Bon Voyage! Bon Appetit!

As I sat typing at SEATAC airport with my kids, the largest object next to me at the terminal workstation was a woven basket full of food. My second carry-on contained a small cooler bag with our lunch, plus a small tote with non-perishable bars, seaweed, jerky, dried fruit. Eating during travels is anxiety-provoking (for me), as finding nourishing foods can be a formidable chore. Considering most people get sick when they travel – added stress, poor sleep, less exercise, strapped time, irregular mealtimes, cramped quarters, new exposures, unforeseen challenges, lots of waiting – it's worth having a plan with food I enjoy.

Amongst my many packing lists – clothes, toiletries, supplements, herbs, house-prep – are three foods lists worth considering: 1.) adrenal- and immune-supportive meals for the week before travel; 2.) healthy, well-balanced foods for travel days; 3.) a place to eat or shop locally upon arrival. Though we’d have access to food at three airports, on four planes, and upon arriving on the Côte d’Azur, most of these foods do not provide nutrients to stay healthy, nor invoke a sense of place. A little organization goes a long way, as I’ve just experienced (successfully).

We’d been awake since 4:45. I’d prepared quiche and berries for the drive to Boise and planned extra time for TSA to inspect our cooler bag. Eight hours into traveling, our second flight was delayed. My kids finished the burritos I’d made (sweet potatoes, pinto beans, corn, cheese, leftover brown rice, cilantro) and were hungry again. I offered a homemade cookie to share – carbs, protein, fats to perk spirits and sustain blood sugar.

For the long flight across the US and Atlantic, I chose the vegan option, uncertain whether I’d eat the meal at all. I was resourced with hard-boiled eggs from pasture-raised hens, organic salami, organic cheese, multi-grain crackers, sliced red and yellow peppers, cut up carrots and celery. Accidentally, the kids received vegan meals, too! They ate little of the rice, collards, and dahl, yet enjoyed the fruit and bread (rounded out with our snacks).

After 23 hours, we arrived in Nice with one need: locate our hotel. Despite only a few hours of sleep, we were nourished and patient (enough) to figure out how to get there. We dropped bags, changed clothes, ate snacks – the remaining apple slices, cuties and cheese. Our second order of business: navigating the tram into Old Town Nice to find Fenocchio, an ice creamery touting 100 flavors of gelato. I chose a route through the famed Cours Saleya markets, though they had closed for the day (no worries – I had plenty of food, just in case).

We meandered through the Vieille Ville and, just as my kids were starting to fade, we found the plaza with four-story sun-kissed buildings with iron balconies, a catholic church, the quintessential central fountain, skirted by tables and chairs spilling out from restaurants – and Fenochhio! Thankfully, we were mentally fueled to spend another 25 minutes deciding on flavors – figue and cassis, mango and framboise, verveine and stracciatella (in waffle cones). It was my kids’ first taste of France.

Eventually, we found a small grocer to buy water and fruit, a boulangerie to buy a un palmier and fougasse for breakfast, and classic Nicoise food for dinner – socca, pissaladière, salad nicoise. We slept well last night.