A Quick Update

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mbeezie
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Post by mbeezie »

Hi Kari,

Your adventures certainly were magical. I am so glad you managed your MC while away, but most importantly you got to spend quality time with your family and in such a naturally beautiful environment. Hopefully you can share some photos with us.

Good to have you back!

Mary Beth
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tex
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Post by tex »

Hi Kari,

That's super news, that the trip went so well, and you were able to spend so much quality time with your family there. I thoroughly enjoyed your description.

Congratulations on doing such a good job of keeping your MC under control, also. Being able to resist all the food temptations on such a trip, takes a lot of will power and dedication, and it's obvious that you're up to the task. :thumbsup: It doesn't get much better than that. Thanks for sharing.

Love,
Tex
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sarkin
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Post by sarkin »

Kari,

Welcome back! I'm so glad you had such a wonderful journey. Congratulations on keeping MC out of the picture while you enjoyed beautiful Norway, and your family. (I saw my 'special niece' on our Paris trip, and she's going to spend the last week of August here with us! She's living in Oslo at the moment, working in day care.)

It's so nice to hear from you - thank you for your happy update. Mary Beth mentioned that barometric pressure and altitude changes can trigger mast cell issues, but it sounds as though your excellent preparation and solid adherence to your known safe foods worked as they're intended to.

Love,
Sara
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Gloria
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Post by Gloria »

Kari,

Welcome back!

I've been wondering how your trip was - it sounds like it was great! I'm picturing those beautiful fjords - the entire country is so scenic. My great-grandfather is from northern Norway, Mo i Rama to be exact. Most tours don't go that far north. I'm fascinated by the cruise you took. It sounds like it went pretty far north. I'm also impressed that they accomodated your dietary needs. I'm sure that made all the difference.

Good for you that you stayed with your diet and it didn't prevent you from enjoying the trip. You've come home intact and hopefully, refreshed.

I can't wait to see your pictures.

Gloria
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Post by Kari »

Thanks for your cheerful notes - it's so nice to be back with the PP family :).

Gloria - Mo i Rana is about half way up the coast from Bergen, but it's really far inland, so the boat does not make a stop there. Hurtigruten goes all the way to Kirkenes, which is close to the Russian boarder. We left from Bergen on a Friday evening, and arrived in Kirkenes the following Thursday. Some people take the round-trip, and I believe the boat stops at different ports on the way back down. Since we also spent time sight-seeing and visiting family in Oslo and Bergen, we opted for the shorter trip of only one way.

I hope you and your husband can take this boat trip one of these years, as it is truly a beautiful voyage, and being part Norwegian will make it particularly special for you. If you google "Hurtigruten" you will find their very nice and informative web site.

Love,
Kari

P.S. I'm still working on getting some pictures posted.
"My mouth waters whenever I pass a bakery shop and sniff the aroma of fresh bread, but I am also grateful simply to be alive and sniffing." Dr. Bernstein
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sarkin
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Post by sarkin »

Kari,

It sounds truly wonderful. My (only!) brother has been living in Sweden since 1992, and has enjoyed traveling to Norway. I hope he hasn't already done this very trip... though my niece will probably not still be living in Oslo next summer. It's always been my dream to share a vacation, instead of us traveling to them, or them to us. We have just managed this for the first time - and I truly hope it will become a tradition, and will propose this for the top of the list for next time.

It is so heartening that you were able to make this trip a dietary success.

Love,
Sara
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Gloria
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Post by Gloria »

Kari,

It sounds wonderful. DH loved our tour of Norway. We would love to go back. I'll have to look at the Hurtigruten website.

Your list of intolerances is similar to mine. What did you eat for breakfast on the cruise?

Gloria

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Kari
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Post by Kari »

Gloria,

My breakfast was very similar to Gabes' "Bubble & Squeak". I spent an acupuncture session on desensitizing to eggs before leaving for Norway and I was able to tolerate them on the boat. My breakfast consisted of potatoes (Norway has amazing potatoes) sauteed in olive oil, with beets, cucumber and a boiled egg on the side. Once I knew this worked, I repeated it every morning, and totally enjoyed it.

When trying eggs after I got back home, I reacted again, so go figure. Perhaps it's what they feed (or inject) the chicken with here that they don't do in Norway??? I'm going to check it with my acupuncturist, but am not planning to go back to see her for a while, since summer is here and I'll be heading for the mountains.

I know you like to eat baked goods that you make yourself, so that might present a problem for you on the boat (unless you bring it along). They do make gluten free bread in Norway, so I suppose you could ask them to stock up for you on the boat. However, if you're like me, you cannot tolerate commercially made, gluten free bread, because of other ingredients - sigh.

Love,
Kari

P.S. I needed my doctor's note about bringing my own food on the flights a couple of times, and it worked well.
"My mouth waters whenever I pass a bakery shop and sniff the aroma of fresh bread, but I am also grateful simply to be alive and sniffing." Dr. Bernstein
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nancyl
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Post by nancyl »

Kari,
Your trip sounded wonderful. I am so glad you didn't have any flares while you were vacationing and able to spend time with your family.

I liked your restaurant idea and will try that myself.

Nancy
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Martha
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Post by Martha »

Kari,

It sounds like your trip was wonderful. I'm so glad that you were able to spend quality time with your family, and that your MC was under control.

I'm Swedish on my father's side (no Norwegian in our genes that we know of), but have never traveled there. Maybe someday. :) Although I expect that any trips in the near future will be to Thailand to visit our granddaughter, who is moving there with her parents in less than a week. Right now I am enjoying listening to her laugh as she plays with her mommy in my living room.

Love,
Martha
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sarkin
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Post by sarkin »

Martha,

Your family's big move to Thailand really sneaked up on me - less than a week! You must be thrilled for them (and a little heartbroken). Wishing you some wonderful, safe and healthy visits while they're there,

Sara
Kari
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Post by Kari »

Nancy - thanks for asking about my trip and for your nice note. Good luck with trying my ordering method - it works really well for me.

Martha - hope you make it to Scandinavia one year - it's a lovely place to visit. So happy you've gotten to enjoy time with your grand-daughter before their move - they grow up much too quickly. Thai cuisine is wonderful and one of my favorites, so I hope you will have a chance to eat some gluten free Thai delicacies when you visit with you family later on.

Sara - good luck with gathering the family for another wonderful get-away. I agree, it makes a lot of sense to travel together - that way everyone gets to relax equally, as well as share a new adventure. There were many large groups of people on Hurtigruten - it lends itself very well to this concept. As I probably mentioned already, one of my sisters and her daughter came along on the boat trip - so we were a group of 6.

Love,
Kari
"My mouth waters whenever I pass a bakery shop and sniff the aroma of fresh bread, but I am also grateful simply to be alive and sniffing." Dr. Bernstein
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MaggieRedwings
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Post by MaggieRedwings »

Morning Kari,

Your trip sounded fantastic and so happy that the cruise was one of great eating. Love the breakfast idea and go figure on the eggs in Norway vs. the U.S.

Love, Maggie
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Zizzle
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Post by Zizzle »

Kari,
Sounds like a great trip. My grandmother, Elsie Swenson, on my Dad's side was from Sweden and grew up in Colorado Springs. Are there lots of Swedes in Colorado? My sister visited her small village while Eurailing through Europe in college. Sweden is beautiful. It cracks me up that we have a cousin named Sven Swenson.
Kari
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Post by Kari »

Maggie - so nice to hear from you - thanks for the note.

Zizzle - to my knowledge there are not that many Scandinavians in Colorado - perhaps with the exception of a little mountain town called Steamboat Springs, where a fair number of Norwegians seemed to have settled. Most of the Scandinavian immigrants headed for the northern states of Minnesota, Montana, Washington, etc. Sven Swenson sure does not sound like someone you'd be related to :grin: - love the mixing of cultures in this country - one of the reasons that makes it great !!!

Love,
Kari
"My mouth waters whenever I pass a bakery shop and sniff the aroma of fresh bread, but I am also grateful simply to be alive and sniffing." Dr. Bernstein
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