“You’re pulling a ‘Mom’,” my sister said to me, nudging me with her elbow.
“No, she’s not – your mom has a gift for talking with strangers. Johanna has a gift for finding people she already knows and talking to them, in any location. Anywhere in the world. She’s pulling a ‘Johanna,'” my sister-in-law replied. I smiled, adjusting my new sunglasses.
We were strolling through a sunny riverside market in Savannah, our last stop before returning to the hotel to dress for our early-bird-special dinner. (When you have food allergies, eating on the early side tends to be safer). I had just run into a woman I knew in the market. She runs a coffee shop at a beach in North Carolina during the summer, and I had gotten to know her from several visits there in the past. I did not expect to find someone I knew in Savannah, but was thrilled to make the connection! The world wasn’t quite so big, after all.
We continued our walk back to the hotel, planning our outfits for the evening and reviewing the highlights of the day.
Not only did I survive my trip to Savannah with food allergies, I loved the spirit of adventure about the trip. It was a balance of relaxed (our schedule and meandering pace) and planned-out (I’d researched each meal ahead of time). I’ll be posting several “snapshot” moments of the trip to share with you the details of food-allergic travel. Overall, the trip was a success. We explored the architecture of the city with a hop-on, hop-off trolley tour, ate dinner out with only one allergic reaction (and no trips to the hospital), visited a nearby beach and walked with our pale toes in the sand, went for a true Southern tea, and ended up on the same flight home as my dad (who had been traveling for business). Oh, and since it was a girls’ weekend, there may have also been pedicures, shopping, and cupcakes involved…
Starting From Scratch 