Traveling in the Raw

When you first go raw, it may seem complicated to eat raw when traveling to new cities or new countries. However, traveling in the raw does not have to be challenging and can become second nature to those who know what to do.

Getting on the Road

How you travel determines what preparation will be required.

Planning a road trip in your car for a few days? This, in my opinion, is the easiest to deal with. Just pack your Vitamix, a plastic cutting board, a salad bowl, a couple of knives, spoons and forks, spices, some olive oil, a peeler, maybe a produce wash, and you are ready to do. Bring a nice selection of veggies and fruits with you, a bag of salad, and don't forget lots of water.

Flying to your destination? Well, this gets trickier because of all the security regulations, but it doesn't have to turn into a major headache.

Here are a few things you can do:

• Take an empty water container to fill it up with fountain water once you are pass the security check. I always bring my water ionizer stick to make water alkaline and chlorine-fr*ee.
• Call your airline in advance to request a fruit salad for your meal (although it probably won't be organic) or pack some fresh fruit and veggies along with some salad to take with you on a plane plus pour some dressing in a small (under 3 oz) container that will go into that clear plastic ziplock bag that you have to show at the security check point.
• Make fruit leathers - take ripe fruit (bananas and apples work great), blend in a food processor, spread onto Teflex sheets and dehydrate at 105F for 16-18 hours.
• Here's a great tip from Boutenko family - dehydrate some veggies, bring them on the plane with you along with some disposable soup bowls. Once on a plane, ask for some warm water, pour it over your veggies to re-hydrate them, add some salt and spices, and you've got yourself a delicious soup!
• Make your own trail mix with some raw nuts, seeds, and raisins.
• Bring flax crackers or some raw bars (like Lara bars) to snack on.

Once You Are There

Tonya Kay, a talented performer who follows the raw food diet, once said: "Anywhere you go, food grows - you just need to get to it before people cook it."

Find a local health store or a farmers market.  Just like you would think ahead about your menu at home, planning ahead for your trip will save you from finding yourself in a situation when you have nothing to eat and are surrounded by tempting cooked foods.

If traveling within the US, check http://www.localharvest.org to find a farmers market at your destination or check out Organic Consumers Website for an organic health food shop or co-op.

If your luggage permits, bring a small portable blender with you to add variety to what you eat. A small pocketknife comes in handy when you need to peel a fruit or a vegetable while on the road.

If you are vacationing in Europe, good news - Europeans are still big on eating freshly made meals and most cities have markets where you can buy fresh fruits and vegetables that are locally grown.

Traveling to Asia or South America can be a raw foodist's heaven because of abundance of exotic fruits you can find there. I am sure you will have no shortage of new tastes and delicious explorations. Even deep in the jungle of Peru I enjoyed a daily selection of wild grapes, cherimoya, bananas, lucuma, and passion fruit. Even in the mountains finding fresh produce wasn't a problem (the picture used for this article shows a fruiteria in Pisac where I got my daily juice every morning).

Check out local restaurants. Now that the vegan and raw diets are gaining popularity around the world, it gets easier to find places to eat out and enjoy a healthy and delicious meal.

Raw Food Info website has a nice directory of raw restaurants and juice bars located around the world and Happy Cow has a worldwide directory of vegetarian and healthy food restaurants.

And even if you can't find a raw food restaurant, you can always find a good vegan place that serves delicious salads. Scan the menu for all the raw ingredients they have (that might be in cooked recipes) and then ask the chef to add them to your salad.  Tell them you are on a special diet and would appreciate their understanding.

Can't find anything? Stop by a raw food forum (like, for example, Give It To Me Raw or RawFu) and ask - people from all over the world join online communities and there is a big chance someone from where you are traveling to will have the answer.

Bring superfoods. In the event that you're traveling to a place where getting fresh produce-organic or otherwise-is challenging, you can still travel "live." When I travel, I always bring my super blue green algae, green powder, probiotics, and bee pollen with me. This was a big one for me during my stay in Peru - I took my super blue green algae and probiotics daily and it really made a difference in how I felt, my energy level, and my digestion.

Stock up on raw snacks. Seaweed, goji berries, crackers, trail mixes and raw food bars are easy to carry and great to snack on when no fresh produce is available.

Preparation is the key to making your traveling in the raw experience easy and worry free. Now nothing can stop you from having a great trip AND staying healthy!

© 2009 Radiant on Raw

WOULD YOU LIKE TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR EZINE OR ON YOUR WEBSITE?  You can, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Alina Vladimirova, Raw Food and Lifestyle Coach, publishes "Radiant on Raw" - a free bi-weekly eZine for anyone who is ready to look great, feel amazing, and rediscover passion for living. Interested? Then sign up at www.RadiantonRaw.com".

Comments

[Tonya Kay]

Thanks for the mention!

Tonya Kay
http://tonyakay.com

[Alina]

You are welcome :) Thanks for stopping by!