5 Tips for Healthier (and More Delicious)Travel
Eating well doesn't mean sacrificing wonderful meals and foods while you travel
Even if your travels aren’t solely focused on cooking classes, wineries, cheese and olive oil producers and restaurants (like ours at Oldways), it’s more than likely that enjoying local food is one of your most treasured experiences. Immersing ourselves in local food —wherever we travel—is a rich window into culture, history and traditions. Plus, it’s delicious.
But enjoying good food while you travel doesn’t mean derailing your healthy eating habits and health goals. It’s more than possible to have deep enjoyment, learn a lot, and feel good while you travel, all at the same time.
Here are some tips.
1. Go truly local – menus and style. Follow the traditions of the place you’re visiting and enjoy whatever is in season and of the place. There’s no point in eating like you’re at home when you’re in Rome or Istanbul or Delhi or Bangkok. Have the real thing— cacio e pepe in Rome, or a meze platter in Istanbul, or parathas in Delhi, or authentic pad thai in Bangkok. Eat slowly, and stop when you’re full, although you’ll find the portions aren’t as large as the ones we get at home.
2. Breakfast before you set off to sight-see. Continuing the local theme, embrace the local breakfast. Skip the American breakfast that hotels put out, and look for the traditional breakfast in the place you’re visiting. In Greece, try the real Greek yogurt with honey and fruit and nuts, and follow it up with tomatoes, cucumbers and small amounts of cheese, like a feta. Try a Chinese breakfast in Beijing— perhaps congee, a rice porridge. Whole grain cereals and open-faced sandwiches are traditional in Nordic countries. Add local beverages—coffee or tea—as you like, and you’re set for the day. You’ll find that you’re eager to recreate them in your own American kitchen when you return home. Whether you are sight-seeing or working or taking care of kids, a great breakfast is a happy and healthy start to the day.
3. Stick with great meals, instead of snacks. Resist the temptation—except for a gelato or two—to add lots of snacking to your day. And when you do, take a lesson from the locals. In Italy, it seems like everyone stops for a coffee at 11 AM. When you’ve stopped at a coffee bar at 11 for your espresso or cappuccino, a small (small is the operative word) cookie, biscuit or piece of chocolate usually accompanies the coffee. It’s just enough. It’s just right. This jolt of caffeine and bit of sweetness can easily propel you until it’s time for a great lunch.
4. Move! Traveling gives you every excuse, every opportunity to walk, stroll, and enjoy. Walking burns calories, walking involves muscles, walking takes you places, walking helps you see new things and smile at people as you walk by. The whole experience is a positive one. An evening stroll is traditional in many places. In Italy, they call it the passegiata, as the Social Life Project writes, this is a tradition everyone should follow. They add:
“But passeggiata (pronounced pas-seg-già-ta) is not exclusively Italian. In Spain and Latin America, they call it the paseo. In Greece, the volta. Far beyond warm-weather places, the Germans enjoy a spaziergang and the Swedes a kvallpromenad. In English...and French, we call it a promenade—describing the activity as well as the place where we do it.”
Don’t Worry, Be Happy. As the song by Bobby McFarrin goes, don’t worry, be happy. Enjoy the taste, eat slowly, and don’t worry about finishing everything. Enjoy, be happy and be sure to keep moving.
You may think I’m just telling stories. But it’s true. On Oldways Culinarias, we enjoy great meals—some of them with too many courses over several hours—but we take our time, we savor what we have, and walk a lot as well. I usually arrive home having lost 5 pounds or so.
What I also try to do is take a lesson from whatever place I’ve visited. Whether it’s the dishes we eat, or the way we eat, or the attitude and activity we have, there’s so much to learn from traveling. We can only be enriched—and be healthy—from the lessons of local food traditions around the world.
Global Recipe: Chicken Yassa
Searing or grilling the chicken and caramelizing the onions brings smokey, sweet flavors to this Senegalese favorite. A scotch bonnet chile is often added for heat, and green olives are a common garnish.
Insider Travel Tip: Walk!
You may not always have access to a gym when you travel abroad, especially if you’re renting a house or apartment. The surprising news? You may actually be more active on your vacation than you are at home. Take a walking tour of the city you’re visiting, stroll through markets and shops, take an after-dinner walk to admire the scenery. Many of our Culinaria participants find that their daily step count is higher on our tours than when they are at home!
Book Now: Low Country Tour with Chefs BJ Dennis, Jennifer Hill Booker, and Bill Green
November 7-11, 2022
You’ll want to join us for this special food- and history-focused Culinaria in South Carolina and Northern Georgia’s Low Country. We’ll explore the sea islands that hold the key to the true history of the South. We’ll be led by Chefs BJ Dennis, Gullah food expert and advocate, Jennifer Hill Booker, southern cuisine expert, and Bill Green, owner of Gullah Grub restaurant, as we discover the food, culture, history, crafts, language and traditions of the Gullah, who helped settle this part of the US, and who made the Low Country what it was and is. You’ll also have time to explore the best of Charleston, Beaufort and Savannah, including a local cocktail party in a Savannah square plus a final dinner at The Grey in Savannah!
Spots are still available—register today!