I have finally completely finished posting the entire journal from 2009. I will start on the 2012 one tomorrow (I swear!). I've typed it all up, but would like to put pictures and such with the posts. I realize, looking back on my posts that my food allergies (dairy and soy) were affecting me in a bad way. I wonder if my knees will hurt next time I go backpacking. It will definitely be harder to eat, because they put dairy and soy in almost everything that is processed, which is a huge part of a hostel-backpacking diet. Cheap processed crap.
My food allergies were not only causing me gastrointestinal distress, they were also causing me severe mood swings, and irritability. Ask the hubby about the irritability. And the pain. The joint pain was horrendous. And it's all gone now. I had been hurting for so long, that I didn't even realize how bad I hurt. Until I got all of the dairy and soy completely out of my diet last year, and then it was like night and day.
I wonder if there's anyone else out there with food allergies who has gone backpacking?
Showing posts with label journal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label journal. Show all posts
Saturday, March 1, 2014
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Backpacking 2012
I forgot to update here! I am going backpacking in Italy and France from 12 May to 1 June 2012. I booked my ticket a few weeks ago. I'm going to start in Rome and end in Paris. I doubt I'll be able to update the blog while I'm there, but I will keep a journal so I'll transcribe it when I get back. Speaking of which I need to find time to finish transcribing the one from my last trip LOL
Friday, May 22, 2009
Friday, May 15, 2009
Journal Entry: On the way to Naples
7:20 pm
We're on the train to Naples. I forgot to write last night I was so tired. I found V. with no problem. We crashed in the hostel after eating at McDonalds of all places. We were too tired to try to find anything else. Her tea tree face wash had spilled in her backpack during the flight so it was all over her towel and the whole room smelled of it. I slept hard. I woke up at a quarter to seven before my alarm even went off. I had toast with jam for breakfast, which was free, and paid €1.80 for a soda. The hostel was very nice and clean. At breakfast the lady at the hostel told us that the public transport people were striking. I thought we wouldn't be able to get to Naples tonight, but we had a reservation. It turned out it was just Rome and just less service, but it was a good thing because we met a teacher named Mark who had a rental car and was going to Ostia Antica. He teaches theater and we tagged along with him for about four or five hours. Regular service was supposed to resume at five pm for public transportation so we weren't rushed. When we were all exhausted, we left Ostia Antica and Mark dropped us off at the hostel.
We asked the lady at the hostel if there was somewhere nearby to eat that was cheap and it turned out there was a pizza place right around the corner. It cost €7.60 for a huge slice of pizza, enough for both of us and two bottled waters. We ate it on the patio of the hostel. It was great. We went for a short walk around Ostia to find an umbrella for V., and we walked down to a pier and looked at the Mediterranean.
I'm fairly exhausted now, navigating Termini Station was not fun and it wasn't clear what we were supposed to do with the tickets to validate them. Turns out there are little yellow machines, but many of the people working there didn't seem to speak much English, so they couldn't tell me. Finally a man figured it out and pointed to the machine.
We're almost to Naples, I'll write more later.
We're on the train to Naples. I forgot to write last night I was so tired. I found V. with no problem. We crashed in the hostel after eating at McDonalds of all places. We were too tired to try to find anything else. Her tea tree face wash had spilled in her backpack during the flight so it was all over her towel and the whole room smelled of it. I slept hard. I woke up at a quarter to seven before my alarm even went off. I had toast with jam for breakfast, which was free, and paid €1.80 for a soda. The hostel was very nice and clean. At breakfast the lady at the hostel told us that the public transport people were striking. I thought we wouldn't be able to get to Naples tonight, but we had a reservation. It turned out it was just Rome and just less service, but it was a good thing because we met a teacher named Mark who had a rental car and was going to Ostia Antica. He teaches theater and we tagged along with him for about four or five hours. Regular service was supposed to resume at five pm for public transportation so we weren't rushed. When we were all exhausted, we left Ostia Antica and Mark dropped us off at the hostel.
We asked the lady at the hostel if there was somewhere nearby to eat that was cheap and it turned out there was a pizza place right around the corner. It cost €7.60 for a huge slice of pizza, enough for both of us and two bottled waters. We ate it on the patio of the hostel. It was great. We went for a short walk around Ostia to find an umbrella for V., and we walked down to a pier and looked at the Mediterranean.
I'm fairly exhausted now, navigating Termini Station was not fun and it wasn't clear what we were supposed to do with the tickets to validate them. Turns out there are little yellow machines, but many of the people working there didn't seem to speak much English, so they couldn't tell me. Finally a man figured it out and pointed to the machine.
We're almost to Naples, I'll write more later.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Journal Entry: Jet Lagged to Hell
Thursday, 9:03 am
So tired. Not to complain or anything. Flight was fine, comfortable for a change. I'm not the least sore as I wasn't cramped up. I still couldn't sleep well though. I think I dozed a bit but that's it. Feeling a bit sick to my stomach. Probably dehydrated. Had two glasses of water in the Arrivals Lounge and a bit of breakfast, a piece of tasty sausage and a hash brown. Had a shower too and that improved my mood greatly. The water was pretty neat. It alternated hot and cold. It was quite refreshing. Now a three and a half hour wait for my flight to Rome. Hopefully V. made her connection at Charles De Gaulle.
Because I booked the flights separately the girl at passport control felt the need to ask me a million questions, like why, how come, and why again. Jet lagged and explaining yourself to passport control is never easy anyway. I was like, it was cheaper and I wanted to go to the Arrivals Lounge. That seemed sufficient, so she let me through. As if I could stay. I have a husband, a job and land at home. Man, my writing sucks after being awake for so long and I can't concentrate, and so I keep changing streams of thought.
So tired. Not to complain or anything. Flight was fine, comfortable for a change. I'm not the least sore as I wasn't cramped up. I still couldn't sleep well though. I think I dozed a bit but that's it. Feeling a bit sick to my stomach. Probably dehydrated. Had two glasses of water in the Arrivals Lounge and a bit of breakfast, a piece of tasty sausage and a hash brown. Had a shower too and that improved my mood greatly. The water was pretty neat. It alternated hot and cold. It was quite refreshing. Now a three and a half hour wait for my flight to Rome. Hopefully V. made her connection at Charles De Gaulle.
Because I booked the flights separately the girl at passport control felt the need to ask me a million questions, like why, how come, and why again. Jet lagged and explaining yourself to passport control is never easy anyway. I was like, it was cheaper and I wanted to go to the Arrivals Lounge. That seemed sufficient, so she let me through. As if I could stay. I have a husband, a job and land at home. Man, my writing sucks after being awake for so long and I can't concentrate, and so I keep changing streams of thought.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Journal Entry: BA Lounge
2:07pm
I'm waiting in the British Airways lounge now. And oh my, is it sweet! There are computers for our use, and a bathroom. It's so quiet and lacks the noise and bustle of the terminal. I'm going to be spoiled rotten after this. Three plus weeks of roughing it should fix that though.
I had a scare when I first got in here. I went to write down the telephone numbers from my credit cards in case my wallet gets stolen, and I couldn't find my American Express card. It is my backup for this trip. I panicked and called Jan and she calmed me down and had the sense to ask if I'd stashed it in my money belt, since I couldn't remember when or where I'd had it last. Of course that's when I remembered it was indeed in my money belt. Crisis averted! That was the second time today I freaked out. The first time I thought I'd lost my car keys because they weren't in my carry on and I hadn't taken them out to go through the x-ray machine. Do you know they were still in my pocket! They're mostly plastic and not much metal which I guess is why they didn't set the alarm off. I don't need any more missing or lost scares today or for the rest of the trip for that matter.
So before all the excitement, I had a small dish of orange chicken at Panda Express. I was just about stuffed afterward and don't see how people can eat an entire plate of it. I suppose that goes to show how much I've cut back on my food. Hopefully I'll lose another ten pounds while I'm on this trip.
2:32pm
They have free help-yourself fountain drinks in the lounge! I'm thrilled. It fuels my diet coke addiction. I don't ever want to travel in economy again. Oh, and they have Walker's brand cookies too!
I'm waiting in the British Airways lounge now. And oh my, is it sweet! There are computers for our use, and a bathroom. It's so quiet and lacks the noise and bustle of the terminal. I'm going to be spoiled rotten after this. Three plus weeks of roughing it should fix that though.
I had a scare when I first got in here. I went to write down the telephone numbers from my credit cards in case my wallet gets stolen, and I couldn't find my American Express card. It is my backup for this trip. I panicked and called Jan and she calmed me down and had the sense to ask if I'd stashed it in my money belt, since I couldn't remember when or where I'd had it last. Of course that's when I remembered it was indeed in my money belt. Crisis averted! That was the second time today I freaked out. The first time I thought I'd lost my car keys because they weren't in my carry on and I hadn't taken them out to go through the x-ray machine. Do you know they were still in my pocket! They're mostly plastic and not much metal which I guess is why they didn't set the alarm off. I don't need any more missing or lost scares today or for the rest of the trip for that matter.
So before all the excitement, I had a small dish of orange chicken at Panda Express. I was just about stuffed afterward and don't see how people can eat an entire plate of it. I suppose that goes to show how much I've cut back on my food. Hopefully I'll lose another ten pounds while I'm on this trip.
2:32pm
They have free help-yourself fountain drinks in the lounge! I'm thrilled. It fuels my diet coke addiction. I don't ever want to travel in economy again. Oh, and they have Walker's brand cookies too!
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