(4) Jimbo's Naturally has two or three locations in San Diego county:
They have
lots of good things too.
Eating Out:
(1) In-n-Out Burgers -- fast-food -- order the "protein-style" burger,
which
comes wrapped in lettuce instead of a bun. The sauce is GF, as are
fries.
EXCELLENT burgers, even by Texas standards.
(2) Tony Roma's (national chain -- kid-friendly) -- they have a list of
their GF foods. 800/286-7662
(3) Outback Steakhouse (national chain -- kid-friendly) -- they have a
list
of GF menu items. 813/282-1225.
(4) Chevy's (regional chain -- kid-friendly) -- they don't have a list
of GF
items, but they "get it" when you call and ask. You need to check each
individual restaurant, though, because they each do things differently.
800/4-chevys
(5) El Pollo Loco (regional chain -- kid-friendly -- fast food, but
very
fresh and good) -- most of their items are GF. 949/399-2000
(6) Because of our proximity to the border, you'll find lots of
Mexican
restaurants -- the more authentic, the safer (and better), since most
Mexican food is GF (except, of course, flour tortillas, and other
obvious
no-no's). You're usually safe with the shredded chicken or beef in a
corn
tortilla, beans, Spanish rice. Beware of the enchilada sauce, although
usually it's safe too. The Spanish word for "flour" is "harina" (don't
pronounce the "h") -- the word for wheat is "trigo." If you say "no
harina"
or "no trigo," they usually understand what you mean.
(7) Because of our proximity to the Pacific Ocean, you'll find great
seafood
restaurants. Most restaurants here grill the seafood in a very light
sauce -- usually GF. You can always request that it be drizzled with
butter
and grilled.
(8) Call Sea World -- number is (619) 222-6363-- in advance and let
them know that you're coming, ask about menu items, etc. We used togo
every Friday when my kids were little, and I would always take food in.
They hate that -- they check bags at the gates -- but I would just
say, "he has a restricted diet and can get deathly ill if he eats
something withgluten in it" and that was enough to scare them into
letting me go through
with my goodies. So you might want to stop at the nearest store and
load up on yogurt, fruit, string cheese, etc. and take it in with you.
(9) PF Changs has a gluten free menu that can be downloaded from the
internet. Just click on their special menu section on their web page.
CA.
(10) We also eat at Wahoo Fish Tacos.
(11) The chef at Albert's at the San Diego Zoo is great.
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