Budget Travel Food

A Student Traveler mag article advising cheap travel eats strategies caught my eye recently -- some excellent tips, although the couple of tacos and boiled corn mentioned for $1 in Mexico is hard to find in touristy spots; true of foreign foodstuffs anywhere. Remember to step off the beaten path for often-memorable meals (and an incredibly edible ear of street vendor-roasted Mexican corn, dosed with lime and chile powder, is memory-making indeed).

I frequently fumble the food budget juggling in mid-afternoon: I'm tired and footsore and boy, does that sidewalk cafe look inviting. Author Robert Reid says,"Limit those afternoon coffees and beers from sidewalk cafés next to the medieval church; soak in the same setting from a free bench." I'll try to remember that.

Reid also suggests packing a portable stove and dining a la hostel room -- good idea. Some resources:

Cooking From a Backpack

• Cookstoves for Backpackers -- Cook up some hot stuff from a backpack with a small, packable cookstove. See a couple of cool candidates.

• Cookware for Backpackers -- Cooking out of a backpack is easy if you have the right cookware pots, pans, skillets, utensils and cutlery. Check out MSR and Lexan gear reviews and compare prices.

  

• Meals From a Backpack -- Eating from a backpack is a lot better than it used to be -- mouth-watering dish descriptions and correpondingly good grub are the order of the day. Campers who once had to make do with powdered eggs that tasted like wet dust now get gourmet choices - how about "Beef Stroganoff With Wild Forest Mushrooms" (beef, sour cream sauce, noodles and a wild forest mushroom mix)? Read up and dine well.

  

• Backpack Sized Espresso Maker -- Use a portable cookstove to press espresso in the backcountry or your hostel room with this handy camping espresso maker. No need to skip the coffee luxuries to meet a food budget's constraints.

Read Reid's article.