What It’s Like to Travel as a Celiac

So the Dude family headed down to Potomac, MD last Friday for my nephew’s Bar Mitzvah. We would be leaving Friday am and coming back late Sunday afternoon. When I go to big occasions like this, I NEVER put a request in at the hotel to make sure there would be food available to me. These types of celebrations are not about me and the last thing I want (or anybody wants) is for people to worry about what I can and can’t eat. It’s a time to honor the man or woman of the hour and that’s where the focus should be.

So that means planning…and preparation…and cooking…and packing…and…well, let’s just see how the weekend went.

Dude Note: This is not a “woe is me; celiac makes traveling so difficult” post. I’m simply laying out the facts of all that goes into hitting the road for a long weekend when your living with celiac disease. Oh…and I think I’ll make it a pictorial for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy.

Thursday Night

Major props to Mrs. Dude. She spent hours cooking all of the food I would need for the weekend…and then some. Yes, I had tons of leftovers. Yes…I ate a lot. Yes…I just started the Whole30 again to detox a bit. Yes, I’m feeling better already. Yes…I’m talking too much.

What packs well? Pasta and rice dishes. This is Mrs. Dude’s famous pasta salad.

All packed up and ready to go. (Not shown…lemon, limes and a bottle of Tito’s.)

A cooler is your BFF. Note to self…next time, put ice in it. Helps to keep things cool. Yes…I’m an idiot.

Friday

Like a Boy Scout, the key is being prepared. ALWAYS make sure there is a fridge and a microwave in your room. Makes things so much easier.

My weekend pals. I miss them so.

While everyone else gets their dinner, I sneak upstairs and nuke me an awesome meal and bring it down.

Saturday Day

I scarfed down a banana, a hard-boiled egg and 37 cups of coffee for breakfast. All good. As for the rest of the day…

It’s not exactly glamorous being a celiac. Here’s my food on the floor as I try to prepare it for lunch.

Saturday Night

Just a phenomenal evening. But I will be honest with you. For the first time in a LONG time, I had a hard time. The cocktail hour was filled with a bevy of delicious looking food and though of course I was not tempted to cheat, I felt cheated. So I texted two of my best celiac buddies and told them I was struggling a bit. They both got back to me within a minute with wonderful words of support. And just like that, I was absolutely fine.

You can’t see me, but I’m in the corner sitting in a puddle of tears. Just kidding. Sort of.

We won’t talk about the balloon centerpieces. But boy…did they give me an immature chuckle.

How do you keep tab of your drinks at a big party? Put a spoon in them.

My three favorite people in the whole wide world!!! Four if I include myself 😉

Sunday Morning

Even though there was a breakfast buffet, I finished the weekend as I started it. A banana, a hard boiled egg and 37 cups of coffee.

Yes…I put a straw in my coffee so no one at the table would mistakenly sip it.

My thanks to our gracious hosts for an amazing weekend. Congrats Sam on a job well done. And another big shout out to Mrs. Dude for all of your efforts.

Got any great celiac traveling tips? I’m all ears.