Paris to St. Jean Pied de Port, France

Finally, the day arrived! We took an early train from Paris to our starting point on the Camino, the quiet town of St. Jean Pied de Port, France, in the foothills of the Pyrenees mountains.

arriving at the train station

After registering for our Pilgrim Passports and finding an albergue (we stayed at the municipal albergue; very cozy and welcoming), we listened to the grumbling in our bellies and set out to find a place to eat. Since we were in a tiny town in Basque Country, we were apprehensive about what we might find, but we finally decided that we could make do with a restaurant called Cafe Ttipia. Boy, did we get lucky! Turns out, our waitress had a vegan niece, so she new exactly what to offer us on the menu. We ended up with an amazing spread of typical (vegan) Basque food: 2 garden salads, a plate of fire-roasted red peppers (called "piquillos"), a massive bowl of french fries (excusez-moi, frites), fresh-squeezed orange juice, and a basket of bread. Seriously, we could not have gotten luckier!

Cafe Ttipia in St. Jean Pied de Port, France

This experience taught us Lesson #1 for traveling well on the Camino: Always ask! In this case, we got exactly what we needed and more from our server: She customized the salads for us (no cheese) and saved us tons of time trying to read the French/Basque/Spanish menu and figure out what we could eat. In future situations, we would save time by immediately learning that the restaurant had nothing on the menu for us. Well, that's helpful too! Better than reading the menu for 10 minutes and letting the "hanger" set it. Communication is key.

little did we know we'd be climbing that beautiful beast the next morning.

After our awesome dinner, we took a little time to enjoy the serenity that is St. Jean Pied de Port, then headed back to our hostel for an early night in. It was there that we met someone who would turn out to be an almost constant Camino friend, along with his travel companion who we met later on. Camino friendships are so special!

Stopover in Paris

After our respective travels visiting friends in various European cities, we met up in Paris to begin the Camino journey!

Here is an immediate disclaimer: this post will not do Paris justice! Our stay was barely 3 days, and we got a little overwhelmed by the massive size of the city, the very long list of sites we wanted to see, a bunch of random pre-Camino logistics, and our very unpleasant (read: dirty and weird) hostel. All in all, though, I'm so glad we went, since I had never been to Paris before, and I'm proud of how much we saw in such a short trip! We both vow to go back someday for a proper Parisian holiday, when we have a few more Euros in our pockets and a few more days to enjoy this beautiful city.

Day 1 in Paris started with getting locked out of our hostel (did we mention they closed from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. for no good reason?), so we didn't have much time to plan out our day before we set to the streets.  It was drizzly, so we made a beeline for the Louvre, one of the few indoor activities on our wishlist. It was the perfect way to pass a rainy afternoon!

From there we wandered into a vegan bakery, Vegan Folies. They mostly had delicious-looking cupcakes, but we asked if they had any gluten-free options. Turns out, they had a cheesecake with a chestnut flour crust. It was delectable! We also indulged in some Bionade fizzy juices... Elderberry and Litchi! What a lovely reprieve from the rain and cold.

Chestnut-crust chocolate cheesecake and bionade fizzy juices at Vegan Folies.

That evening we got lost trying to find the Eiffel Tower (don't ask us how...to our credit the Parisians we asked for directions were also confused about where the large well-lit tower was!). Finally, we arrived and had a dinner picnic amidst a slew of drunken teenagers, couples making out, late-night joggers, and a bride and groom taking wedding photos. Gotta say, it was a pretty magical place!
Our picnic was simple: baguettes and corn cakes with vegan pate, hummus, and carrots.

Our best shot with le eiffel tower

Day 2 in Paris included some errands, and some wandering, but most importantly, an epic visit to The Loving Hut. It's an international chain, but if you ever find yourself in a city with a Loving Hut, do yourself a favor and visit. The menu is customized to the cuisine of the area, with a little Asian twist. We pigged out!

Spring rolls, veggies and rice noodles

Savory soup!

Vegan, Neapolitan banana split... YUMMO

Cardamom rose lattes... yes please.

There was a lot we missed, gastronomically and culturally, but all in all Paris was a great stepping stone to the start of the Camino...........

Time Flies!

Well, it's been a year since we began and completed* our Camino journey. It was an unforgettable experience, one that we both regularly reflect on. Originally the plan was to update the blog as we went, but it became clear pretty early on that that wasn't going to happen. We didn't have regular access to internet, and even when we did, there wasn't a lot of energy left to sit and write.

However, in honor of our Camino anniversary, we are going to start where we left off and share our notes from every day of our trip. Sorry it took a year to get going again, but hopefully this blog can still assist and inspire other pilgrims.

-m&a-

[* We learned from many wise folk along the Way that the journey never really ends!]

London, Vegan Mecca

So I spent a few days in London, visiting friends, and had such an amazing gastronomic experience that I had to share!

First, it's worth mentioning that England is actually the birthplace of modern/western veganism, so it's no surprise that there is an abundance of veg-friendly establishments. Also, by law, packaged foods must list all ingredients and possible allergens. Add to that, they almost always have a label indicating "suitable for vegetarians and vegans"  !!  Makes life so much easier.

I don't know if this is part of their food labeling requirements, but all of the restaurants included ingredients under their menu item descriptions, and usually had a "V" next to vegetarian options.

OK, now for the good stuff. The food!!!

My first official "meal" was a salad from M&S, a chain store that has many grocery outlets around the country. They have lots of vegan/G-F options, including salads, hummus, crisps (chips in American), nuts, bottled drinks, fresh fruits & vegetables.... etc. I shopped there twice, both times opting for for a 2-for-£4 salad deal. I got a bean salad with a mint-parsley dressing, and a garden salad with a french-mustard vinaigrette. (Make sure to check your label for ingredients, as some of the dairy/egg-free salads do not include vegan dressings.)

I had the benefit of staying with friends who took me to the tastiest, veggiest restaurants around London. (Before arriving I had done some research, but honestly I found HappyCow to be a bit overwhelming in this circumstance!)

First, we had dinner at Yalla Yalla. FIFTEEN HUNDRED STARS!
"Beirut Street Food," tucked away in Soho. The space itself is super cozy and the food & service were great. After we explained that I have a gluten intolerance, the server offered to bring a plate of carrots for me instead of pita for the hummus. She also informed us of the items that had dairy or gluten that I should avoid. And of course, most ingredients/allergens were already clearly marked on the menu!
For dinner we shared hummus, falafel, batata harra, & fatoush (which usually comes with toasted pita on top, but they served it on the side). Everything was incredible. I've had a lot of these dishes many times before, but they really know what they're doing at Yalla Yalla!

For lunch the next day we checked out In Spiral, in the Camden neighborhood. So tasty!!! Mostly vegan, gluten-free and raw. They had a really great "pick and mix" option, so I got a medium plate with curried chick peas and plantains, wild rice, vegan caesar salad, and sauteed veggies. Typical, delicious vegan comfort food. There's something about the way all the flavors mix together, it reminded me of my many vegan potlucks at Calvin. So lovely. I also got a bottle of kombucha, brewed in-house, and came back later for the grand finale, homemade vegan ice cream! Mint chocolate chip. I believe it was cashew-based. They had a whole cooler of options, I wanted to try them all! So delicious and satisfying!

My last London food experience was equally delightful: dinner at Dim T. I don't remember exactly what I ordered, but it was rice noodles with a coconut-curryish sauce, tofu, lemongrass, peppers, tasty tasty goodness. Lovely, flavorful sauce. I gobbled it all up!

I left London with a belly full of tasty food... the only thing keeping me from buying everything I laid eyes on was the crazy exchange rate. Come on USA, give the dollar some strength, please!

-m

Airplane Food (aka. "the camino starts here!")

En route to starting the Camino, both of us are visiting some friends in other parts of Europe. So, I thought I'd start by writing about my experience with the food on my airplane ride from the Chicago to Heathrow. I flew American Airlines, which was overall a good experience. I'd give the ride itself an A- (my headphone jack didn't work so I couldn't watch the movies... womp womp) and the food will get a B-.

When we purchased our tickets, there wasn't a way to reserve a special meal, so a week before my flight I called the customer service hotline, and they were able to reserve a vegetarian meal for me. Conveniently, American Airlines lists their "special meal" options online, including a sample menu. Not-so-conveniently, they do not offer a completely vegan meal.  My gluten intolerance adds another complication, but I figured the vegetarian option was better than nothing. 

I came prepared with extra snacks in case my meals weren't filling enough. I brought a little bag of almonds and pistachios, 2 Pure bars, and some powdered protein drink mix. I had an early flight, so my first breakfast was a banana and a coffee at the airport... with a side of adrenaline because I was so excited for the journey! 

Breakfast on the plane was: 

Banana french toast

Bagel 

Bowl of fruit

bottled water

Hot tea

(Jam, cream cheese and butter on the side)

Dinner on the plane was: 
Penne pasta with red pepper-olive-cheesy sauce (didn't eat), with one half of a cherry tomato
One bread roll with a side of butter
2 slices of honeydew melon
Ginger ale

I was desperately hungry, so I did something stupid and I ate the bagel and the roll! Perfectly vegan-friendly, but not gluten-free! :(  I felt ill later on, but honestly I hadn't packed enough food to sustain myself otherwise. Ooops. 

Even still, I wasn't super impressed with the portions of the vegetarian meals in comparison with what my fellow passengers received. They seemed to have gotten lots of snacks for the 5 hours in between meals that I didn't receive. And of course meat and eggs are more filling than fruit and bread. But oh well.

So, I wish I had brought more food! The hardest lesson to learn as a traveling gluten-free vegan is that I kinda have to look out for myself.

It's always good to check with airlines (talk to a person to get the most accurate info), check airports beforehand to see what the restaurant options are, and pack accordingly.  Be careful about abiding by the carry-on "liquids" guidelines, as well as any laws about traveling internationally with fresh fruits or veggies (usually a no-no). My hotel offered a "full breakfast," but it wasn't free and I am sure it wouldn't have been worth paying £9.50 for a bowl of fruit and maybe oats, so I had to consider that as well. (Luckily I did receive complimentary in-room tea!)

London blew my mind with vegan & gluten-free options, but that's another story!

-m